Okay, sermons over
lets play craps.
Although
the dealers here are unionized and are paid just a bit over $18 per hour; I was still
surprised as to the total lack of tokes that were generated from even the hottest tables. I learned later that casino-management has been an
early opponent of allowing dealer-tokes in any way, shape or form; and therefore the
strong non-tipping tradition had persisted into the present environment.
The
Session Continues
It
was taking a while for the dice to cycle back around the table, but I was enjoying the
quick re-acclimation of playing in a bilingual casino again. It actually harkened back to a time when Haiti was
under the rule of Jean-Claude
"Baby Doc" Duvalier
when there were a handful of casinos that offered craps (El Rancho, Royal Haitian, Le
Plaza and Habitation Le Clere). At that time,
the craps game was called in Franco-Caribbean Patois, Spanish and English. Of course, those tables are long gone
turned
into firewood to cook someones meals for a day or two, but the quaintness of the
stickmans accent at my current table reminded me of a much more pleasant time on
Hispaniola.
I
ended up having five shots at the DP brass ring. I
made quick 7-Out money on four of them, but the fifth one was one of those hands that
Rightsiders wet their pants over
I
just could NOT 7-Out.
In
the middle of what seemed to be an interminable roll, I decided to transition my bets to
the right-side, because all of my attempts to bring about the 7-Out had failed miserably. At first I was a little unnerved
the dice
were no longer doing anything I wanted them to do. I
resigned myself to the fact that if the dice were not going to do what I wanted them to
do, I might as well take advantage of it like everyone else at the table was.
They
all clapped and guffawed when I became a convert to the Do-side during what
turned out to be the middle of my roll.
With
across-the-board Place-action (including a sizeable wager on the PL-Point number to offset
my base DP line-bet), I was able to pull in quite a bit of fresh cake. I didnt change my set from the one I had
been using in attempting to 7-Out. Rather, I
simply let the current off-axis results spin some medium-carat gold.
I
eventually removed my Dont Pass line-bet altogether.
This was one of those hands where skill had NOTHING
to do with my success, and only sheer luck and my lousy off-axis rolling was keeping me in
the game.
When
I finally did throw the 7-Out, I was as disappointed as the rest of the guys at the table,
but I was equally disappointed that my on-axis tossing had disappeared completely within
one semi-lengthy rotation of the table.
A
Bit of Reflection
I
got a comp for the lunch buffet at Le Bonne Carte, and had a chance to think about my
first session.
I
had stuck to my DP plan and it worked 80% of the time.
I was using the Straight-Six (S-6) set on the Come-out and it was working
quite well. By my calculations, it was taking
on-average about four rolls before I established the PL-Point. To my mind, that was on track. I wasnt in a position just yet to predict
what my PL-Point was likely to be, but some S-N trends were definitely starting to show
themselves. By focusing on C-O Horn-profit, I
wasnt as in-tune with what PL-Points were more likely to come up as I probably
should have been.
On
four out of those five hands, I managed to bring the 7-Out about within my goal of
five-rolls or less, but the fifth hand had blown that average all to hell.
At
the point where I transitioned from the Darkside to making those across-the-board
Place-bets, I had thrown no less than 27 times (including a three-roll C-O). Sometimes I need to drink a cup of my own advice,
and recognize an opportunity a little sooner. In
truth, I recognized the opportunity, but I was so chagrinned that I felt a little sheepish
in taking advantage of it. To top all that, I
couldnt figure out why my on-axis shooting had suddenly gone into the toilet.
Though
I took consolation in the profit that I derived from that transition, I was somewhat
stymied as to why
it had happened.
I
debated whether I should take a more extended break and go back to the hotel to do some
practice-toss analysis. Even though it was
less than fifteen minutes away, I opted to give the tables another try.
Session
Two
I
joined another semi-crowded table, but I had no intention of staying there for anywhere
near as long as I had played during my morning session.
Rather, I just wanted to be sure that my on-axis, primary-face shooting
hadnt permanently gone on hiatus.
This
casino prefers that you have a line-bet or some other type of Place-action in play on the
previous player when the dice come to you. I
dont know how evenly they apply this rule or whether they enforce it on a haphazard
basis in terms of whether you are a regular there or not; but I didnt
want to take any chances
besides the table certainly looked to be trending cool as a
little less than half the players were on the darkside.
