Hello everyone,

Don’t misunderstand me,  this pandemic has been terrible with people on unemployment, people sick from the disease and of course the many deaths.  

But, many of us are on lock down at home or working from home and have the opportunity for more practice for our GTC skills.  So if you are among those who have a little extra time on their hands, working on your GTC grip and throw may be a way to get your craps game in shape.  Most all of us have some sort of craps table, half table with receiving station or a practice rig to include throwing and receiving station.  

I know that Rose and Doc are taking advantage of the down time and have spent time working on their game in a lot of detail.  Examples:

1.  Working on your grip–as Mr. Finesse used to say “when the dice are in your hand, this is the only time you have 100% control over the dice.” So we have to have the grip correct, because once the dice are released toward the end of the table the laws of math and physics take over.  So if we are the least little bit off with the dice in our hands, this will be magnified many times over as the dice head to the back wall and you have a random throw.  

Do the basics–get out the gripper and get your fingers and thumb in position.  Use the mirror with the gripper to insure the middle finger is centered on the front of the dice, the three fingers are level and together and then make sure the thumb is centered by having the same amount of  skin on each die.  The thumb slightly lower than the front fingers.  You need this to be as perfect as possible.  Once your grip is good you can work on the actual toss.

2.  Make sure the dice are level to the table, your back swing is short and straight back, your gentle forward swing is straight forward and the dice roll gently off your fingers.  The dice should still be level to the table as the dice roll off your finger tips.  The dice should be rolling together, land softly 3 to 4 inches from the back wall, hit the back wall, and die.  Work on this until you get it down.  

Go through these steps.  Read the manual you got at the class.  Review the notes you took during class. Many of us have some extra time so take advantage.  Rose and Doc took our first class back in 2006 and we still work on the basics, and we still use the gripper and take a look at each others grip and throw.  

Many of us have not had the opportunity to be in a casino environment in a long time.  We personally have not been in a casino since the GTC class in February, and we have used the time at home to good use.  You should do the same thing.  Also in the future come to a class weekend and take a class, an elite video and/or a tune up to get your game in the best shape possible.  But remember, what you do at home is most important so make the home practice the best it can be. 

Lastly, at the very least, do some of your practice wearing a mask and or a shield so that you will have some experience in the casino with social distancing and the above safety measures.  

Many of us have a little extra time, so use this time to get everything together and becoming the casinos worst nightmare.  We welcome any additional suggestions anybody might want to add to this thread.

Hope this will be of value to everyone.  

Rose and Doc

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