Field bet on come out: good or bad?

Is the field bet good or bad on a come out?

The dice don't know when

Therefore, it's bad. Not as bad as some bets in the casino, but worse than other bets at the craps table. I'll stick with just bad.

I know a lot of players who will bet the field on the come-out as part of their "insurance" for the comeout instead of an "any craps" or horn-high ace-deuce bet.

I'm usually at $25 table and I use the horn-high ace deuce to insure my $25 passline bet, but on a $5 or $10 table I think the field bet makes more sense than the any craps bet.

I concur, except it is a great bet at Santa Ana Star!

It always needs to be said, beware of the one-roll bet.

Quote: odiousgambit

It always needs to be said, beware of the one-roll bet.

Correct, but as an "insurance bet" for the come out roll, the field bet is an option instead of the craps or horn-high ace-deuce bet.

I use the field as an "insurance bet" more often than an any craps bet (in the rare case I do either), and I never use any variant of the horn. My irrational thinking in favor of a field bet on the come out roll is that if it loses, either I already won my pass line bet or they set a point that has a good likelihood to be made, plus there is the possibility that I win that field bet and still win the line bet. OK, I said up front that it wasn't rational.

Quote: Doc

I use the field as an "insurance bet" more often than an any craps bet (in the rare case I do either), and I never use any variant of the horn. My irrational thinking in favor of a field bet on the come out roll is that if it loses, either I already won my pass line bet or they set a point that has a good likelihood to be made, plus there is the possibility that I win that field bet and still win the line bet. OK, I said up front that it wasn't rational.

Most people feel good when they win a field bet, but over time the field will eat eat your bankroll alive.I don't believe in making bad habits and betting in the field is one of them.

Quote: dwheatley

Not as bad as some bets in the casino, but worse than other bets at the craps table.

You are quite correct, so we look at the layout and can determine exactly how bad it is for us. Most of us consider the house edge on a field bet to be unacceptably high. If we were at a roulette table we would hold a different view and if were at a slot machine we would hold a different view, but for craps, the house edge on the field bet is marginally excessive.

Its great for craps dealers who want action and who want tips. All those numbers, you know.

Now as to this Come Out or NOT... the percentages do not change.

The only reason to "insure" your passline bet is that you want to get your man on base. If he can't get to first base he can't score. (My baseball analogy.) Hence the craps bet. The field bet on the come out insures the passline bet (when made for the same amount) and also gives you a chance at getting paid on another number, or in the case of 2 or 12 getting extra.

I wouldn't play the field at any other time.

Playing the field is for single guys... and not at a craps table.

Any bet that has a higher house edge per roll is not as good of a bet everything else left out of the equation.

When you combine a higher house edge bet with a bet against another bet (IE: a hedge) it's pretty darn near stupid.

The Wizard says, "Thou Shalt Not Hedge."

https://wizardofodds.com/gambling/ten-commandments

You have to contemplate that the real question isn't if you should bet the field on the comeout, but I think what you really meant to ask is if you should have a field bet when it's on the comeout and you also have a passline bet.

If you want to bet the field, do it with a dont/DC instead of a passline/come.

Consider the outcomes on the comeout leg when you have a $30 on the passline and $30 on the field

2 -> win one unit
3 -> push
4 -> win $20
5 -> lose $36
6 -> lose $32.73
7 -> push
8 -> lose $32.73
9 -> win $24
10 -> win $20
11 -> win $60
12 -> win $60

You have to understand you lose 1/3rd of your passline on a 4 or a 10, you lose 1/5th of your passline on a 5 or 9 and you lose 1/11th of your passline on a 6 or an 8 when it's the comeout roll. The details of this are another discussion, but trust me, you lose a percentage of your bet in the form of a house advantage on a bet that pays even money when you roll a box number and you have a passline bet on the comeout roll.

When you factor that into the comeout roll, you can see that 11 and 12 are the only way to win 100% as much as you bet. The next best thing you could hope to roll is aces or a 9. And even that you only win 50% or 40% of what you bet (respectively)!!!

If you think about it this way, it's easier to see the hedge that you're getting.

When you then think about the fact that you have one bet with 0.42% edge per roll and one bet with 2.78% edge per roll, the average edge per roll is 1.6%. That's not horrible in and of itself (compared to just betting it on roulette for example). But when the chance of winning as much as you bet on that roll only happens 3 out of 36 times or 1 out of 12 (8.33% of the time) you just don't have much of a chance to get really far ahead as all the paths to winning are pretty much snuffed out by opposing bets on the other side.

If you MUST bet the field bet on the comeout roll, the don't pass is the better way to win.

2 -> win $90
3 -> win $60
4 -> win $40
5 -> lose $24
6 -> lose $27.27
7 -> lose $60
8 -> lose $27.27
9 -> win $36
10 -> win $40
11 -> push
12 -> win $60

So you can see betting the field and the don't pass or DC together is not as much of a hedge. You have a hedge against the 11, but pushing 2 out of 36 times is better than pushing 8 out of 36 times. Also, you really like those 2, 3, and 12 rolls!!

But the edge is the same. High edge plus hedge means you're going to lose much more certainly. You may stay in the game longer, you're just closing off the opportunity to WIN if you bet this way. Leave some chance for luck if you must bet the field, do it with a big DC not with a passline. Or if you want the field on the comeout, do it when someone else is shooting and don't bet any opposing bets.

Just realize when you bet the field on the comeout roll not to celebrate too much on a win unless it's a box number or a yo. Most of your wins are when the others at the table are losing.