Craps Systems: Pressing, Regression, Coverage, and Risk

Pressing · Regression · Coverage · Don’t-side systems

A craps system is a written rule for selecting, sizing, pressing, regressing, or stopping bets. A system can make play more organized and produce a preferred risk pattern. It cannot change the probability or house edge of the wagers it uses.

Named systems compared

Named systems compared: System; Core mechanism; Primary failure.

System	Core mechanism	Primary failure
Triple Lux	Aggressively power-press Place bets and collect at defined milestones	7 removes a rapidly growing layout before collections catch up
Squeeze Play	The $220 version spreads after one inside hit and regresses after a second qualifying hit; the $66 version requires three	One or two early sevens create large repeated losses
$135 Across	Point-excluded $25/$30 Place layout followed by a regression	High initial exposure and a misleading fixed-dollar name
Iron Cross	Field plus Place 5, 6, and 8 produces a gross win somewhere on every total except 7	7 loses all $22 in the common base version
6/8 Power Press	Use 6/8 payouts and added chips to climb bet amounts	Uncollected presses remain exposed to 7
DP Pressure	Progress Don’t Pass stakes, often with come-out hedges and lay Odds	Hedges add cost; increasing flat bets magnifies losses
3-Point Molly Don’t	Maintain up to three Don’t Pass/Don’t Come points	DC come-out 7/11 and point repeats can remove positions
Hammerlock	Nonstandard name applied to Don’t-side and Place-bet hybrids	No authoritative fixed rules; “never lose” claims are false

Four major system families

Pressing systems

Pressing increases a winning wager. A power press uses the payout plus additional chips to jump farther. These methods create occasional large collections at the cost of leaving more money exposed during the hands that end first.

Regression systems

Regression starts with larger bets and reduces them after one or more hits. The attractive end state can hide the entry risk: the full starting layout can lose before the required hit arrives.

Coverage systems

Coverage combines bets so many totals produce a small win. Iron Cross is the classic example. Winning on many totals does not guarantee good value because probability and loss size matter; six combinations make 7, and one 7 removes several bets at once.

Don’t-side systems

Don’t Pass and Don’t Come have low flat-bet edges, but they are not the casino side of the game. The player still faces the bar-12 rule and loses on 7 or 11 while a new Don’t bet is in the come-out box.

How to audit any system

• Demand exact starting amounts and valid table units.
• Separate money collected from money still working.
• Include commissions, hedge bets, and required line wagers.
• Count the loss after a 7 at every stage.
• Test all sessions, not only the memorable winning hand.
• Reject “guaranteed,” “unbeatable,” and “professional income” claims without independently verifiable evidence.

Before choosing a system, read the strategy framework, 36-combination math, and responsible gambling limits.

Coverage is not the same as net profit

Use the common $22 Iron Cross to separate a winning component from the complete roll. The layout holds $5 Field, $5 Place 5, and $6 each on Place 6 and 8. If 6 rolls, Place 6 wins $7 while the Field loses $5, so the roll produces only $2 net profit. The other Place stakes remain working.

If 4 rolls, the Field wins $5 and the three Place bets remain unresolved, producing $5 net profit. If 7 rolls, all $22 working on the layout loses. Saying the system covers a total means one component pays; it does not mean every component wins or that each covered result has the same value.

Record each component’s profit, loss, and continuing stake before judging a coverage system. A high frequency of small positive rolls can still be outweighed by the larger uncovered loss.

Select a guide by the decision you need to make

For regression, compare the Squeeze Play and $135 Across guides by entry layout, required qualifying hits and money returned before a possible 7. For pressing, use the 6/8 Power Press or Triple Lux guide to check whether a jump uses the payout alone or requires rack chips. Those are different spending decisions even when both plans begin with Place bets.

For a Don’t-side plan, use DP Pressure or 3-Point Molly Don’t to distinguish the flat contract, temporary proposition hedge and true lay Odds. Record a point repeat as well as 7: a layout that helps on 7 may still lose substantially when the point repeats. Return to the linked wager rules if a system description uses “off,” “down,” “profit” or “return” without explaining what remains on the table.