What are hardways?

Hardways are the table's most charismatic bad habit: cheerful little bets in the middle of the layout that pay well, lose often, and refuse to go away.

Quick answer: A hardway bets that an even number - 4, 6, 8 or 10 - will roll as a perfect pair (both dice matching) before either a 7 or the 'easy' version of the number. The hard 6 and 8 pay 9:1 at a 9.09% edge; the hard 4 and 10 pay 7:1 at 11.11%.

Hard versus easy

A number rolls 'hard' when both dice match: hard 6 is 3-3, hard 8 is 4-4, hard 4 is 2-2, hard 10 is 5-5. It rolls 'easy' any other way - a 6 as 4-2, say. A hardway bet wins if your number comes hard before it comes easy and before any 7. It's a multi-roll bet that can sit working through a whole hand, which is part of the fun.

Payouts and the real odds

The hard 6 and 8 pay 9:1, but there are ten ways to lose (six 7s plus four easy combinations) against one way to win - true odds 10:1, so the house keeps 9.09%. The hard 4 and 10 pay 7:1 against true odds of 8:1, an 11.11% edge. Compare that with 1.52% for simply placing the same 6 or 8, and the price of the thrill is clear.

Where hardways fit

As a bankroll strategy, nowhere - the edge table is blunt about that. As entertainment, a $5 hardway that hits pays $45 and feels wonderful, and on Craps.now the chips are free, so the tuition is too. Just know what it costs on average, and never let the middle of the table become the middle of your game plan.

Try a hardway (with free chips)

Related questions

What is snake eyes?

Snake eyes is the roll of double 1s - a total of 2, named for the two single pips staring up like eyes. It's one of the craps numbers, so it loses the pass line on the come-out, and the one-roll Aces bet on it pays 30:1 against true odds of 35:1.

What is boxcars?

Boxcars is the roll of double 6s - a total of 12, also called midnight - named after the boxy freight cars the two dice resemble. On the come-out it craps out the pass line but only pushes don't pass (bar 12). The one-roll Boxcars prop pays 30:1, and the field pays 3:1 on it here.

What are the odds in craps?

It depends entirely on the bet. Odds bets have zero house edge, the pass line gives up just 1.41% and don't pass 1.36%, while one-roll props like Any 7 cost 16.67%. Knowing this table is the single most useful piece of craps knowledge.