The fast-paced nature of craps and the physical involvement of the player make it a target of opportunity for casino cheats, or
crossroaders, as they're commonly called.
Obviously, the easiest way to cheat at craps is for the crossroader to substitute gimmicked dice into the game - typically when it's the hustler's turn to throw and he has physical contact with the cubes. There are several hand techniques for inserting crooked dice, including the
thumb switch, and the
palm switch but all require the cheater possessing magician-like sleight of hand ability.
There also are several ways dice can be altered.
Tops are dice that only have three numbers, each appearing twice on opposite sides of each die. One common set is to have the numbers two, three and six. These dice can roll the numbers four, five, six, eight, nine and 12 but cannot seven out. In order to reduce suspicion, the craps shooter himself usually will not be a big bettor but his partner, a
beard, at the opposite end of the table, will. Tops with one, three and five also are used, sometimes in alternating fashion with two, three and six tops so more numbers appear.
Most casino stickmen drag the dice across the table after each roll, making them tumble and exposing all sides. Of course, no crossroader worth his cheating heart would insert tops into that situation.
A safer dice scam is to insert loaded dice, known as
weight, into the game. These cubes, which do not guarantee a win but shift the odds in the crossroader's favor, can pass the casual inspection of a boxman. However, today's dice, because they are translucent, are much more difficult to load.
"There's been a whole evolution in craps scams," began Steve Forte, an advisor on the motion picture, "Rounders," and one of the world's foremost authorities on casino cheating. "In the old days you had
subs, hidden pockets in the dealer's clothing. Craps is a game that has so much action that the dice would go one way and the money would go the other, into the sub. Then they went to techniques like
hand-off moves, where the boxman would make change, giving extra money to the accomplice. And, off course, there were gaffed dice."
Some craps swindles don't require gaffed dice.
"I once asked an old-timer what was the strongest thing he'd ever seen to cheat crap games and he said, 'Setting them up late,'" recalled Forte. "Craps is a game that involves a lot of call bets. As the dice are in the air, somebody's going to give you a bet. So let's say I'm the dealer and you're on second base next to me. You put up eight black chips and as the dice are in the air you say something. The person upstairs in surveillance has no idea where that money is supposed to go until I set it up. So, if I listen for the dice and I hear, 'Six,' I can take those eight black chips and set you up with four each on six and eight, so you win.
"Or let's say I hear, 'Seven out." I take those very same eight blacks and put them behind the nine. I slap the 'lay' button on it, as you for the juice and all of a sudden it looks like that was obviously an $800 bet against the nine. You win again."
In another scam, one die is passed from the shooter to an accomplice and on to a beard at the opposite end of the table. The shooter then rolls just one die, expertly making it land close to the beard who has concealed the stolen die, positioned on six beneath his money. When a cheater bets the field and is guaranteed a six on one die, he can only lose when the random die comes up ace or deuce. All other spots win and the six pays double.
The dice have not been gaffed and, when executed properly, the move is almost impossible to detect with the naked eye.
"Cheating is and always has been a serious problem," acknowledged Forte. "Knowledge and vigilance are your only protection.
This article was written by Luken Karel for
http://www.thegreek.com. The Greek Sportsbook & Casino is host to one of the top online sportsbooks casinos offering
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