Bobby Jones on Craps Dealing: An Archive Interview

Craps history · Dealer training · Atlantic City archive interview

Robert M. “Bobby” Jones described joining Atlantic City’s first generation of casino dealers in 1978, teaching roughly 1,500 dealers over 12 years, and moving from craps instruction into senior casino operations. This edited archive preserves his practical account of how dealers learned the game and how the casino business changed.

Archive and editing note

The original transcript identifies the interviewer as Scott and predates Sam’s current editorial rebuild. CrapsPit is preserving it as an archive; Sam does not claim to have conducted the interview. Repetition, casino promotions, profanity, sexual material, and an anecdote containing abusive language were removed. Career details and first-person recollections remain Jones’s account and have not all been independently verified.

Period	Jones’s account
1976	A Las Vegas trip sparked his interest in casino work.
1978	Selected for an original Atlantic City dealer-training group before Resorts International opened.
Late 1970s–early 1980s	Dealt at Resorts and later the Brighton Casino.
Following 12 years	Taught craps at Casino Schools Inc. and estimated that he trained about 1,500 students.
1990 onward	Moved to the Midwest for gaming-school and casino-operations roles connected with Steamboat Casino Cruises, later Isle of Capri Casinos.
At interview time	Described responsibility for player development, hosts, cage operations, more than 50 table games, and roughly 1,300 slots.

Interview: learning to deal Atlantic City craps

Scott: How did your casino career begin?

Bobby Jones: After a cross-country trip with two friends in 1976, we returned wanting to work in casinos. We were preparing to move to Las Vegas when casino gaming passed in New Jersey, so we tried to become dealers there instead.

In January 1978, I was accepted into a group of 500 people training for Atlantic City’s casinos. Everyone began by cutting checks for five days before assignments were made. I was placed in craps. The next 14 weeks were difficult, but becoming a craps dealer changed my life.

Scott: Was Resorts International your first dealing job?

Jones: Yes. Imagine one casino within driving distance of millions of people. Customers lined up along the Boardwalk and ran to the tables when the doors opened. The first year had extraordinary action, and I would gladly relive it.

The opening of casino gambling in Atlantic City

Jones’s recollection captures why that dealer class faced unusual pressure. Resorts International was the first legal casino to open in Atlantic City, and the initial workforce had to serve a large regional market while still learning how New Jersey operations would work in practice.

He remembered the training as both intimidating and exacting: repetitive chip work came before game assignment, and the craps course continued for roughly 14 weeks. Whether or not every detail of the selection process would be acceptable today, the account shows how heavily early schools emphasized hands, repetition, and mechanical accuracy.

Learning from knowledgeable players

Scott: Early Atlantic City players had a reputation for knowing craps and putting pressure on new dealers. Was that accurate?

Jones: Many players knew the game extremely well. Some dealers disliked that, but I learned from them. When I was unsure of a payoff, experienced players often knew the correct amount. I checked their answers and found that the serious players were not trying to take advantage.

Strong supervisors taught me too, but a young dealer who listened could learn from the players. Knowledge was the best way to handle a demanding game. If you could deal accurately and keep control, experienced gamblers generally respected that.

Editorial context: A modern crew should not accept abuse as part of the job. Jones’s useful point is that technical command improves confidence and game control—not that staff should tolerate harassment.

Why player knowledge can help—or hurt—a break-in dealer

An experienced player may recognize a payoff before a new dealer finishes calculating it. That can become a useful cross-check, but the crew remains responsible for the game. A dealer should never pay solely because a player announces an amount. The correct response is to know the units, use approved mental shortcuts, and ask a supervisor when uncertain.

Jones’s story is valuable because it admits early uncertainty instead of pretending expertise appeared immediately. He learned from supervisors, coworkers, repetition, and observant players, then turned that accumulated knowledge into a teaching career.

From dealing to teaching

Scott: Where did you go after Resorts?

Jones: I worked at Resorts for two years, then spent a year at the Brighton Casino, which later became the Sands. After that I began teaching craps at Casino Schools Inc.

Scott: Did you own the school?

Jones: No. I did not expect to teach for long, but I loved it almost immediately. Taking students who knew little about the game and preparing them for a new career created a measurable result that dealing itself did not. I taught about 1,500 students over the next 12 years. It was the most rewarding part of my career.

Developing a break-in dealer requires patience. Memorizing a payoff is not enough; the student must learn chip handling, game protection, communication, procedure, pace, and how to recover from an error without losing control of the layout.

Advanced moves and clear supervision

The original conversation referred to an “Advanced Craps” dealing video and a $72-for-$44 move on Place 6 and 8—moving two $24 wagers to $36 each by receiving $44 more. Jones recalled that unusual or advanced moves could alarm a boxperson who did not immediately understand the transaction.

The lasting lesson is not to perform a flashy move. It is to keep supervisors and players able to follow the money. A technically correct transaction that obscures what happened can still damage game protection. Clear calls, visible chip work, and house-approved procedure come first.

Moving into casino operations

Scott: What came next?

Jones: In 1990, I moved to Iowa to run gaming schools for Steamboat Casino Cruises, later known as Isle of Capri Casinos. Teaching had built my reputation, but it also led people to think craps was all I knew. The Midwest role let me teach other games and return to casino operations.

Over the following decade I managed five gaming schools and worked as a pit boss, shift boss, casino manager, and director of table games. At the time of the interview, my operations role included player development, hosts, the cage, more than 50 table games, and almost 1,300 slot machines.

Jones’s career advice

Jones: Table-games people need to understand slots, technology, customer service, and the rest of the business. Someone who refuses to change can be left behind. Learn every aspect you can instead of being the master of only one game.

That advice remains useful beyond casino careers. A good craps dealer needs mathematics and mechanics, but also communication, attention, teamwork, game protection, and calm service under pressure.

What modern dealer students can take from the archive

• Build hands through repetition. Chip cutting and payoff units need to become reliable before speed matters.
• Explain unusual action. A clever move that the boxperson cannot follow is poor game protection.
• Learn from corrections. Strong players and experienced supervisors can expose gaps, but the crew must verify the result.
• Teach with patience. Students enter with different coordination, confidence, and experience.
• Understand the wider operation. Table games connect with surveillance, cage, hosts, compliance, slots, technology, and customer service.
• Protect staff dignity. Accuracy and calm matter; abusive player behavior should be handled through current house policy.

The transcript is not a modern training manual. Procedures, terminology, employment law, and workplace standards change. Its value is the career perspective of an early Atlantic City dealer who later spent years teaching others.

Continue with the guides to the craps table crew, checking craps payouts, and tipping craps dealers.