Readers Write

Dear Jim:

I have written extensively about dice setting and "rhythmic rolling" in my magazine Chance and Circumstance and my new book, Forever Craps: The Five-Step Advantage-Play Method, gets into this aspect of craps as well.

Okay, so much for the plugs. I haven't addressed this issue all that much on this site so here is a little of my thinking. Craps' randomness is the result of many random variables: the configuration of the dice as they leave the shooter's hand, the velocity with which they are thrown, where the shooter is aiming, how accurate he is in keeping the dice on trajectory, how hard the dice hit the back pyramids and more. Setting the dice removes the randomness from one of the parameters and fixes it with a certain value, lofting them with the same speed and power (or as close to it as you can humanly get) also changes the randomness of the throw. If you can hit the back wall in such a way that the pyramids have as little effect on the dice as possible (which is extremely hard to do) than the game has been changed from random to "somewhat controlled."

Now, if it is somewhat controlled, is that good or bad? Here you have to study the effects of your own individual shooting style and see if it is really turning a slightly negative game into a slightly positive game.

I have found over the years what tends to work best for me. I stand to the immediate right of the stickman and, using the 3-spots in a "V" (pyramid style) with my thumb on the base of the pyramid, gently lofting them so they hit just near the inner curve of the table, I have made money on my shooting. In fact, I have been having very good rolls for over four years now -- and I play a lot!

However, to win at craps, it isn't enough to just win on your own rolls (assuming you want to play at tables with other people), you have to reduce your exposure to all the horrendous rolls that you encounter. So I use the 5-Count religiously.

I am going to ask Sharpshooter, who writes for Chance and Circumstance, to contribute to this discussion in the future.

If you have any thoughts on the matter -- or if any readers have any thoughts on this matter -- please e-mail John Robison at slotexpert@home.com, and we'll gladly post your views.

This whole "rhythmic rolling" idea has become the brave new frontier of craps. My own experience with my rolls and those of "the arm" in Atlantic City, the "Golden Arm" in Vegas, and with Sharpshooter, leads me to conclude that some people can influence the game of craps by the way they handle the dice. It's not a perfect method, obviously, but a little change for the "bettor" is always welcomed, don't you think?

All the best in and out of the casinos!
Frank Scoblete

For more information about craps, we recommend: