Heavys Axis Power Craps
Practice Plan
The Warm-Up: To be an
effective precision shooter you must take time to train.
Since dice control involves physical movement, the first thing you should do is
take time to warm up a bit. The purpose of
the warm up is to increase the blood flow to the body parts you will use to execute the
precision toss. This increases flexibility
and sensitivity,
Begin by warming up
the fingers. Open and close your fists
several times in a milk the cow movement.
Stretch your fingers by placing your hands together and effecting a
spider doing push-ups on the mirror move.
Flex your wrists by moving them up and down, then rotating them left and right. Then move on up the arm, flexing your arms in a
curling fashion, then rotating your shoulders. Its
a good idea to stretch the long muscles of your back and sides as well with a reach
for the sky movement. And dont
forget to flex those ankles and knees as well. Youll
be spending a lot of time standing in one spot at the tables so its best to start
out warm and loose.
Once you feel
prepared physically go ahead and toss the dice a few times without recording your rolls. Play a mental session of Pass Line plus Place the
6 & 8 to see how you fare. Then, once you
are warmed up and your toss grooved in, start to record your rolls.
Setting the Dice: Your
primary pieces of equipment when training for precision shooting are regulation casino
dice and some sort of practice box. Casino
dice are available on line direct from the various manufacturers, or you can order dice
from any number of outlets in Las Vegas. Gamblers
General Store is the most commonly cited source.
Your practice rig can range from a junk drawer practice table to a shop-built
practice box to a full-sized regulation craps table.
Any of these will work fine for your purposes.
After your warm-up
and initial tosses you should spend a few minutes practicing the various dice pre-set
arrangements. Decide first which pre-set
arrangement you are going to practice. Next,
place four or five pairs of dice in a cup then dump them onto your setting station. Now quickly pick the dice up one or two at a time,
pre-set them to the desired arrangement, then set them aside. Repeat this process for five to ten minutes for
each of the primary dice set arrangements you commonly use.
Perfecting your Pitch: Once
you have warmed up and practiced your dice sets it is time to practice your pitch. Practice throwing the dice from a distance
equivalent to what you will face in the casino. If
your preferred shooting position is stick right, for example, and you normally play on
twelve-foot tables you should practice from a distance of around eight feet.
Use Two Colors of Dice: Many
players find it useful to toss two different colored dice during their practice sessions. This makes it easier to track where each die
landed upon release. It is very helpful in
diagnosing specific grip and release issues. However,
once your pitch is grooved in it is recommended you practice with a matched pair of dice
similar to the ones you will be shooting with when you head to the casino. If the casino you frequent uses 3/4-inch sand
finished red dice, those are the dice you should practice with.
Develop a Smooth and Consistent
Delivery: Focus on a smooth fluid movement when you toss the dice. Remember the three Cs of the
precision toss - comfort, control, and consistency. Try
to deliver the dice to the exact same spot on the layout every toss. Shoot for the same trajectory, the same release
point, and the same results over and over. Visualize
these results and you shoot from the Axis Power Zone.
Track your Results: Every
practice session should focus on both the come out cycle pre-set and the point-cycle
pre-set. Results must be tracked for every
toss and your Sevens to Rolls Ration calculated for each shooting cycle. Rolls should be broken down to include how the
numbers rolled in addition to what point rolled. For
example: Pre-Set - V-3. Point - 8. Rolled 6-2. With
this date it is possible to analyze exactly what happened during the toss. In this case the dice stayed on axis, both pitched
forward a quarter turn, and scored a primary hit on the eight. Had the dice rolled 5-2 in this example you would
now that the left die was off axis, and probably rolled out a quarter to come up five. This allows you to diagnose the problem and take
corrective action.
Add Chips and a Virtual Session:
It is one thing to throw the dice into an empty practice box. It is quite another to throw them on a table
covered with stacks of chips. For that reason
I recommend spreading a few chips around your landing zone in the practice box, then
running a virtual craps session in your mind utilizing your betting strategy of choice. Set a win goal and loss limit and see just how
well you do.
Tracking results at
practice sessions relies heavily on your powers of observation. By studying the behavior of the dice one can
effectively deduce what errors are being made. Here
are some of the more common observations and possible causes:
Secondary or Third Numbers
Showing: The dice are not rotating on axis relative to one another, or one die
is off axis and off rotation relative to the other. This
is usually a grip issue. To check your grip
pre-set the dice with the straight sixes facing down table, then inspect the grip after
pick-up to make sure the fingers are in a straight line relative to the sixes. If the fingertips are in a straight line then the
dice are probably sticking to one or more of your fingers.
Apply a small amount of talc to your fingertips to rectify this.
Double Pitch, Roll or Yaw:
These are fatal flaws that will result in the seven rolling approximately fifty
percent of the time. Again, these are
generally grip issues. Follow the same
procedure as outlined above.
Dice Bounce Left or Right: The
dice are not square with the surface of the table upon landing. If the right corner of a die hits the table first
it will kick the die off to the left. If the
left corner hits first it will kick off to the right.
This is very difficult to recognize from the shooters perspective. He is viewing the dice from above and behind and
cannot effectively ascertain whether or not they are square with the table surface. Ask someone to observe your pitch from straight
out to verify the need for adjustment, or simply videotape your toss from straight out and
observe the results. One solution to this
problem is to actually begin the toss from the table top rather than picking up the dice
first.
Dice Rolling Too Fast or Hitting
the Wall Too Hard: The dice are being thrown too hard, at the wrong angle, or
with insufficient backspin. The player should
attempt to toss the dice as gently as possible at an angle of approximately forty-five
degrees. A moderate amount of backspin will
help the dice decelerate upon landing.
The Axis Power Practice Form:
A copy of the Axis Power Practice Form is included with this manual. You may duplicate this form or create your own. Always make note of the date of your practice
session and the particular pre-set arrangements used.
If you use more than one type of grip or toss make note of that as well. Record your shooting position and distance. You may also want to add information such as what
type dice you were using and whether or not you were tossing to a double layer of felt.
While practicing
record every roll. Show the individual dice
totals as well as the point number rolled. Circle
the point if you made your pass. Place
an X or an asterisk next to every seven out. Make notes on the form about any specific problems
encountered and corrective action taken. When
you are done calculate your sevens-to-rolls ratio for the session. Then look back at your indicators for any
additional diagnostic feedback. Look for
repeating numbers and signature trends. Track
for hardway hits and any potential edge on proposition bets.
Practice, Practice, Practice:
In order to master any skill you have to practice.
Your practice routine may take as little as twenty minutes - or as much as two
hours. My suggestion would be to establish a
daily routing with a minimum of 72 tosses for each of the pre-sets you plan to use in the
casino. Sticking with three or four pre-set
arrangements you should be able to complete this in a little over an hour a day. Remember, though, that daily practice is
cumulative. You dont have to do it all
in once stretch. Three twenty minute practice
sessions spaced throughout the day can be just as effective as one marathon session - and
sometimes even more effective.
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