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Cheap Craps Guide
There
are still a dozen or so Las Vegas casinos that we havent covered where you will find
$3 tables most of the time. Needless to say,
during the busier weekends, evenings and holidays, youll be a little harder-pressed
to find the cheaper minimums, and are more likely to see a few more of the $5, $10, $15
and $25 variety. If
finding EMPTY tables is an issue for you, I would refer you to my
Creating More Shooting Opportunities series
of articles. In the meantime, lets
take a look at a few more of the bargain layouts. Stratosphere With
$3 minimums, and 10x-Odds, The Strat is an interesting enigma. While theyll entertain your low cost wager,
they will also permit bets up to $5000 on the Pass Line, and max-bets of $50,000 in Odds. What makes it so interesting is that this type of
minimum/maximum range is a throwback to the old days of Vegas that many people thought
were long gone. What
it means for savvy gamblers is that crazy betting methods such as the Grand
Martingale (double, plus one unit) have a much higher chance of prevailing. Of course, anytime that you have five grand on the
line, there is also the very real chance that you still may lose. By
the way, if you think that a Grand Martingale really is a crazy bet, I would
refer you to my
Dodging Bullets As A Darksider article
for a very intelligent discussion on its judicious and VERY profitable, LOW-COST use. It
will definitely give you another view of how the game can be SUCCESSFULLY played. If
the table card (the little plastic sign that has the table minimum, table
maximum, and permitted-Odds limits engraved on it) has a lower limit than you
need for your betting method; then simply ask that the Pit Boss raise the
max-bet limit for you. It is preferable that
you do this BEFORE you begin to play. The
Strats owner, Carl Ichan, understands that he is in the gaming-business, and will usually
accommodate almost any request even beyond the 5K-limit. Another
interesting aspect of playing at the Stratosphere, is that they also offer Crapless Craps. For a full explanation of what it is, how it is
played, and some appealing features of the game especially from a Precision-Shooters
perspective; then Heavys Dice Setting For Crapless Craps
is required reading. Players
come from far and wide to test their mettle against the Crapless Craps table (the only one
in the Las Vegas), so it is usually JAMMED to capacity.
Stratosphere
tables are somewhat soft and bouncy, but they dont use a cushioned underlay. Rather, they have been using an ultra-thin layer
of bonded neoprene rubber under the layout, which obviously contributes to the liveliness
of the cubes. The rubber adds dynamic action
to the dice without adding undue cushioning, which is to say, it adds rebound
without giving the offsetting cushioned benefit of dead-cat bounces. Ive
never run into any heat from the Pit-meisters regardless of the amount of my past or
present Precision-Shooting earnings. Almost
all of the senior pit personnel are discipline-case rejects from other larger
hotels, while most of the dealers have at least a couple of years of experience, and are
struggling to make their way up the ladder of better-paying (toking) gigs on the Strip. Comps
for food and rooms are easy to get, and the level of play required is around 40% to 70%
lower than their much larger Strip competitors. In
other words, if your usual 4 hours of $15 action at Caesars Palace wont even get you
a cheese sandwich; the Stratosphere will happily give you a lunch or dinner comp
(Luckys Café, Courtyard Buffet or Roxys Diner) along with a standard room for
the same amount of play. You can easily see
the benefits of seeking out casinos that are more comfortable with lower-stakes play. Main
Street Station You
will find a $3-minimum here most of the time. If
higher free-odds appeal to you; then their 20x-Odds should elicit at least some interest
on your part. This
is one beautiful casino. When Bob Snow
(builder of Orlandos famous Church Street Station entertainment complex), originally
renovated the old Park International Hotel into the MSS, he installed a huge number of
historically-significant architectural features. Although
Snow is no longer in the picture (the Boyd Group purchased it out of bankruptcy a number
of years ago) the great beauty of the stained glass and coffered ceiling from Preswick
Castle, the Prince of Wales billiard table and check-in desk, the Pullman Dining cars of
Buffalo Bill and Louisa May Alcott, the paneling and bas-reliefs from the old Magistrates
Court in England, and other items right off of the 18th Century streets of
Brussels, Antwerp and Bastogne make this a true gem in the otherwise culturally-barren
downtown area. You
will find four craps tables amidst the turn-of-the-century San Francisco train-station
motif. Although the tables are long, they are
still fairly decent as far as Precision-Shooting is concerned. During my experiment on the
Match-Play Coupon Circuit I
