From time to time a player will ask me if playing the Don’ts is compatible with precision shooting. My answer – absolutely. Think about it. The seven is already the most powerful number on the dice. If you can throw MORE sevens than the law of averages says you should – then you can make MORE money on the Don’ts.
Here are three strategies I’ve seen sharp shooting Dark Siders use with some degree of success:
$194 Across Lay for One Roll. The name says it all. I consider this a Right-Way play with a Don’t entrée. The shooter lays all of the box numbers – $41 no four and no ten, $31 no five and no nine, and $25 no six and no eight. He also plays $20 on the Pass Line. Then he sets for and tosses the seven. The results? A come out seven will win $120 on the Lay action – minus a total of $6 in commissions. A net win of $114 plus a $20 Pass Line win for a total hit of $134.
Admittedly this is a high-risk play. But your average loss on this play is only $31, and you have a shot at winning $134. If you can keep the dice on-axis and toss the seven 25% of the time this play is a definite winner.
$31 No Five or No Nine and the Straight Sixes. Have you ever taken the time to really look at the numbers distribution on the various pre-sets? On the straight sixes set there is one way each to roll the two and the twelve, two ways each to roll the three and eleven, one way each to roll the four and the ten, and two ways each to roll the six and the eight. There are four ways to roll the seven – but there are NO combinations on this axis that add up to five or nine.
The play, then, is to Lay against the five or nine, pre-set the 3-4 / 3-4 (straight sixes) to an All Sevens set with 6-1 facing up and down – and the 5-2 facing front and back. Toss a Come-out seven and you win a quick $20 off the Lay bet.
Set the Four or Ten – then Seven Out. Another dice pre-set favored by precision shooters tossing from the Don’ts is the V-2 (hard four) set with the 3-4 / 6-1 on axis. There are two ways each to make the four or ten with the dice set to this axis – and that’s exactly the strategy. The shooter plays a Don’t Pass bet and sets the four or ten as his point. Then he switches to either the Straight Sixes (3-4 / 3-4) or the All Sevens (6-1 / 6-1) pre-set and deliberately sevens out.
The biggest deterrent to precision shooting from the Don’ts is the simple fact that the shooter loses the dice when he sevens out. For that reason – if you are considering any of these plays you should scout for empty or near empty tables so you’ll get the dice back quickly – and can seven out again.
