Musical Dice -- My Craps Blog

     Anyone who knows me, knows that I like to talk about music--more precisely, music trivia. That goes for whether I'm at the craps table, the blackjack table, or the poker table.

     Sometimes when I'm at the craps table, and a certain roll comes up on the dice, and a song that happens to be playing at that time, it its high spot on the Billboard Pop chart matches that roll, I like to say "So that's why that roll came up; because this song got up to this spot on the chart." For example, I remember saying something like that when a 9 was rolled, and "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey was playing, for it peaked at #9 on the chart back in 1981. I said a similar thing for "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" by Pat Benatar, for it topped out at #9 in 1980. I seem to remember saying that sort of thing when a 4 was rolled, while "California Dreamin'" by the Mamas & Papas was playing (#4 in 1966). I also seem to remember saying that for a roll of 10 when "Don't Do Me Like That" by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers was playing (#10 in 1980), as well as a roll of 5 on "You Make My Dreams" by Hall & Oates (#5 in 1981), a roll of 6 for "Little Red Corvette" by Prince (#6 in 1983), and a roll of 8 for "Jet Airliner" by the Steve Miller Band (#8 in 1977).

     However, there is a group of songs, in which I will never point out the dice roll matches the song's chart peak. Those songs, among others, include "Smooth Criminal" by Michael Jackson, "You May Be Right" by Billy Joel, "Sunglasses At Night" by Corey Hart, "You Really Got Me" by the Kinks, "Free Fallin'" by Tom Petty, "I'm Alright" by Kenny Loggins, and especially "Tumbling Dice" by the Rolling Stones. Why won't I do that for these songs? Because these 7 songs all topped out at #7 on the chart, and it's considered to be bad luck to mention the number 7 at the craps table. So at no time will you see me saying that a roll of 7 matched a song's peak on the chart, even if that was the case.

     But you can take note of the fact that I am posting this entry to the Craps Blog on 7/7. I only wish I'd thought of doing this 14 years ago today. ☺

     As of early this morning, July 12th, 2021, I have been playing craps for exactly 23 years now. I remember when I first dared play at a craps table, in the wee hours of the morning of July 12th, 1998, at the Showboat casino in Las Vegas. I played at a $3 table, bet on all the Place bets, and was just randomly chucking the dice to the opposite end. And I didn't even give a thought to pressing those bets, as they hit multiple times. Fortunately, I ended up $28 ahead for that very first craps session.

     Obviously, I've learned a hell of a lot since then. But I've also told people that I'm still learning new things about craps, and I can truthfully say that I'm still learning 23 years after I played my first craps game in a casino. This is especially true, as I've recently developed a new strategy that I plan to try in 8 days, when I travel to Lake Charles. I will tell you how that goes in a future blog entry.

     It also occurred to me that this concept of the learning never ends, has applied to other aspects of my life. For example, I learned how to bowl when I was 9 years old, but it took 22 years for me to bowl my first perfect game. And up until the time that I stopped bowling by the end of 2004 (my eyes were getting bad due to glaucoma at that time), I was still learning and trying new techniques. The same is also true about playing poker. I've been playing Texas Hold 'Em off and on ever since August of 2002, and to this day, I am still learning new things about that game. And in life in general, I am always learning new things, and ways to be a wiser and better person in general. The truth of the matter is, the day you stop learning, is the day you die. I find that a very valuable lesson to learn and keep in mind.

     Nowadays, I am working from home. But my wife and I get comps for free two-night stays at the L'Auberge casino in Lake Charles Louisiana, just as long as the nights are Sunday through Thursday. So my wife suggested that we head out there for Tuesday and Wednesday nights, coming home Thursday evening.

     After this, I told my wife that I'll pay the $200+ per night to stay at L'Auberge on Friday and Saturday nights, because on the weekends, I am not working, and when I'm working, I'm focused on work, and it's hard to switch back and forth between work and play, especially since I have to collaborate with others to help meet a Friday spring deadline. So for most of the time, I was gambling distracted, which was not good.

     In fact I had four sessions in a row, where I absolutely got clobbered!! This even includes a $350 loss at the craps table, where I had a 15 roll from the end, using my Yo-Yo dice set (6/5-5/6). Problem was, I was using my old 220 inside, regressing to three units across strategy, which leaves me only a small profit upon regression. The money I made on that roll wasn't enough to make up for the loss I'd suffered with an early crap-out. Suffice to say, after losing $625 playing blackjack, then losing another $645, which the craps loss was a part of (also included a $295 loss playing poker), I was not too happy a camper. But at least my wife and I had a great steak dinner at the Ember Steakhouse inside L'Auberge.

     The second day was when I suffered the third and fourth straight losses. However, I can say that a decent craps session came out of it. For during the third straight loss, I was still at L'Auberge, and I played craps, playing from stick left 1. This time, I used the Hardway dice set (4/2-4/2 in this case). I shot 19 times, making $332 in the process, using the same regression stategy as above (I was gun-shy about trying out my Two-Hit Blackout strategy, given how far behind I was). So I won $332 at the craps table, so what was the problem? I'd lost $387.50 at a blackjack table, just prior to playing craps. Then I tried to crawl out of the hole playing at a different blackjack table, but instead ended up $400 further behind, for a total loss of $455.50. I then went over to Golden Nugget, thinking that a change of venue might improve my luck. The craps table was full, so I tried blackjack. Lost $212.50 there. Now, I REALLY wasn't a happy camper, especially since there were technical difficulties coming up at work.

