Craps Dice Control
Craps dice control is subject to considerable debate. In summary, dice control proponents claim that it is possible to manipulate the outcome of the dice at the craps table to a small extent. The advantage is small, but they claim that over the long run a skilled craps thrower can get certain outcomes often enough to earn a profit while playing craps.
Naysayers claim that dice control is impossible in the modern world of craps. Casinos require you to throw the dice far enough to bounce off the back wall, which introduces too much randomness into each throw. Both arguments have their merits, so I’ll present both arguments here and let you decide for yourself if craps dice control is real. Later in the page, I’ll explain a few dice control techniques that are touted by the experts.
Arguments for Dice Control
Several major gambling experts openly back craps dice control. The most notable of these experts (in my opinion) is Stanford Wong. Mr. Wong has an impressive resume backing him – he’s not just some get-rich-quick gambling author. Stanford Wong has a strong background in mathematics and it was Stanford Wong who first invented the Wong technique in blackjack (see link above).
Dice control proponents say that it is impossible to control every throw of the dice. Instead, they say that controlled throws can influence the dice towards certain numbers. Thus, the advantage of dice throwing only becomes apparent after a very large sample size. This has made it difficult for there to be any definitive studies proving one way or another the existence of dice control in craps.
Stanford Wong believes that craps dice control is possible, but only by very skilled throwers. This has created an additional barrier to proving whether or not dice control is real. But, Stanford Wong did put his money where his mouth is during a craps experiment in 2004.
The Wizard of Odds describes the experiment in greater detail, but basically Wong and another skill gambler placed a bet on whether Stanford Wong and another anonymous dice control expert could purposely roll fewer than 79.5 sevens during a session of 500 rolls of the dice. According to the Wizard of Odds, the odds of throwing 79 or fewer sevens in 500 rolls is 32.66%.
In the end, Wong and his friend rolled a total of 74 sevens – which resulted in Wong easily winning the bet. According to the Wizard, the odds of randomly throwing 74 sevens in 500 rolls is just 14.41%. This isn’t definitive proof that dice control is possible, but it was definitely a big boost for proponents of the theory.
Arguments Against Dice Control
Much of the skepticism of dice control is based on the fact that nobody can control every throw of the dice. Even the most well-known dice controllers will admit that they can only influence the outcome of the dice over a large sample size. This makes it difficult for there to be any definitive proof of dice control working.
Secondly, people are skeptical of craps dice control because casinos have a rule in which the dice must bounce off the back wall before they come to a stop. It’s just too hard for people to believe that someone can have control over dice that have not only rolled down the craps table, but that have also bounced off another object.
Third, there are a lot of scam artists out there that give dice control a bad name. If you do a little research on Google (like I did for this article), you’ll see plenty of people who claim to be able to control the dice… and who are willing to sell you their secrets for the low price of $29.95. According to the most reputable people in the dice control world, there are very, very few people who have shown the ability to affect the outcome of the dice.
Dice Control Techniques
Entire books can (and have been) written about dice control techniques, so I’m not going to try to be the expert here. This section will provide a few basic tips and provide you with links for more reading. Remember that even the best dice throwers in the world cannot win every time. Skilled dice control only becomes apparent after a large number of trials.
Craps Dice Control Grips
The general consensus in the dice control world is that you want to grip the dice so that they are aligned side by side and form a single rectangle. At the same time, you should try to exert an equal amount of pressure on both sides of the rectangle. The goal is to throw the dice so that they basically spin in the same manner as one another.
Visit this website for pictures of dice grips:
The less pressure you place on the dice as you throw them, the better it is. If you grip the dice too tightly, you will introduce uncontrolled spinning into the throw. In summary, you want the dice to be touching each other, but with the minimal amount of pressure required to do so.
Throwing Techniques
Getting the grip down is just one part of the craps dice control equation. Once you have the grip figured out, you have to throw the dice correctly. The biggest challenge to exerting control over the dice is that casinos have a rule that states the dice must hit the back wall. That extra hit adds an uncontrollable spin – which you need to minimize as much as possible.
You can minimize this effect by doing two things:
- Throwing the dice so that the dice remain “stuck” together and do not spin in any direction except backwards – refer to the grip section above
- Throw the dice just hard enough so that they hit the back wall with the least amount of force possible
A good craps dice throw is marked by dice that hit the back wall and then stop immediately afterwards. This takes a great deal of practice, so find a couple of dice and practice getting this result. You will want to get this technique down pat while making your throwing motion look as natural as possible.
This is just a very basic summary of craps dice control. If you’re serious about learning how to affect the outcome of craps, I strongly recommend that you read a few books, watch training videos and practice like your life depends on it. If you decide to look for books and movies, make sure you only get them from reputable sources. There are a lot of scammers out there that try to take advantage of people looking for information.
Stanford Wong and Frank Scoblete are two of the most respected craps dice control proponents. Look for books and courses offered by these guys and you’ll be off to a great start. I can’t promise that you’ll have the same success as they have, but these authors are the best resources for craps newbies to learn all about dice control.