BETTING TO WIN!
by Ha3ry Giusto

I certainly appreciate all the e-mails I get! You all out there have so many questions about craps and how to play the game that it makes me wonder why you are playing it at all! But, dear reader, keep heart. We will tackle your questions one at a time. A-n-d here's one of them, a-n-d a good one at that, a question that has not come up too often, even at my crap table.

What does it mean to ask the dealer for '22 inside'?

First, you don't ask the dealer for "22 inside", you tell the dealer you want "22 inside". The 22 refers to the total amount you want to bet, and the "inside" is part of the craptalk we dealers have at the table. Are you ready? Here it is.

The point numbers are set up in front of the dealer from left to right as 10,9,8,6,5,4. The inner most numbers of 9,8,6,5, are referred to as the inside numbers. The outer most numbers of 10,9,5,4 are referred to as the outside numbers, the 5 and 9 are both inside and outside numbers. To bet 22 inside means to put place bets of $5 each on the 5 and 9, and place bets of $6 each on 6 and 8 for a total of 22 dollars on 5,6,8,9. The situation may be that the player has a point of 6 and wishes to bet the other inside numbers. He would say to the dealer, "Let me have $16 inside." It's up to the dealer to know to put $5 each on 5 and9, and $6 on the 8. There are many terms and situations in this crazy game, aren't there? Good luck on this one, Pilgrim.

A-n-d here's another not too often asked question. What are those circles on the craps table that have the C's and the E's in them?

A layout of the craps table is a map situated so that the dealer will know who to pay in most any type of game be it light or busy. So, in reference to your question, those circles that have the c's and e's in them are situated in front of the dealer who handles the dice, the "stick man", as we call him or her. When a player, say three players away from the stick man, wants to make a bet known, as an "any craps", he calls out to the stick man to place the bet on the circle with the C in it. Even in a busy game we still know whom to pay in case it wins. If they want an "any craps" C and an eleven E then the stick man will place the bet on both the C and the E circles. Those letters provide us "stick people" with a handy way to keep the game flowing. Again, good luck to all of you.

My work as a gambling authority has taken me into every type of casino game where Americans gamble. In my youth, I was also in the plushy as well as the dingy illegal gambling dives that are still spread all over the country and the world. Today, 'average Americans crowd the casinos. Generally they place minimum limit bets and their plays are more cautious than times gone by. Gone are most of the "high rollers" (big-money gamblers) who used to line the craps and black jack tables. Even the once prestigious Baccarat- Chemin de fer tables have reduced their minimums. This gradual change in the betting habits of people who come to my town, Las Vegas, to gamble, has led me to ask myself the same questions the corporate executives have on what was what in the gambling world. Next month I'll reveal some profound answers I got to some very simple questions.