Betting game using dice

Abstract

A betting game in which the winner of a given bet is determined by the numbers which appear on the faces of two thrown die. The individual throwing the dice is deemed the winner of a bet if a particular combination of indicia are found to be facing upward on the dice after they have been cast. Certain other combinations of indicia will result in the player winning the bet. Yet other combinations of indicia result in a higher payout ratio or no winners with a transfer of the dice to another shooter. The game is played upon a the surface of a table with specific demarcations for the various actions involved in the game, such as placing bets, throwing the dice, etc.

Description

[0001] CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This is a Divisional application of patent Ser. No. 09/425,682.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION

[0003] Most human beings enjoy playing games or watching games being played. Games, of course, come in many varieties. There are games of strategy, games of chance, and games combining elements of the two. There are games which are predominantly athletic in character and games that are more purely cerebral. Some games involve physical elements and others do not.

[0004] The combination of an uncertain outcome together with some kind of personal investment, be it real or imagined, on the part of the player, is the common element of most games. It is indeed in this combination of factors that the thrill of playing games lies; no one takes interest in a game if the outcome has already been decided, although it is, of course, possible that such an activity might be viewed and enjoyed for some other reason tangential to its nature as a game, for instance the pleasure of watching athletic prowess or technical skill.

[0005] Some persons find the pleasure of a game to be increased if the chance and the thrill of winning in a game are objectified in the form of a bet, that is, if something tangible actually rests upon the outcome of a game. While no-one would wish to encourage reckless or illegal gambling, it remains a fact that many persons find betting an enjoyable and innocuous pastime. In some areas of the United States, for instance in certain states or territories belonging to Native Americans, it is deemed acceptable to wager money upon the outcome of a bet as long as the betting process is supervised by the government and meets certain requirements of fairness. In other areas, wagering involving actual sums of money is illegal, but this of course does not prohibit betting as a class. One can still make wagers upon the outcome of a game utilizing non-monetary, effectively valueless units such as chips or beads. Previous patents exist disclosing games involving flat playing surfaces and using dice as a randomizing element. An example of this is U.K. Patent No. 2,252,917, issued to Wyatt on Aug. 26, 1992. However, the great majority of such games are of the type typically known as ‘board games.’ That is, victory in such games is determined by which one of a number of movable playing pieces, each representing a player, arrives at a given destination first with or without previously completing a certain number of well-defined tasks. When dice are employed in such games, they serve as a random factor determining the number of ‘spaces’ or other spatial units along a definite path that are to be traversed by a playing piece in the course of a given turn. They do not themselves directly function as a means for deciding victory. Moreover, although it of course possible for bets to be placed upon such games, betting is not normally an integral part of their being played. Accordingly, they are not relevant to the present invention.

[0006] Other previous patents are extant disclosing betting games utilizing the combination of upward-facing indicia on a set of thrown dice to decide bets. Many of these games incorporate horizontal, rigid playing surfaces such as tables. This is particularly true in the case of games specifically designed to be played in casinos or other gambling environments. Examples of such patents included in the present application are U.S. Pat. No. 5,556,101, issued to Jabro on Sep. 17, 1996; U.S. Pat. No. 5,662,330, issued to Spears on Sep. 2, 1997; U.S. Pat. No. 5,806,847, issued to White et al. on Sep. 15, 1998; U.S. Pat. No. 5,829,748, issued to Moore, Jr. on Nov. 3, 1998; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,839,726, issued to Luise on Nov. 24, 1998. While these patents appear similar to the present invention upon a first, cursory perusal, it should be noted that none of them feature the particular criteria for winning a wager employed in the present invention. That is, none of them utilize the particular conjunction of the indicia disclosed in the present invention to indicate either the winner of a given bet or the transferral of dice from one player to another. Accordingly, they are not relevant to the present invention.

[0007] Therefore a need has been established for a betting game utilizing dice as a means to determine the winner of a wager.

[0008] It is an object of the present invention to provide a means of amusement.

[0009] It is another object of the present invention to provide a means of amusement that is a betting game. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a betting game utilizing dice.

[0010] It is a further object of the present invention to provide a betting game utilizing dice that determine the winner of a wager by means of the occurrence or nonoccurrence of a combination of indicia exhibited on the upper faces of a thrown pair of dice.

[0011] It is a further object of the present invention to provide a betting game, utilizing dice, in which the person throwing the dice is determined by the occurrence or nonoccurrence of a combination of indicia exhibited on the upper faces of a pair of thrown dice.

[0012] It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a betting game utilizing a table as a playing surface.