really got into a rhythm and proceeded to make a fair bit of money on these layouts. While it may take half-dozen or so tosses before
you are able to get a real feel for the bounce-characteristics on these monsters, the
effort is worth it. Their tables are
definitely beatable, and they are not nearly as crowded as other nearby casinos. For additional shooting tips on these long tables,
you should have a look at my
Long Tables =
Po$$ibilitie$
series of articles. One
other point of interest about the MSS is that they will sometimes raise the
table-minimum at the drop of a hat. It
isnt unusual to see one table go from $3 to $5, while another will ramp up to $10 or
even $15, if both tables get full. After I
throw a good hand, I often leave the property or at least go for lunch or dinner, because
it usually brings tables-full of players waiting to get onto the layout. Ive actually seen some Hawaiian players use
their cellphones to call over their buddies from The California Hotel-Casino if they think
they are witnessing the beginning of a hot hand. That
goes a long way in explaining the speed in which table-limits are sometimes raised. Cruising
for HOT Tables There
are more than 40 tables under or near the Fremont Street Experience in Casino Center, Las
Vegas. There are a number of full-time
gamblers who make it their business to cruise from casino to casino looking for a hot
table. They have the patience, the money and
the stamina to walk, wait and then pounce when they sense an opportunity. A
number of them belong to an informal cellphone network of players. If one guy sees a good hand developing, hell
get on the phone and alert a couple of his buddies. They
in turn, each call a few others on the list. Soon
thereafter, a horde of their buddies come a runnin with handfuls of ready-to-bet
cash. Since
all downtown casinos (12 casinos have craps tables, 4 casinos do not) are so close
together, they are quick and easy to pop into and out of.
If nothing is happening at the Horseshoe, they can cross the mall and check
out the Golden Nugget or Four Queens. If
nothing is happening at Main Street Station, theyll take a few steps over to The
California or Gaughans Plaza. To get
from the Las Vegas Club to Golden Gate Casino is exactly 40 FEET. Compare that to going from the craps tables at
Caesars Roman Forum Casino to the ones at its next-door neighbor Mirage, where it
might take 40 MINUTES. Cruising
for HOT tables is as valid of a way to jump on the profit-wagon as any other
NON-Precision-Shooting method. We look at this and a few other similar approaches in
my
Streaks, Trends and Opportunities
article. Okay, lets continue our look at the cheap seat California
Hotel-Casino Six
tables and usually more action than youll find even at The Horseshoe means that the
excitement here is non-stop. Its a
favorite hangout of our friends from the Pacific Islands of Oahu, Kauai, Lihue, Molokai,
Maui, Niihau, Kahoolawe and of course the big island of Hawaii. The
California is also home to the official Golden Arm craps tournament and the keeper of the
flame for immortalized mega-hands. To pay
homage to great rolls, they have a plaque bearing the names (of those who consent) of
players who have rolled the dice for AT LEAST one hour in length. You will find the plaque on the big pillar closet
to the craps tables and right beside the two stairs leading to the eastern section of the
hotel. Bet minimums are usually $2, $3 or $5, but they only offer 2x-Odds. Despite the large number of long hands, the hard-working dealers dont make very many tips. With that in mind, youll find your early toking will earn you all kinds of helpful accommodation. If you are interested in just how much tipping can help you, I would direct you to my TIPPING: Is There Two Sets Of Rules? article. Golden
Nugget So
much has already been written about how great the tables are at the GN, and thankfully the
reports are NOT overblown. These $3 tables
(during slow times, and $5 at others) are some of the finest ANYWHERE. They keep their table-felt fresh, clean and in
excellent condition. The dice bite in with
just the right amount of stopping-force, the rolling-bias is neutral and the table-length
is short. What else could you ask for? The
table at the end of the pit, closest to Claudes Long Bar is frequented by a number
of skilled players. Heavy and most others
refer to it as the candy store, because its pretty hard to contain your
glee when there are so many ways to roll successfully, and everything is going in your
favor. This is one of those tables that make
Precision-Shooting look easy, but its always important to bet with your head, and
not over it. It can be one of the busier
tables in this joint, so you may have a bit of a wait until your favorite position(s)
opens up. My
current favorites are the middle table closest to the Sportsbook Lounge (in front of the
large support column nearest the stickman) and also the table nearest the Gaming Salon
entrance (the high-end baccarat and BJ tables area).
