Craps, and the dice..........

You've all heard of the game craps, a casino game played with a pair of dice on a table that the first time you looked at it you were very intimidated by it. Once you learn the game you'll see it's one of the more fun and exciting games in a casino, and you can't tell me if you've ever been in a casino you haven't heard all the excitement coming from those crap tables. Craps is a continuous game within a game within a game etc. etc, etc., and a player can jump in and start a new at anytime. But this isn't a blog on how to play craps or the rules of craps or anything like that, this is about the "toss" of the dice!

Next time your around a crap table just stand there and observe for a while a few of the players when they have the dice and the actual rituals they might go through before and following the "toss". You'll no doubt see things like the "under hand toss with air" where the person gentle tosses the dice in a high arc toward the other end of the table and gently snuggling up against the end wall. By the way it is a rule of 99.9% of house that insist the dice hit the back wall each toss or a warning will occur. Then you might see the palm down toss with air, like the under hand toss only it's like throwing a back spin slow pitch softball at the plate and the dice in turn also gently come to rest just off the end wall. Then you might see the hard sideways toss where to player flings the dice rather hard and low into the back wall landing back in the middle or even toward the thrower. Then there's the slider who leaves the dice touching the table and briskly slides the dice towards the end wall basically tumbling all the way to the other end and come hard off the end wall. Then you have something between the under hand toss and the sideways throw towards one of the end wall corners and thus the dice make the bend and circle the end wall starting at either the right or left corner and finishing in or near the opposite corner and stay low as to not hop off the table (this is my favorite by the way).

There are also rituals before the dice are even tossed, like turning them on the table over and over until the number on top is your number or just a favorite of yours that you used all the time. Or the guys that just pick them up without a glance and toss immediately toward the other end, no farting around, just pick them up and throw (this too is my favorite). Some players will stack the dice one on top of the other to begin the toss and then of course you have your blowers and shakers in the hand before the toss like you might see on TV or in the movies! Whatever you do you don't take the dice off or out of the table ring or hide them or their view from the stick man, that's a no no and calls for a warning.

Now if your on a roll and rolling some numbers over and over without a 7 being rolled everyone is making money and the stick man or boys working the table may try and rattle or disrupt you by saying things like make sure you get em all the way down or don't pick the dice up so high etc. to try and cool you off...........................believe it or not it works and we all hate the bother! Best thing in that case is to leave the table with your winnings and start a new session a bit later!

Check it out next time in a casino and see for yourself all the quirky things happening on and around a craps game!