Gaming Guru

Hopping the 9

Dear Frank:

I'm too much of a piker to ever lay more than $5 on it but I typically roll 6-3 on the hop. Sure it's a sucker bet but if I don't seven out you can usually count on me to roll it as I have correctly called it 2-3 times on a given night. Again, I never have the guts to go $20 deep on it as I'Il rarely bet with more than $100 at a time on the lowest minimum table I can find.

With the eventuality of the seven, I've had the dealer take down my place bets -- in a couple of instances passing up what would have been a nice little bonus -- but it's worked for me more often than not.

I know you're not a big fan of Any Seven betting but is this not a sound (albeit blandly conservative) strategy?

Thanks for your time!

Scott

Dear Scott:

You answered your own question in paragraph one -- the hopping of any number is a bad bet, unless the shooter is an elite dice controller as I write about in my new book Cutting Edge Craps: Advanced Strategies for Serious Players. I am guessing you are not an elite dice controller. Yes, you may have hit that bet a few times but in the long run you'll get hammered if you keep making it.

Don't bet the Any Seven -- the house edge is 16.67 percent, which means a long term loss of $16.67 out of every $100 you wager.

I am giving you a free 30-day subscription to my private member's only web site at www.goldentouchcraps.com. We have over 5,000 members on this site and I think you will enjoy it.

All the best in and out of the casinos!

Frank Scoblete