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I was playing
at Ballys Wild West Casino in Atlantic City a little while back. There were
only a few other players at my table. The one closest to me bore a striking
resemblance to an aging version of folk-singer Dan Hill. He was playing the Dont
Pass and backing it up with full Odds, and several Dont Come bets when the mood
struck him. I was mainly hanging back to see how the table was going, and mostly
waiting until the dice made their way around to me. He struck up
a conversation about various casinos that he played at, and the idiocy of playing the Pass
Line, especially when various bets were backed up with center-of-the-table Proposition
bets. The boxman who had seen my play over the period of a couple of days tried to
hide a smirk as he looked at me and partially rolled his eyes. When it comes
to playing craps, Im not very confrontational. In fact, Im downright
polite. Maybe its to maintain that good karma at the tables, or maybe its
to keep my good mental attitude, or better still, maybe because everyone is entitled to
gamble their money in any way that they see fit. When Im
in a casino, I NEVER offer my opinion unless it is asked for. Unlike this forum,
when I am at the tables, I keep my many thoughts to myself. Sure, I ensure that
there are lots of jokes and tokes for the crew, but I would never challenge another
players betting methods. Hey, you never know, I might actually learn something from
someone elses approach to this game. For me, the game, or at least my
knowledge of it, is continually evolving, and I really am still making improvements on a
weekly basis. Let me expand
on that thought for a moment. Of course, I know all of the payouts and various odds
of casino craps. That is NOT what I am talking about. What I mean by evolving
and continuously improving knowledge is that my understanding about the ebb and flow
of the game is always increasing. In that way, I am in a better and more favorable
position to take full advantage of the game as it unfolds before me. By being
involved in the game on a much higher level permits me to take more profit, and to KEEP
more profit from this game. This
particular Dan Hill look-a-like sure liked criticizing my way of betting. When I
made a 6 & 8 Place bet for $30 on one player, and then regressed it to $12 each after
one hit, he literally freaked out! He said, Why the hell did you do that; you
are supposed to PRESS your bets after one hit, not reduce it! I responded by
saying, My method locks in an early profit, and I like it that way. Im
still in action, and anything from here on out in this hand cannot damage my bankroll.
Thats how I choose to bet. Feel free to make any bets that you like,
and I promise that I wont pop a blood-vessel; I wont clutch at my heart in
disbelief; and I wont do the freaky-deeky right here on the floor when you do.
The box-guy let out a huge belly laugh, and all the dealers tried unsuccessfully to
suppress their giggling. The only response the player had was, Im sure
glad that its YOUR money. It didnt
take the dice very long to get to my spot. That guy had made some great profit off
of the other players and his chip-coffers were full and he was feeling pretty smug.
He passed the dice to my spot. He said, Come on and show me how youre
going to make profit on your own throwin. Nobody has made a Point in the last
four shooters. How are you going to turn the table around? Magic? I bet the
Pass Line minimum $10+$1 piggy-backed for the crew, and added a $5 World (whirl) bet.
Seeing my Prop bet, he laughed out loud and said, You must be a bigger fool
than you look like, cause thats one of the stupidest bets on the table.
I nodded my head, and said, Uh-huh, in agreement. I set for the
Straight-6 set, and was rewarded with a Yo-11 in return. I collected $11 from both
the World and Pass Line bet. I always parlay the Come-Out dealer bets on the Pass
Line to give them something bigger and better to root for as my hand progresses. I
hit another Yo-11, two 7s, which are a push on the World bet, and then I hit two 12s.
It was a
profitable Come-Out, and I finally established the 5 as the Point. I Placed the 6
& 8 for $60 each, with $25 on the 9. A few Inside number hits later, I repeated
the 5, and watched as the dealer swept Mr. Obnoxious DP-line bets away. My
second Come-Out roll was pretty much a repeat of the first one. He was glad to see
the 7 generate a win for his Dont Come action that had traveled behind the 6, 8, and
9. He seemed happy enough to increase his normal $25 DP bet to a full $100 flat bet
with $400 Odds at this juncture, as I established the 9 as the Point, and the dealer
automatically moved my Place bet to the 5. Ill cut
this story short, and just say that I managed to make four more Pass Line Points and a
huge whack of Inside Place numbers. Out of all the rolls, I only managed one 4, and
no 10s in that 42-minute hand. Mr. Obnoxious had become quieter and quieter
with each successive roll and hit. I noticed how his rail space was increasing as
his chip-population was shrinking. He never did get to see the end of my hand.
He left with a few meager red and white chips. As he was slinking away I said
in farewell, Hey good luck, Im sure glad that it was YOUR money! Good Luck & Good Skill at the Tables
and in
Life. The Mad Professor
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