How many dealers run a craps table, and what do they all do?
If you’ve ever observed the craps table in a casino from afar, you may have notice there are a lot of employees working the game. If you’ve played on a busy day, you may have an idea why it’s such a big job. Most table games are easy. Blackjack, baccarat, any card-based game really – they all require just one dealer. But you’ll find up to four employees working the craps table.
Why so many, you ask? Because craps is not your ordinary game. There aren’t just 5-7 seats to accommodate players. Everyone stands, and with the standard-size 12-foot tables installed, craps can accommodate up to 16 players at once; 8 at each end. As one of the most emotionally driven games in the casinos, it takes some extra man-power to keep the craps table running smoothly.
How Many Dealers Run a Craps Table and Their Individual Roles
At peak hours, you can expect to find four staff members working a craps table. It might drop to three on a slow table, reducing the number by one dealer. In brief, their positions and job descriptions include:
- 2 Dealers: To pay and collect all player wins and losses.
- 1 Stickman: To move the dice along the table as needed.
- 1 Boxman: To supervise the other employees, the players, and the action on the table, ensuring the game runs smoothly and fairly at all times.
The Dealers
With betting stations at each end of the table, a dealer is required to work each side. The dealer has enormous responsibilities, especially when a full table of 8 per end is present. Players are not permitted to place their own chips on the table. They must give them to their dealer, stating where they want them placed.
As you may know, craps is a game ruled by colloquial tags and key words. No one says, “Hi, I’d like to bet $5 on the Pass Line, please.” There are short-hand terms for everything. A player might say “Front line five!” to wager a $5 chip on the Pass Line; or “Ten in the garden”, to make a $10 Field Bet.
Only the dealers can put chips on the table or take them off. Not only are they placing all of the bets for up to 8 players before the shooter tosses the dice, they must then collect all losses and pay out all winnings after the roll. It’s a demanding job in a very fast-paced environment.
The Stickman
This employee has one job and one job only. It’s the easiest job at the table. They use their stick to move the dice around. They will pull them off the wall after a roll to make them visible to all players, then slide them to the shooter when it’s time for the next roll. It’s an easy job, as I said, but a strict one. They must be gentle and precise, careful never to flip a die from its current position.
The Boxman
The boxman is the pit boss of the craps table, playing the most important role of all. This person supervises every single aspect of the game. The actions of the other employees, as well as the players, are under the boxman’s scrutiny at all times. They must ensure that all bets are placed, paid and collected properly, that the dice are handled in accordance with the rules, and that no one is cheating, or being cheated, at the table. If the dice don’t meet back wall rolling requirements, the boxman will call an error. In case of a dispute, the boxman has the final say.