I
used my Choppy-Table-Short Leash Method to good benefit for about thirty minutes before
the dice came to me. The deepest I got into
the progression was to the fourth-stage, and that was due to a number of C-O 7s and
11s with a quick Out after that one particular players second PL-Point was
established.
I
started using the Early
Trigger
component of the C-T/S-L (as discussed in
FAQs
About The Choppy-Table/Short-Leash Method Part
Two)
because
most of the players were not even getting past their first Point, and I felt like I was
missing out on even greater Darkside opportunities.
Ill
quickly interject that a lot of the guys who had been betting on the Darkside, converted
to betting with
the dice
when they became the shooter. In most cases,
the trend (and their subsequent results) gave a strong indication that they would have
been MUCH better off if they had stuck to the DP side of the dice and bet against their
own shooting.
Much
to my relief, my own shooting got back on track and my subsequent hands only required
3-rolls, 5-rolls, 2-rolls, 2-rolls, 7-rolls and 3-rolls (during the Point-cycle) to bring
about the 7-Out.
My
Come-Out Game
Within A Game
shooting faired equally well during this session. It
was taking just under four rolls before I established the PL-Point, and I used those
pre-Point rolls to as much advantage as I could.
Heres
how:
Where
Horn-Action Fits Into My Game-Plan
I
use Horn-action in two, and only two instances when Im shooting from the
Dont
when its the Come-out roll
and when its the Point-cycle
roll.
During
the C-O I use it to boost my pre-Point earnings. With
the S-6 set for instance, I can get enough Horn-paying repeats to use it as a stand-alone
profit-center that is equal to or greater than my anti-Point rolling DP-bets (once the
PL-Point is established).
During
the Point-cycle, I will sometimes use Heavys See A Horn, Bet A Horn
approach on the basis that some of the anti-Point dice-sets that I use do in fact spin off
a lot of Horn-numbers as well as a preponderance of the desired 7-Outs that I am
looking for.
Notice
that I dont throw out money on the Horn in the HOPE that it repeats, but do so on
the basis of frequent higher-than-average repeats. If
you find that certain numbers repeat in clumps, then straight-up betting on
them can be a profitable thing. However you
have to keep a constant eye on how much you are venturing on those wagers versus how much
you are collecting from them. It does no good
if you can report an astronomical win on back-to-back-to-back Horn-wins, yet STILL end up
losing money because of what it cost you to get to that point.
Session
Three
My
third go at the tables offered a good opportunity to put some of that Horn-action
philosophy to work.
My
C-O roll-cycle was taking a minimum of three tosses, and averaging almost five throws if
you include the roll that subsequently becomes the PL-Point.
My
anti PL-Point cycle was in the same ballpark. In
most cases, it was taking about five rolls to 7-Out, although a few went in as little as
two tosses, while one of them took sixteen throws before bringing home the DP-bacon.
My
Come-Out Horn Action
Ill
be the first to admit that the following betting-method may not take as much full and
absolute advantage of my shooting skills as it should.
To my mind, my Darkside C-O betting-approach is still in the formative
stages of development, and I readily agree that its a long way from reaching its
ultimate utility (and profitability).
Just
as the rest of my betting has evolved over the years, and still continues to do so to this
very day; my Darkside C-O action is a work in progress, and as youll see with
subsequent installments in this series, it continues to advance and develop with each new
day.
By
this point, it had evolved to look like this:
Ø On
my first Come-Out roll, I make a $4 Horn-bet.
Ø On
the first hit I'll press the Horn by double (from $4 to $8) if a 3 or 11 rolled, and rack
the rest of the profit.
Ø If
the 2 or 12 rolled, then I'll quadruple it (from $4 to $16), and rack the rest of the
profit.
Ø If
a Come-Out 7 shows up during any of these progressions, I re-start my Horn-betting at $4.
Ø On
the second hit (if a Horn-number comes right back), I'll do the same thing again. I'll
double it if the 3 or 11 hits this time, and quadruple it if the 2 or 12 appear on this
go-round.
Ø The
third Horn-hit in a row poses an interesting problem.
Yes, the profit is tumbling in, but this is also the point where
Pit-attention MAY start to kick in.
