In the early 2000s, I first learned about a technique called “rhythm rolling” from my friend and fellow gambling author, Frank Scoblete. Frank and I used to meet in Las Vegas when we were both counting cards at blackjack. On one occasion, Frank excused himself and said he was going to play craps.
I found this odd, given that Frank was an excellent card counter who had paid for his son’s college tuition from his blackjack winnings. On a subsequent trip to Vegas, he spent more time playing craps than blackjack. I eventually asked him why he was playing craps, and he told me that he was winning using a new technique he had learned called “rhythm rolling.” Initially, I thought he had gone off the deep end. However, Frank proceeded to tell me about the meetings and playing sessions he had with a man known as “the Captain” in Atlantic City, where he learned about rhythm rolling. (You can read about the Captain and his team of craps players in any number of craps books written by Frank.)
I was highly skeptical about someone’s ability to control their dice throws, given that the dice had to hit the back wall and bounce all over the layout. Despite Frank’s efforts to convince me that dice control “works,” I remained unconvinced.
Nonetheless, Frank invited me to a seminar on dice control that was being held at the Best Western Motel on Paradise Road in Las Vegas. The main speakers at the seminar were Jerry Patterson and a man named Sharpshooter, who spoke about the art and science of dice control. They covered topics such as degrees of freedom as they relate to the toss of a pair of dice, how to set and grip the dice, and how to toss them down the table. While the seminar was informative, I still had my doubts.
Jerry Patterson began teaching dice control classes to players who wanted to learn, while Scoblete teamed up with Dom LoRiggio (known in craps circles as the “Dominator”) to form a company called Golden Touch. Along with other hand-picked dice controllers, this group started playing together as a team and offering intense two-day, hands-on classes to teach players the skills they needed to master to be successful at dice control (i.e., Golden Touch Craps or GTC classes).
Word about “dice control” started to spread among the general public, and I was being asked about it by numerous casino players. So, I decided to watch Frank, Dom, and his team play craps to see exactly what they were doing. Over the course of two years, I accompanied them to casinos in Atlantic City, Tunica, Las Vegas, New Mexico, and even Canada, and what I observed was truly remarkable.
When it comes to playing craps, casinos have the statistical advantage because the number 7 appears once in every six throws. However, the Golden Touch team’s use of “dice control” was quite a different story. I witnessed monster rolls of 20, 30, and even 40 throws without the appearance of a 7, resulting in a ton of winnings for the team and me (I was smart enough to only make bets when the team members rolled the dice).
Despite my initial skepticism, I eventually attended one of Golden Touch’s weekend classes in Tunica, MS, in 2005, and was impressed with the skill of the instructors and the intensive training they provided. While being a successful dice controller requires months of practice, I surprised myself by winning their No-Sevens contest with a 49-hand roll.
As a math guy, I wanted more proof that dice control actually influenced the outcome of rolls. So, I asked my partner in the Blackjack Insider Newsletter, Dan Pronovost, to analyze the team’s throws using a software program he developed called Smart Craps. Dan’s analysis showed that the team was indeed influencing the dice enough to have an edge over the casino.
Dice control requires a physical skill that takes hundreds of hours of practice, and like golfing, regular practice is necessary to maintain the skill level. While I haven’t practiced in a while, I still have my practice rig in my garage.
Interestingly, even blackjack card counter and Blackjack Hall of Famer Stanford Wong was initially skeptical about dice control. However, after attending a Golden Touch class and trying it out, he eventually wrote a book about it called “Wong on Dice.” My wife and I also published a book on dice control, “Golden Touch Craps Revolution,” which detailed the necessary techniques for mastering dice control.
While I may have had my doubts initially, my experiences with dice control have shown me that it is a skill that can give players an edge at the craps table. In fact, even in South Africa, where real money craps online is popular, dice control can be an effective way to win big.