     I didn't even get my first win of the trip until after all the major technical difficulties work-related were resolved, and I was able to get a lot of work done. But even that first win was a struggle. I was in fact planning to launch my Two-Hit Blackout strategy on this $15 table. Problem was, by the time the dice came to me, the table had changed to a $25 table, and I had a change of heart. I played scared craps, instead, only betting on the 6 and the 8. From Stick Right 1, I shot a 10, using my Yo-Yo dice set. But my rolls were all over the place, covering all six box numbers, but very few 6's and 8's, where my bets were. I crapped out before I got all my money back. Fortunately, I got it back on someone else's shoot, playing the same way. I ended up $129 ahead for the session. It's a start.

     Early the next morning (the last morning) before work, I went back to the Golden Nugget. This time, I was able to get onto a $10 craps table. There, I was planning to do a half-sized version of my Two-Hit Blackout strategy (which I apparently did at the Golden Nugget on my last trip to Lake Charles). But I knew I wasn't going to throw any major money out there, upon my first two rolls of the dice. I was doing the Hardway dice set from Stick Left 1, and I rolled two seven-winners. Not what I wanted to see. I established a point of 9, did 34 inside, but my very next roll was seven-out. Fortunately, I barely got my money back on another shooter, cashing out $13 ahead.

     When I returned to L'Auberge, I got into a poker game, and they closed down the poker room a half an hour later, when I was down $187. Wiped out those two craps wins.

     The big story of this trip occurred after the morning work meeting, and after breakfast, and after my wife and I had already checked out of the room. After we did that, we went to the craps table. This time, it was a $15 table, and I was standing at the end with my wife next to me. At that point, I decided I was going to go for it. I was going to do my Two-Hit Blackout strategy, and if I crapped out before I could regress down, I would be done for the trip. When I got the dice, I established a point of 8 and I put 320 inside, plus 120 for odds. My wife and I were both sweating blood at that point. I then rolled a 6, collecting $140 for the roll. Then the next roll was a 9. I joked that that roll was a chart position thing, since the song playing was a #9 hit (the song was "Oops I Did It Again" by Britney Spears). When I took those huge bets down (doing my regression), my wife breathed a huge sigh of relief. Inside, I did too. I replaced the Place bets with 106 across, including the Buys, meaning 4 units on the Place bets. I also replaced the huge odds bet with 2X odds, or $40 in this case. I was already $104 ahead for my shoot (including a $10 Whirl bet I did at the start). From there, using my Yo-Yo dice set, apparently I had only just begun. I made the point of 8, plus three other points, those being 5, 9, and 10. And there were a lot of box number hits in between making the points. And boy were me and my wife cutting up! I got to say "Shut the front door!" when I made each of my points, plus twice I yelled out "Snowflakes!" when I rolled a hard 10, and had bets on each of the hardways (only did that after regressing). At one point, I rolled a hard 6, and I yelled out "Diagonal Pair's there!" Then I told my wife (who loves saying "We love our greens!" which she did quite a bit during all this), that I'd made $74 off that roll. For I had pressed my 6 bet from 24 to 48 by that time, so I made 56 off the Place bet, plus another 18 for the Hardway bet. But then, I ended up making 99 for that roll, for someone had tossed me a green chip for a tip! (that's only happened to me only once or twice before). I took that opportunity to press 6 up to 90 by adding that green chip plus an additional 17 to the Place bet. The next roll was another 6, and I yelled out "Bull-llackout!" because I made enough off that roll to get a black chip for a payout (I made 105 off the roll). That happened one more time, off another roll of 6. I wasn't sure how much I was winning, but I was sure it was over $500. I was also keeping track of the rolls I was making, and at one point, I realized I had rolled over 20 times. When I did crap out, my final tally for the rolls was 145573 61, with the first six digits representing how many Place bet rolls of 4-10 respectively I had made. The second to last digit represents the number of horn rolls I'd made, and the last digit was the number of 7's I'd made. 32 rolls in all!! I hadn't had a roll that long in over two years! (my best roll setting the dice was 35, which I'd done twice) Plus, as it turned out, I'd won $950. This was easily my best win at L'Auberge (topping my previous best of $625, which I'd done on three separate occasions). Plus it shattered my old best win in Lake Charles (previously, it was $775, which I'd done at the Isle of Capri casino on the Fourth of July, 2013, just 10 days before I'd met my wife). And that win was easily the biggest win I had since my wife and I had been together (shattering the old $701 record at the Golden Nugget from 5 years ago). In fact, I'd have to go back over 9 years to find myself having a win that large! Needless to say, my wife and I were very happy campers at that point! And the others at the table, cheering my every roll, was great too.

     No, it wasn't enough to make up for the earlier losses. I only gambled once more after that, winning $100 playing blackjack at the Golden Nugget. I ended up $933 down for the trip, but that huge win at the craps table, using my Yo-Yo dice set, and using my new Two-Hit Blackout strategy, made it all worth it. I can still say that I'm ahead for this year ($922). But as I said, I think the next time my wife and I go to Lake Charles, it will be on the weekend, when I don't have to work.