Ø If
the same Horn-number has shown for three rolls in a row; then it can cause even MORE
concern. If it's been three different, or at least non back-to-back same-number
occurrences; then it usually doesn't give rise to too much concern and I'll press on.
Ø With
that caveat in mind, I'll again do the double press (if 3 or 11 rolled this time) or the
quadruple thing (if 2 or 12 showed up).
Ø Concurrent
with that, I may put up a Lay bet against the 5 or 9.
I have found that with my shooting; three, four or five Horn-repeaters in a
row is usually followed by a C-O 7. Though my
flat DP line-bet will suffer and my now semi-large Horn-bet will disappear; I take
consolation in the fact that Ive got a (usually much larger) payout coming from my
Lay 5 and/or 9 wager.
Ø If
a fourth Horn shows up; then I'll usually do that double or quadruple press again,
but I'll be even more mindful of any untoward Pit-attention. That doesnt mean that you have to look
around like an undercover junior G-man. Instead,
it means that you have to know the difference between mild curiosity and outright concern
when it comes to any attention from the Pit- dwellers.
Ø Concurrent
with the fourth Horn-hit in a row (and any further C-O Horn-repeaters from this point
forward), I'll usually ratchet up the Lay-bet against the 5 or 9 by 25% to 50% on each
subsequent non-Point-establishing C-O result.
Ø Though
the Lay-bet(s) on the 5 and/or 9 can get fairly lofty during the C-O cycle, keep in mind
that I usually get a C-O 7-loser somewhere just after the C-O back-to-back-to-back-to-back
Horn-bet wins, so from my perspective it makes a lot of sense.
Ø In
fact, during
this Shooting From The Don't's in-casino test-phase trip, there werent many
times when I got past four Horn-hits in a row with the S-6 set before a C-O 7 showed up. Like I said, during the C-O thats bad news
for my DP-bet, but good news for any of my Lay-action.
As youll see in a second, the reverse of that multiple-Horns-then-7
sequence can work just as well during the Point-cycle.
My
Point-Cycle Horn Action
Once
I establish the PL-Point that Im shooting against, I usually give my Horn-action a
rest until one of them shows up again, then I start a new Horn-bet sequence similar to the
one I just outlined above.
Ø When
a Horn-number appears during my Point-cycle, I use Heavys See a
Horn
Bet a Horn approach wherein I make a $4 Horn-bet.
Ø On
the first hit I'll press the Horn by double (from $4 to $8) if a 3 or 11 rolled, and rack
the rest of the profit.
Ø If
the 2 or 12 rolled, then I'll quadruple it (from $4 to $16), and rack the rest of the
profit.
Ø On
the second hit (if a Horn-number comes right back), I'll do the same thing again. I'll
double it if the 3 or 11 hit this time, and quadruple it if the 2 or 12 appears on this
go-round.
Ø The
third Horn-hit in a row I'll again do the double press (if 3 or 11 rolled this time) or
the quadruple thing (if 2 or 12 showed up).
Ø Concurrent
with that, I may put up a Lay bet on the 5 or 9 if I dont already have one in place
(or ratchet it up depending on which one isn't the PL-Point if that is the case), and ask
rhetorically (to no one in particular), "Where did all these Horn-numbers come
from...all I really want is the 7-Out".
Ø If
a fourth Horn shows up; then I'll usually do that double or quadruple press again,
but I'll be even more mindful of any untoward Pit-attention.
Ø Concurrent
with the fourth Horn-hit in a row, I'll once again ratchet up the Lay-bet against the 5 or
9, or I'll sometimes add an additional Lay-bet against the PL-Point (in addition to my DP
with full-odds wager).
Like
I said, this Darkside betting-approach is in constant adjustment. I dont mind risking more money if
theres a decent NET-payoff in it for me. However,
if it means LESS retained-earnings instead of MORE, then my bankroll
doesnt want to have anything to do with it.
Some
of the tweaks that Im currently employing is to ratchet up my No-5 and/or No-9
Lay-bets on almost every subsequent Point-cycle roll.
For
example:
Ø Once
I establish the PL-Point, lets say the 6; then I start a Lay-bet against the 5 for
$30 (plus $1 vig).
Ø If
the next roll doesnt bring about the 7-Out; then I increase the Lay-5 to $45. Keep in mind that were talking about a $5
minimum-bet table. If the table-min is $10,
$15, $25 or higher; then obviously I make all of my bets commensurately higher.
