Dear
Mark,
In craps, is there a difference between a hopping
hardway and a regular
hardway? Is either worth playing? Clint F.
With
a hardway, Clint, you are betting that a matching
pair of dice
will appear before a 7, or before two dice of the
same total value are rolled. When the face of the
dice are rolled as 2 and 2, it is
considered a hard 4; the 3 and 3 is a hard 6; the
4 and 4 is a hard 8; and the 5 and 5 is a hard 10.
Using a hard 8 as an example, you lose if a seven
is rolled, or an eight the "easy" way (6
and 2, 5 and 3, or a 7 and 1).
With
a hopping hardway, you are betting that a certain
matching pair
will appear on the next roll. This one-roller
pays 30-to-1, compared to
a payoff of 9-to-1 for the run-of-the-mill hard
6 or 8, or 7 to 1 for
the hard 4 and 10.
Although
all proposition bets like a hardway have high
payoffs, the
casino advantage on them is between 9-11%; far
too high to chance them
with your hard-earned money. The only thing hardways
are good for is
the house. Besides, Clint, they don't call 'em
hardways for nothing.
Good
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