(read part I here or Part 2 here or Part 3 here or here for part 4)
A typical Dad, was passing through his son’s college-town late one night on a business trip. He thought that he would pay a surprise visit to the boy. Arriving at the fraternity house, he knocked on the door. After several minutes of knocking, a sleepy voice drifted down from a second-floor window. “Whaddya want?” The father looked up, and asked, “Does Jimmy Duncan live here?” “Yeah, of course he does!” replied the voice. “Just dump him on the front porch as usual, and we’ll take care of him in the morning.”
See, sometimes when you ask a question, the answer isn’t quite what you expected to hear.
Craps players can be a pretty stubborn bunch. I used to include myself among that group. It was that stubbornness that cost me literally huge and obscene amounts of money as I was learning how to make this into a profitable career. That’s one of the reasons that I strongly recommend practicing so much. It only costs you your time, and not a major chunk of your bankroll as well.
Some people will ask a question, then “zone out” when they start hearing the answer if it doesn’t coincide with what they expected or with what they want to hear.
Here’s a few questions that I DO have answers for. I hope you have the patience to read the whole response.
| Q: | I go to Vegas with a group of friends once a year. Is it possible for us to pool our comps as a group? Also, the same group of us go to Atlantic City about once a month, would it work there too? |
| A: | Yes, but you have to confirm the “pooling” arrangement with your Casino Host ahead of time. It does well if he confirms it to you in writing or by way of an e-mail confirmation. It also depends on what level of play that your group bets at. |
Usually, if your rooms are pre-comped ahead of time, they expect a certain amount of play (betting level and playing time) to justify additional comps. A frank discussion ahead of time, and a clear understanding by everyone in your group, takes away a lot of uncertainty during your trip, and a lot of hostility at the end of your trip.
Quoting from my “Atlantic City Journal”, article:
“At check-out, the first two nights were automatically comped because of my previous play and invitation. Since we were all there as a group, and the rest of the guys had played at Caesars quite a bit more than I had, our casino host wrapped all our play together, and graciously picked up my other two nights. I was pleasantly surprised (because I was pretty sure that the amount of MY play did not justify any further comps). I silently thought to myself that a couple of the other guys either dropped a bundle that I didn’t know about, or some of them had played a LOT LONGER than I knew about.
| Q: | When I am in Las Vegas, I can’t afford to waste my time sleeping. I like to play up to 18 hours a day, for three or four days straight. What is your typical day in Vegas like? |
| A: | I usually play from three to five hours a day. I’ll detail an entire week of play in an upcoming article. |
| Q: | Is there any way to bet on the Field that will work? My “home” casino shows a disproportionate amount of Field numbers in a row, but there is also the “right” number of 7’s, 6’s, 8’s and 5’s to break up the streak. The “umbrella” method sometimes works, but I’m looking for a better one. Any thoughts? |
| A: | The Umbrella Method that you talk about is when you Place bet one unit each on the 5, 6, & 8, and one unit on the Field. You could try the Iron-Cross with Silver Streaks Method, which is found in the The Mad Professor’s Playbook |
Also, you might want to try a SHORT Grand-Martingale Method, which is also found in the Playbook. Most people do not recommend this method, but using a SHORT 1, 3, 7, and 15-unit string, will give you one-unit of profit per LOSS. But PLEASE understand that the risk of ruin is also HIGH.
| Q: | This sounds like a tourist question, but do YOU ever do touristy things when you are in Vegas? In particular, do you ever ride the roller coasters? |
| A: | Once in a while, a few of my guys from back East will bring their nephews or nieces out. I’m about the only one who will venture onto the roller-coasters at NYNY, Stratosphere, Buffalo Bills, and Sahara. However, a few of my cohorts are brave enough for the coaster and other rides at Circus2, and I don’t do the water rides at Wet’ n’ Wild. |
As far as other “touristy” things, I do spend a lot of time in the Grand Canyon and out in the desert. I also see quite few shows on a weekly basis. I’ve probably seen Siegfried & Roy more than 100 times over the past 20 years.
| Q: | No matter how good your dice-shooting is, the 7 is eventually going to appear, and it will wipe out all of your big bets. If I press my bets more than two times, the 7 usually appears. How do you contend with that? |
| A: | It’s pretty simple. Before you start pressing (increasing) your bets, you want to lock-up an early profit that exceeds the sum of all the bets that you currently have on the table. Take a look in the The Mad Professor’s Playbook, or read up on regression or “up & pull” methods elsewhere on this site. You are not looking for the elusive “never-ending” roll. That’s just a silly dream. Rather, you simply want one hit that will allow you to regress your wagers, and then take further profit from additional hits. You don’t have to outrun EVERY 7, you just have to run quick enough to catch that first paying hit. After that, you are in Fat City, and a 7 can’t dent your bankroll. |
| Q: | Don’t be insulted by this question, but, are you kind of eccentric? I mean, there aren’t too many people who play craps at a casino every day, who collects cars, and who writes such large volumes of material. It seems like an unusual mix of hobbies |
| A: | First of all, I am not insulted. I never have considered myself eccentric, but then again, I never have given it any thought. I’m pretty sure that people who actually ARE eccentric, do not think of themselves that way. |
While my interests may at first blush appear to be unusual, it’s not entirely the case. Craps is not a hobby. It started out as entertainment. Then it turned into expensive entertainment. From there, I found out that even rudimentary dice-setting and consistent tossing provided improved results. The more I worked on it, the better it got. Now, more than ten years later, all of that “work” continues to pay off. I like the casino lifestyle as discussed in Lifestyles of the Precision-Shooter article.
However, I do agree that being a professional gambler is a bit of an unusual career path for most people. It’s not for everyone, nor do I recommend it as such.
The car-collecting and my involvement in motorsports goes back to the first car that I re-built when I was fourteen years old.
The writing that I do for Irishsetter’s excellent website is more of an ongoing commentary on Precision-Shooting and of my casino experiences.
Thanks again for all the great questions. I hope the answers were helpful.
Good Luck & Good Skill at the Tables…and in Life.
The Mad Professor