Ø If
the 7-Out hasnt shown by the next roll, then Ill usually start Laying against
the 9 as well. Again starting at the $30
level, and then ratcheting it up from there.
Ø Once
I get both Lay-bets up to the $150-each mark, I have to ask myself about how likely the
prospect of delivering up a 7-Out is versus an accidental off-axis 5 or 9 which would wipe
out one of my Lay-bets.
Ø If
the dice are staying on axis, but NOT giving me the primary-face 7-Out result that
Im looking for, then Ill make a facial adjustment to the dice. Though Ill stick with the same basic-set,
Ill re-align the faces to coincide with the on-axis, but non 7-Out results that
Ive been getting. That further sharpens
my chances of getting a timely 7-Out.
Ø On
the other hand, if Ive been getting back-to-back-to-back repeating Horn-hits; then
Ill often do nothing at all as far as facial adjustments are concerned, and take
consolation that my Horn-income is taking the primary lead on this hand instead of the
quick-Out revenue-route.
Day
One Results
I
had achieved most of my D-1 objectives, but there was still a bothersome little problem of
having one hand per session (usually the LAST hand of each session) that was going WAY too
long in terms of the PL-Point cycle rolls.
I
wasnt getting as many back-to-back Horn-hits as I would have liked on those extra
long rolls either. I figured that even though
I was having to throw the dice many less times per hand than if I was shooting from the
Rightside, I was staying at the tables for one hand (one additional cycle around the
table) too many. The last hand was proving to
be a bit troublesome, and I resolved to take a good hard look at in later on in the
evening.
I
had an indescribably good comped dinner at the casinos Nuances gourmet restaurant,
and then headed off to the Ritz.
Meanwhile
Back
At The Bat-Cave
When
I got back to my hotel, I did a little post-session dice-tossing.
We
first talked about the idea of making some after-casino practice-throws back
in my
More Gain & Less
Pain (Extra
Practice-Tips - Part IV) article.
The
idea is fairly simple.
When
you are finished playing a real-world in-casino session, its sometimes very
illuminating if you have an at-home (or in-room) practice session.
Yes,
we are talking about doing some practice tosses AFTER you play.
As
I mentioned previously, you wont find this in any book or dicesetting manual,
because it is one of those counter-intuitive things that at first does not appear to make
any sense. However, I can assure you that the
insight that you can gain is worth its weight in casino chips.
After
a session at the casino, the last thing youll probably be thinking about is
practicing for your next session. On the
drive back home or the elevator ride up to your hotel-room, many people reflect upon the
session they just played. You may think about
needing much more practice, especially after suffering a particularly cruel loss. Or you may be thinking about how you plan to
repeat the same skills that brought about a stellar winning session that you just
completed.
Thinking
about it is GOOD, but DOING something about it is even BETTER!
Since
the just-completed real-world session is so fresh in your mind, you are tuned in to how
things unfolded just a few minutes ago.
That
real-world real-time feedback is VALUABLE to a Precision-Shooter.
The
fresher the experience, the better prepared to you are to assimilate recent events. For a Precision-Shooter, that means that you can
take your loss and figure out EXACTLY what went WRONG, or take your wins and figure out
EXACTLY what went RIGHT.
Yes,
you may be tired. Yes, it may be days, weeks,
or even months until you are planning on being in a real casino again, but this is the
best time to correct what is WRONG and lock-in what is RIGHT.
Were
not talking about a full-blown thousand-roll workout.
I am talking about a short set of throws. Just see exactly how the dice are leaving
your hand and flying through the air. Observe
how they are landing, and take a critical look at their outcomes.
After
you throw a dozen or so hands, I want you to ask yourself how closely these results mimic
the ones you just threw in the casino.
Ø Are
your practice session results better; the same, or worse than your just-completed
casino-session?
Ø What
is it that is nearly perfect about your throw, and what needs improvement?
Ø How
would you have changed how you threw in the casino compared to how you are throwing now?
Ø What
has changed about the way the dice are leaving your hand and landing at the other end of
your Practice Rig compared to the real table that you just played on?
Ø If
your real-world results sucked, and now you are hitting home-runs; what has changed? What should you have done differently in the
casino, and what do you think you should change now?
