Sunday night we played craps for a little more than an hour at the St. Charles Ameristar Casino. It was a busy holiday evening. The table was full of players. Chips flying. The dealers were trying their best to keep track of everything. "Same bet." "Hard four." "Place the six and eight." "Press." Just the atmosphere that makes craps so exciting. Quick seven outs. And even a few monster rolls.
Lately I have been playing craps following author Richard Orlyn's distinctive craps betting and money management advice. As I played Sunday, it became very obvious, very quickly, that my fellow players were losing money. Even smart players (those that avoid the center table bets aka "sucker bets") playing basic pass with odds and come bets with odds were losing money. In some cases hundreds of dollars. Let's not even talk about the guy who was betting big six and eight. One of the absolutely worst bets on the craps table. He was betting it though, and good craps table etiquette says don't say anything to anybody even if they are just pissing their money away.
The table was what I considered to be very choppy. That monster roll win can be easily wiped out by the next two quick seven outs after the point is made. It is tough to win when the point is four and your come bet is on the ten and you've got $20.00 in odds to back up each of your bets even if you are playing basic strategy or Orlyn's for that matter.
The good news was that despite the choppy table, I was consistently winning. Not a lot mind you. But I wasn't losing like everybody else. Lot's of cursing at one point. I think I walked away with $14 to the good for the hour I played. And I owe it to following Orlyn's system, for a lack of a better name because he is very adamant that no craps system will actually work. Dice have no memory. Orlyn gives you a reasonable chance of winning at the table. He focuses on making you bet on the numbers that give the highest probability of winning, six and eight. He throws in a few twists and turns. Even some controversial advice about removing your odds bet after your come point wins.
As I said before I have been playing Orlyn's system the last few times I have played craps. Following his system has allowed me to leave the craps table a winner more times than a loser lately. Sunday night I finally became an Orlyn believer. If you are a craps player, or better yet want to be a craps player, I encourage you to read
No-Nonsense Craps: The Consummate Guide to Winning at the Crap Table. For more information please click on the link below:
No-Nonsense Craps: The Consummate Guide to Winning at the Crap Table
