Las Vegas is full of strange people, rare occurrences, oddball theories, wacky superstitions, betting strategies and gambling gurus. If you can learn to ignore, accept little of what you see, don't take everyone serious, and observe with a sense of humor, you will get a big kick out of your casino visits...even if you're having a losing day! This was not one of them.
There were too many cold streaks at the $5 dice tables with one shooter after another throwing a couple of numbers followed by a seven. I soon picked up my handful of chips and went to the $10 table where I decided to watch for a few moments. It paid off.
From the groans that were heard after his throw of a seven, it was apparent that the current shooter had just got the dice and now they were being passed to the next victim. This guy, too, quickly established his point and followed with a throw of a seven. At this point I thought that all the tables in this casino were "cold." But there was one more shooter before the dice would be passed to me and since I have more faith in my own shooting ability (a common Craps credo), I decided not to bet on this guy either....for now.
This young man, however, had a system like I'd never seen before, or since. I'll call it RED STACKING. It defies odds, yet when talking to him later, he swears that it works for him most of the time; that he's made a ton of money from it. This is what I witnessed:
He placed five RED chips ($25) on the Pass Line (from here on out I'll call it P/L) for his "come out" roll and, after meticulously "setting" the dice, he promptly threw a seven. When the dealer tried to pay his even wager with a GREEN five dollar chip, he asked for RED, which he stacked up on top of his original five chips on the P/L. Now he had ten RED chips ($50) and after "setting" the dice, he briskly threw another seven.
Maybe I should join in, I thought to myself. No, I'll wait and see if he can make his point.
The dealer again tried to pay him with two GREEN chips and again the guy asked for RED. The dealer looked at the table supervisor who nodded "okay" and proceeded to pay the guy with ten more RED chips. The shooter again stacked them all as high as he could, this time making a tall stack and another smaller one right next to it on the P/L.
"I'm going to win all of those red chips!" He boldly said to no one in particular, as he pointed to the stacks of chips that lined the dice table in front of the boxman and dealers.
Now, I was really intrigued by his style, as was the rest of the table. What was originally six or seven people turned into a full table either playing or watching this young man stack his RED chips. This guy seemed to be warming things up. But he hadn't established a point yet, so it was too early to tell. He took the dice and took his time setting them the way he wanted. This is a very normal and popular occurrence, called "dice setting."
This time he skidded the dice hard against the rubber and they produced a three and a one. The shooter now had a point number.
"Three and one. Four. Little Joe. The shooter's point is four," the stickman called out.
Now, the shooter did something that I thought was odd, and really not very smart. He placed only fifty dollars in "odds" behind his P/L wager, all RED chips, of course. At this particular casino he would be allowed to take 10X odds, or up to $1000 on his $100 P/L wager, but this guy puts down HALF of his original bet, $50 in RED chips. But I've seen a lot of stupid bets placed, so this one is not that unusual. In any case, the FOUR pays 2-to-1 on odds bets and if he makes his point, he'll be $200 richer with his even-money $100 on the P/L and $50 odds bets. He also made no other bets on the table, which I also thought was peculiar.
Well, he did it! His next three throws were craps numbers, two threes and a twelve, and just when the crowd seemed to be setting themselves for disappointment, he came right back with another three and one.
"Three and one--four! The shooter makes his point...four. We have a shooter!" The stickman calls out, while everyone is high-fiving.
Now the dealer tries to pay the shooter with BLACK ($100) chips, one for his P/L bet of $100 and one for his odds bet of $50.
But the shooter says, "No, I want RED chips. I told you I'm gonna take all those RED chips from you!" He doesn't say this in a mean tone, but rather in a matter-of-fact way.
Again, the dealer looks for approval from his boss, and then stacks an equivalent height of RED chips next to the two stacks on the P/L, and then places a double stack against the ODDS bet of $50 behind the P/L.
Everyone is still abuzz, and you can see that this shooter is psyched-up as well. Now he takes part of his winnings and places them, for the first time, in the rack in front of him. He leaves around the same number of chips on the layout as before, making two stacks of ten RED chips ($100) on the P/L for his new "come out" roll.
This time I make a bet on the P/L. I'm going to take advantage of a hot roll, even if my two red chips pales in comparison to his two stacks!
He throws a seven! The table erupts. Again, he asks for RED chips. The dealer accommodates him and he places his winnings in the rack. The stickman passes the dice to him. He throws another seven! The crowd is roaring! This time he leaves his winnings on the mat, stacking the RED chips in four, even, $50 stacks on the P/L. I'm looking at his winnings and see that this guy is ahead about $400. Like most craps players, his original stake is separate from his winnings.
He sets the dice and pitches them hard against the opposite wall. An eleven! Another winner and the dealer by now knows what to do. He stacks RED chips evenly next to the four stacks in front of the shooter. The shooter has won another $200 in RED chips and he picks up his winnings. Then, for the first time he makes a haphazard bet, stacking a few on top of the remaining four stacks of what was once 10 in each stack.
There is a commotion behind the lines. The Pit Boss is getting ready to bring in more chips to the table which not only replenishes the dealers chips (a show of "power" over the gambler, that the HOUSE has plenty of money in its arsenal) but also is considered one of diversion. Dice shooters are a very superstitious lot and they don't want anything to upset the flow of the dice; a break in the action can be deadly. Everyone, especially the stickman, notices the tray of chips, and he holds back on the dice for a few minutes while bets are still being placed.
It works. The shooter, still in his second "come out" roll, throws a three. A losing bet for the P/L. A noticeable "aww" emits from the crowd of gamblers. Everyone buckles down for another try. The Pit Boss holds back with the new chips. The shooter starts over with $50 on the P/L and proceeds to throw two more sevens, increasing his P/L bet by $50 each time, before setting his new point of EIGHT. After each win he continues to ask for RED chips, which he is obliged with. The shooter again says, "I'm gonna take all those RED chips." And again, he places HALF the amount of his P/L bet as ODDS, keeping several rows of RED chips in front of him. I figure that he's got $800 in front of him in winnings.
Now the HOUSE is getting nervous again and delays the next throw to bring in the new chips. This takes about three or four minutes. The stickman holds the dice. The crowd is grumbling.
Finally, the dice are passed to the shooter and everyone is ready. The shooter has two tall stacks of RED chips on the P/L and one stack of ten behind it for ODDS. I, too, have my winnings in front of me, having played right along with the shooter. I am making Come bets as well and I've regained my losses from the earlier table.
Again, their strategy worked. The shooter threw a seven. His second point of eight was never attained, but he made a lot of money for himself and many others at the table. Everyone is still charged-up with his play and I overhear someone say, "Nice throwing shooter!" The dealers collect all the chips and the stickman is ready to pass the dice to the next shooter.
Instead of "coloring up" as most diceshooters do, he asks for a bucket like the slot players use. I asked him why he wasn't going to keep playing and he said, "I only wager on my own shooting. As you can see, it works! I didn't get all the red chips this time, but I'll get 'em next time."
"Have you ever taken all of the RED chips at a Craps table?" I asked.
"Yes. Several times. But never at this casino. I'm working on 'em one at a time."
I look at his full bucket of RED chips. "What if they bring in a new supply, like they did here."
"Then I'll quit, I want to clean out the initial supply. They don't play fair."
No, they never do. That's why there are so many casinos, I suppose.
If you have met or witnessed unusual characters, preferably in a Las Vegas casino, and you'd like to share your experience with the readers of Woody’s Vegas Page, drop me a line at gsWoody@Centurytel.net
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Original material by G.S. Woodlow ©2002.
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