The
insight that you gain from an after-play session is tangible. Any exercise that helps you figure out what
EXACTLY went WRONG and EXACTLY what went RIGHT, puts you on the proper path to consistent
profit. When you do it AFTER a
casino-session, it brings an immediacy and relevance to your game that a pre-casino
practice session just cannot do.
If
you rolled great in the casino, youll see if your results continue to hold water at
home. If you shot terribly at the casino, and
you are back on track on your Practice Rig, NOW IS THE TIME to look at what has changed,
or what was wrong with your throw in the casino that suddenly improved at home.
PRE-PLAY
practice
DOES tune-up and prepare you for battle. However,
an AFTER-PLAY practice-session gives you BETTER INSIGHT into what just
happened in the casino.
The
just-finished experience is freshest, so it gives you an actionable ways to improve NOW.
Though
Ill admit that its an unconventional approach, it is designed to assist you on
the path to exceptional Precision-Shooting consistency.
Practice
BEFORE a session helps to PREPARE you.
Practice
AFTER a session helps to IMPROVE you.
Day
Two Session One
One
of the reasons that Ive kept my Horn-betting fairly conservative (relative to my
shooting skill) is because I didnt want to get caught up in the greed-factor
by rationalizing it as a potential profit-factor.
In
other words, I didnt want to start second-guessing myself by saying stuff like,
If only I had parlayed that last Horn-bet, then Id have hit my daily
profit-goal in three minutes instead of three hours or I hit so many
Horn-bets that I stopped counting them, but I still dont have any profit to show for
it cause I spent more money betting on them than I did in collecting them.
I
didnt want to get into the stack em, never rack em until
youve parlayed your bet to the moon and the casino to its knees mindset
where the parlayed-hits are the stuff that legends are built on, yet the hard-earned
profits are almost never retained.
Instead
I opted to go with a more gradual ratcheting up of my Horn-bet wins. Though it may not build a legendary reputation,
the conservatively-ratcheted retained Horn-bet profits will continue to build my bankroll. However, I also realized that I still needed to do
some MAJOR tweaking to my C-O betting in order to get more profit off of the table. Ill readily concede that I still have a LONG
way to go in that department.
Each
of my four sessions on Day Two reflected that philosophy.
As
the day progressed, the duration of my Come-Out rolls drifted slightly upwards, while the
average-duration of my Point-cycle slightly decreased.
It meant that my C-O profits continued to expand, and some of the volatility
that I had experienced the day before (especially during the last hand of each of my
sessions) had mellowed out quite a bit.
I
was pleased with both of those improvements, but the somewhat shorter Point-cycle meant
that there were less opportunities to run Heavys See a Horn, Bet a Horn
progressions when I was shooting for the 7-Out.
A
Frank Horn-Bet
Discussion
The
player-advantage of the Straight-Sixes (S-6 set) over the Horn-bet can become a three-way
juggling act when it comes to wagering on it.
ACDOC
and Maddog have done some outstanding research on this subject, and I would strongly
recommend that you take an in-depth look at their charts.
While
a player can develop a discernable edge quite easily with even rudimentary on-axis S-6
performance; he has to make some choices about how much he will spend to validate it in
the first place...and then once he does...what he will do with his profit-advantage once
it comes in.
Let
me explain:
Once
you validate your S-6 on-axis skill in the casino, you have to balance how much you are
spending in pursuing it versus how much you are making from it in net-profit
(along with whether or not you are giving up profitability on any of your
other bets).
These
are the bankroll swings and other considerations that Irishsetter has long talked about,
and they are CRITICAL to your overall profitability.
Horn-bets
and other Prop-action have a strong sex-appeal as well as a strong GREED-appeal. They feel good when they pay off, but they can
become addictive and habit-forming. If they
arent showing up often enough, then these bets can grind you and your bankroll into
casino dust.
You
know those crop-circles that are in and around the boxmans chip-bank? Those are the dusty remains of players that came
before you and got ground down into oblivion. Those
former players are now just tiny little tumbleweeds of balled up felt and bits of
exfoliated skin. You and your bankroll can
meet the same fate if your center-of-the-table bets are not net-producers. It may seem like you are only losing a few bucks
at a time, but just like a giant salami
each thin little piece that gets sliced off
and digested by non-profit-making Prop-bets leads to a slow but sure vanishing act no
matter how big your starting bankroll.
