Is The Dice Field Bet a Dumb Bet?
You should be aware of the advantages of the Field casino before placing this bet. The casino edge is different depending on whether the 2 and 12 pay double (the most common setup), or one of them pays triple (you rarely see this), or both pay triple (you basically never see this ).
Suppose you are playing at a casino that offers 2: 1 (double) odds for both 2 and 12, which is what you will find in most casinos. In this case, the Field is a silly bet. Regardless of what other players at the table tell you, and regardless of what you read in online articles, and regardless of what you hear or read from any other source, the field bet with 2: 1 odds for 2 and 12 is a bad bet. Say it out loud to assimilate: “The field that pays double for the 2 and the 12 is a lousy bet.” In this case, the course has a huge 5.5% casino edge. But most people don’t realize it and, over and over again, you see them throwing their chips on the field. What makes the field so attractive to those brain-dead robots that keep playing?
The field is easy to see in the layout, the letters and numbers are big and pretty, it’s easy to put your money into it (you don’t have to go far), and you can do it yourself without disturbing the dealer. It just looks and feels like a good bet. However, the beauty of this bet (from a casino perspective) is that it gives the illusion that there are more ways the player can win than lose.
The field wins if a 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, or 12 is shown, which means there are seven different numbers that can win. The field loses if a 5, 6, 7 or 8 appears, which means that there are only four different numbers that can lose. Certainly seven winning numbers compared to just four losing numbers is a lot for the player. Right? Wrong! That is the totally wrong way of looking at it. You should consider the number of ways to make each of those numbers, not the numbers themselves.
Let’s do the math. (Note: To make sure you understand the term “ways to do it,” let’s look at the number 9 as an example. With two dice, there are four ways to roll a 9 on the dice: 1) The die n. 1 is a 5 and die # 2 is a 4; 2) The die n. 1 is a 4 and die n. 2 is a 5; 3) The die n. 1 is a 6 and die n. 2 is a 3; and 4) The die n. 1 is a 3 and die n. 2 is a 6. Another example, there is only one way to make a 12, which is a 6 on die n. 1 and a 6 on die n. 2).