I tend to bounce between these two tables by placing a chip in my favorite
position at each. Ill play at one
table until it is my turn to shoot. When my
hand is finished, Ill park a gaming-cheque in my rail, and go over to the other
table to wait for my shot there. Again, after
I finish shooting, Ill return to my first table for another shot at the casinos
money. Ive
never received any heat for making that maneuver, but then again Im fairly
considerate, so Ive never tried it when the casino is jammed-up busy. In addition, frequent tipping when I am the
shooter brings in significant amounts of leniency from the pit. As I mentioned previously, my Tipping
article covers that entire subject quite well. The
other upside of playing at the Golden Nugget, is that the Pit-Clan have a very high
tolerance for out-flowing profit, so hitting the tables to make daily withdrawals from
the vault isnt really difficult at all. There
is always a good game going on at the GN, so its usually busy, but Ive never
had a problem finding an open spot to play. A
favored technique of patient players is to stake a place at the nearby bar and watch all
of the action at the open tables. Theyll
wait until they see one of the tables start trending in a discernable direction, and that
will be their trigger to begin betting. For
more details of methods like this, you might want to check out my
Walking with a Vegas Ghost - Part V Needless
to say, if you are an early-riser or a late-retirer (3:30 am to 10 am) youll almost
always find a couple of sparsely populated tables. With
3x, 4x, and 5x-Odds and short, non-bouncy tables, the GN offers a reasonable chance of
Precision-Shooting success in a pleasant atmosphere. Fremont
Hotel This
hotel is also amongst my favorites for profitable consistency. The tables are significantly longer (except for
one) than those found at the Golden Nugget. In
addition, they are a lot harder, but the rolling-lanes are straight and true, and the
backwall alligator material is much older and less lively than at the GN. It
usually takes players a couple of rolls before they get acclimated to the
table-characteristics. From the close-in
positions at SR-1, 2 and 3, and SL-1 and 2, it is similar to other comparable-length
tables. However, from further out, these
beasts require a fair bit more throwing energy and loft to consistently hit the SAME SPOT
with the SAME ENERGY, time after time. I find
that the Fremont tables require an adequate amount of backspin if you are used to using a
high-trajectory throw. Otherwise, youll
experience a high-hop when the dice initially touch down.
For an in-depth discussion about trajectory, backspin and throwing-force,
you could take a look at my Mad Professor's Shooting Bible Part IV
article. As
I mentioned in previous articles, the rail height of the tables are two inches lower than
normal, so you may have to adjust your reach, lean and arm-extension when you are the
shooter. It is the ability to make
essential adjustments for small nuances like this that will make all the difference in the
world when it comes to profit-regularity and shooting-reliability. For
maximum profit potential on their four tables, I would invite you to see my
The Fremont Hot-Table Method . It is tips like the ones contained in that piece
that give you an added edge over other players. Green
Valley Ranch Ive
become a big fan of the GVR since it opened. Its
always easy to find a $3 game that offers 10x-Odds. The
tables arent too smoky and the dealers are competent.
There are only a handful of people here who tip on a regular basis, so the
dealers make sure those players receive ample re-compensation for their kind and generous
efforts. Ive never seen anybody
admonished for their dice-setting efforts, however repeated weak or short rolls
arent tolerated for very long. As I mentioned
previously, the table closest to the Drop Bar has a very forgiving sweet spot about
6-inches from the back wall (straight out). If you use a 45-degree or higher landing
angle; you will find a perfect dead-cat bounce hiding under this spot. Weekday
evenings bring fairly full craps tables, as does weekend afternoons and nights. If your Precision-Shooting requires less crowded
conditions; then late evenings and early mornings provide the best chances. In fact, mid-week, late evening (11 pm to 6 am)
play may give you ample solo-shooting opportunities without the company of local regulars
who stake their place at the tables as early as 7 am. or 8 am. Its important
to remember that GVR uses micro-fiber felt on their tables.
For ways to profit from these shiny, slippery layouts, I
would invite you to take a look at my
Conquering Micro-Fiber
Table-Felt article. Again, adapting your play to these kinds of things
is what separates those who are merely out at the tables for a good time from those that
are at the tables for a GOOD PROFIT. Until
next time, Good
Luck and good Skill at those cheap tables
and in Life. Sincerely, The Mad Professor
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