When
one of your Horn-bets hits, it becomes a matter of deciding how much to continue
wagering on the Horn, as in...same bet...press it...parlay it...or "take it
down".
You
have to make the mature decision about how much of your bankroll can be dedicated to
trying it out in the first place; and then how much of your S-6 winnings should be
dedicated and re-invested in fueling further Horn-bet revenue-growth opportunities.
The
reason I bring this up is because that is the same problematic equation that my own S-6
performance is having to deal with on an ongoing basis even today.
Though
my S-6 Horn-pursuit has proven to be quite profitable up until now, and even more
profitable during this Darkside journey; the attendant roll-by-roll volatility raises the
question of just how much I should be pressing it with each subsequent hit versus how much
I should be retaining as racked-profit.
Day
Two Continued
As
I mentioned, I saw some strengthening in my rolls (longer C-Os and shorter
Point-cycles) with each subsequent rotation around the table.
Better
still, the final hand that I threw at the end of each session did not have that Ohmigawd,
how come I cant 7-Out anymore feeling to it. I realized that yesterdays seemingly unending
last hand of each session was likely due to a level of impatience that I was starting to
feel after I had thrown a good (short) hand. Though
I was pleased when I got a relatively quick 7-Out winner, I was also somewhat perturbed
and impatient about the fact that I would have to wait so long for the dice to come back
around to me again.
As
much as I love Casino de Montreal and all the great people who play there, the lack of
low-population tables was wearing a little thin on me.
To combat that, I decided that if I was even beginning to feel the level of
impatience like I was encountering yesterday; then it was time to end it.
On
Day Two, I actually left the table a couple of times even though the dice were fairly
close-by in terms of the number of shooters I would have to endure until the dice got back
to me.
Now
Im not saying that it saved me money, but I sure know that it saved me quite of bit
of frustration.
I
got another comp and tried out their outstanding Via Fortuna Italian restaurant,
then headed back to the hotel.
Day
Three Session One
Having
the Ritz-Carlton a short drive away from the casino was not as interrupting as you might
think. The drive actually gave me a good
chance to prepare for my first hand of the day a little better than the usual
elevator-ride straight into the casino would do.
My
morning session yielded another win
albeit, not a big one. I had a fairly large Lay-bet out against the 5,
and a somewhat smaller one against the 9. I
unceremoniously whacked the 5, and in a moment of hesitation and uncertainty, I called
down the Lay-9 out of concern that I might accidentally roll that one as well.
Concurrently, I removed my Lay-Odds on the DP-Point of 4; then promptly threw the 7-Out on
the very next roll.
It
was one of those moments where if I had been a Rightside-player who had witnessed someone
else doing the same thing, I would have had to stifle at smile at the irony of the whole
thing. As it was, I decided that a break from
the action was required.
I
took a fairly long circuitous walk around the island.
Session
Two
I
didnt notice any grousing or grumbling from the other players or dealers when I was
shooting from the Dont-side. Although I
did continue to see avowed Darksiders change their stripes as soon as the dice came to
them and convert into Rightsiders for their roll only.
I
still hadnt seen any discernably-skilled Precision-Shooters either. In fact, I didnt notice ANY dicesetters who
were able to string together anything resembling a decent length hand up until Day Three
Session Two. On this day, that would
change as I did get to witness two fellows who quite literally shot the lights out time
after time when they got the dice.
Fortunately
for me, I had just got back to the table when I witnessed the first shooter, but due to
the crowded conditions, I wasnt able to get any money into action until he had
thrown three PL-winners and a string of C-O winners in quick succession. Needless to say, I was NOT betting against him. I made a moderately sized profit off of him. His buddy right beside him tossed next and managed
to deliver just about as good of a roll. Fortunately
I was on this one almost from the outset. Though
I didnt recognize either player, I did recognize their grip, set, motion and
delivery as being very deliberate and studied.
Their
shooting alone helped turn a few of my initial betting-unit pesos (that I had bought from
a fellow player in order not to disturb the game with a cash-on-the-table buy-in) into
some heavyweight krugerrand gold. I was
impressed with their shooting-skills, and my bankroll was looking fat and sassy before the
dice even came around to me.
