Don't the security features on a craps table make controlled shooting impossible?

Dear Frank:

I am confused. The security features on a craps table should stop all these controlled throws. The methods of the controlled throws do work with practice on the right surface but on a craps table that has been designed to stop them I don't see how they can work and the casinos share the same view as me. If they did work the casinos wouldn't deny it; instead they would fix the table so they would stop working.

I saw the video on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWw-0YfCBy8). The dice are rolled three times and I would like to point out they come to rest outside the frame of the camera and could have rolled anything and the first time the dice are rolled it is said he meant to role a hard eight but there were still three number (if everything went right) that the dice could have rolled. So how did the other guy know what he was going to roll or when you get real good can you roll any combination you want? Maybe I'm missing something? If so can you please explain what.

Yours truly,
Corey S.

Dear Corey:

You're right about that YouTube video. We did it at the spur of the moment and we only had one camera. It was used mainly to show Dominator's throw. We couldn't show the landings. We have come in for a lot of criticism for that video, not the least of which was the fact that I wasn't dressed up. Instead I looked, in my estimation, like a poor bum as opposed to a successful advantage player.

However, our DVD (Beat Craps by Controlling the Dice) shows everything clearly - throws from start to finish, over 200 of them, good ones and not so good ones; slow motion, stop action - in short, the works. Watch that DVD and your eyes will see the truth of controlled shooting.

Now, the casinos have tried to keep craps random but the back wall hits do not stop controlled shooters from exercising some influence over the outcome of the rolls. Yes, some casinos will claim this skill doesn't exist. Interestingly enough, the very casinos that scoff at the idea in public are also the ones who are paranoid about shooters actually being able to do controlled shooting. Some even ban good shooters. So I don't put any stock in casino protestations, otherwise they wouldn't hassle good shooters.

Can a controlled shooter throw any number he chooses every time he throws? No. But like a good home run hitter, those dice will do what he wants them to do more than they will do what a random roller wants them to do. That's the bottom line.

I have a new book coming out in a couple of months, Casino Craps: Shoot to Win! which goes into all aspects of craps from how to play to how to gain an advantage using controlled shooting. In the fall I will have the most advanced book ever written about craps and advantage play. So those two books should really help you see the truth behind the concept of controlled shooting. They are published by Triumph Books, a division of Random House.

For your letter, I am giving you a free 30-day subscription to my private members-only website at www.goldentouchcraps.com. We have over 5,000 members on this site and I think you will enjoy it.

All the best in and out of the casinos!

Frank Scoblete