I
had done a bit more of that after-session practice-tossing in my hotel room when I got
back from the casino the night before. It
helped me two nights ago, and it helped me again today.
I also took a critical look at my dice-tossing motion in the hotel mirror to
see whether I had picked up any tiny flaws or affectations along the way. You can read more about this defect-detector in my
Shooting
Bible Part Eight article.
By
this point, I had been at the table for more than 75 minutes, but still hadnt
handled the dice yet. When I finally got
them, I did give some thought to shooting from the Rightside in order to keep the
hot-hot-warm-hot streak alive, but I was determined to play my own game based on the
regimen that I had set out in the first place.
It
took quite a while before I actually established my PL-Point. The come-out numbers went like this:
3
3
3
11
3
3
10
My
Horn-bet pressure was stepped up in this order:
$4
$8
$16
$32
$64
$128
(-$256)
My
DP bet on this sequence went like this:
$10(initial
DP-bet)
$15
$25
$40
$10
$20
$30
$50(flat DP line-bet
against the PL-Point of 10)
My
intention was to wait for a roll or two after establishing the PL-Point before deciding
whether or not I wanted to lay Odds on it. As
it turned out, the 7-Out showed up on the very next toss, so my procrastinating
didnt afford the opportunity.
To
my surprise, the table resumed the warm trend that it had had up to the point where I got
the dice. I felt just of twinge of sheepishness insofar as betting the Dont side
when I was shooting, but then resuming my betting on the Do-side when everyone else
continued to deliver warm-trending results.
The
dice cycled the table a few more times, and the two outstanding shooters continued to
strut their stuff. My next three hands fairly
echoed my first hand, but this time I laid Odds against the Point as soon as it was
established.
At
some point after my fourth hand, the two excellent Precision-Shooters at the hook of my
end of the table slipped away. They
didnt color up and didnt use any fanfare to announce their departure. I was impressed enough with their shooting to lock
their faces into my memory, but I didnt have a chance to have a word with them out
of earshot of the dealers or the other players.
When
the table finally started to cool off, I noticed another table was almost completely
empty, so I moved over there and told the Floor Supervisor where Id be in order for
my Rating Card to follow me. I was definitely
enjoying the comped cuisine, and I sure as heck didnt want to pay for any of it if I
didnt have to. Besides that, I was
angling to get them to pick up my room-charges which I understood was going to be fairly
difficult (based on my average bet); so I knew that every minute of my play needed to be
logged for any chance of that happening.
Alternating
Come-Out and Point-Cycle Strategies
When
I got to the new table, the dealers forewarned me that the dice had been ice-cold and most
Rightsiders had been driven away while most of the Darksiders had been ground down by the
chop.
One
of the problems with trying to transition from either side is that choppy tables will
literally slice, dice and julienne your bankroll like theres no tomorrow. I nodded appreciatively at their advice and asked
if theyd mind if I shot from the Darkside in that case. Though DP-shooting was my intention all along, I
felt there was nothing wrong with appearing to hold their opinion in high regard.
One
of my current favorite Darkside-shooting plays is to continue using the S-6 set for the
Point-cycle when the PL-Point is 5 or 9. I can then lay max-Odds against the Point, and
also Lay large on the box-number twin to it.
I
had the table all to myself for quite some time. Once
in awhile a player or two would venture near, but when they saw that I was shooting from
the Donts, they would do an about face and head to a different layout.
This
was my first solo-shooting opportunity here in Montreal, and I was bound and determined to
take full advantage of it. With the dice
coming right back to me after successfully 7ing-Out, it gave me a chance to groove
in my shooting as though I was in the middle of a hot-hand on the Do-side. That is, since I was getting the dice in rapid
succession, I was able to get a whole lot more accuracy and much greater on-axis,
primary-face consistency than any of my sessions over the previous days had displayed.
Though
I still wasnt able to throw a 7-Out on command, I was usually able to bring
it about in shockingly short order. Equally,
I was able to extend my Come-Out rolling by nearly double over the average that I had been
getting in Montreal up until this point.
I
used that session as my final one for Montreal. I
had earned a pile of dough, but just as importantly, I had learned a lot more about
seizing Come-Out roll opportunities. I was
anxious to try out my newly validated methods (and permit them evolve even further) at
some less crowded tables in a different city.
I hope youll join me there.