[0013] It is another object of the present invention to provide a playing surface for a betting game that incorporates definite locations for the various activities employed in the game to take place.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

[0014] The present invention relates generally to betting games involving the use of dice. More specifically, the present invention is a betting game meant to be played by a plurality of players. The winner of a given bet is decided by the combination of numbers which appear on the thrown dice. The game involves a playing table or board which serves as a playing surface.

[0015] The present invention provides an entertaining betting game, usable in both monetary and non-monetary forms of wagering, in which the winner of a given bet is determined by the throw of two dice. The individual throwing the dice is deemed the winner of a bet if a particular combination of indicia are found to be facing upward on the dice after they have been cast. Those persons betting with or against the player or shooter are also deemed to be winners or losers based upon the combination of indicia found facing upward on a pair of cast dice. Certain other combinations of indicia will result in the dice being passed on to another player. The game is played upon the surface of a table providing definite marked locations for the various actions involved in the game, such as placing bets, throwing the dice, etc.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0016] FIG. 1 is a top view of the playing surface employed in one embodiment of the present invention.

[0017] FIG. 2 is a top view of the playing surface employed in an alternate embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] It should be noted that, throughout this discussion, the terms ‘player’ and ‘shooter’ refer not primarily to actual persons participating in the game but rather to locations in which participants may place bets.

[0019] The present invention is a betting game in which the winner of a wager is determined by the presence or absence of certain combinations of indicia read off of the upturned faces of a pair of thrown dice. The game utilizes five dice; two of these dice are chosen from the five for the game to be played. The same two dice may be used in the next round, but as a courtesy, the shooter may chose new dice.

[0020] A single round is composed of an exchange between one participant in the game, the ‘shooter,’ and a number of other participants, the ‘player’ or “players.” In the game, participants place bets on the outcome of the throw of the dice, specifically, if one of eight combinations of numbers will be upturned. Using the boards illustrated in the attached drawings, up to ten players may participate in the game. Either the players or the eligible shooter can make a bet on a given round, the bet is placed on the player or the shooter. All bets are contract bets, and none can be removed or modified once made.

[0021] The shooter takes the two dice and rolls them. He or she continues to throw the dice until the bet loses, or until a combination of indicia appear resulting in the dice being passed to a different person, who then takes over the roll of shooter. The shooter is deemed the winner if the combination of upturned indicia resulting from the throw of the dice is six on one die and six on the other, five on one die and five on the other, three on one die and three on the other, or six on one die and five on the other.

[0022] The player is deemed the winner if the combination of upturned indicia resulting from the throw of the dice is one on one die and one on the other, two on one die and two on the other, four on one die and four on the other, or two on one die and one on the other. All other rolls result in the dice being passed from the shooter to a new individual who then takes over the role of shooter. A five percent commission is collected by the house on all bets which are placed on the player slots.

[0023] The game can also be played in another, slightly different way. This second embodiment is identical to the first, except for some slight differences in rules of play; however, the shooter in a given round of the game is still deemed the winner when the combination of indicia on the upturned faces of a pair of thrown dice are six on one die and six on the other, five on one die and five on the other, three on one and three on the other, or six on one die and five on the other.

[0024] In this second embodiment, the player is also still deemed the winner when the combination of indicia on the upturned faces of a pair of thrown dice are one on one die and one on the other, two on one die and two on the other, four on one die and four on the other, or two on one die and one on the other. The difference in this embodiment of the game is that both the shooter and the player are considered to have lost the bet if the combination of upturned indicia is four on one die and five on the other. In the event of such a role, all bettors upon the roll are paid at six times the amount of their original bet. All other rolls move the dice along from player to player.

[0025] Turning to FIG. 1, we see depicted a top view of the playing surface (5) used in the present invention in one of its preferred embodiments. The playing surface (5) is of a general oval shape, but can be rectangular. At two points along one of the longer sides of the playing surface (5) are dice receptacles (10, 20) for receiving the dice (not shown) after they have been thrown. Along the three remaining sides of the playing surface is mounted a series of circular marks (30). Each circular mark (30) serves as a location in which a particular player or shooter may place his or her bet. The circular marks (30) are labeled in pairs as either ‘player’ or ‘shooter,’ as shown. Two listings (40, 50) giving the appropriate combinations of indicia to result in a shooter or player obtaining the wager are also printed on the playing surface (5). A emblem (60) can also be placed upon the playing surface (5), to be used to identify the game itself, the playing establishment, or something similar. The emblem (60), depicted in FIG. 1, is only one of a nearly infinite number possible.

[0026] In FIG. 2, a top view of the present invention is depicted in a second preferred embodiment. As in the first embodiment, the playing surface (5) can be oval or rectangular in shape. At two points on one of the sides are placed dice receptacles (10, 20) in order to allow a specific location into which dice (not shown) can be cast. Ringing the three remaining sides of the playing surface (5) in a semi-circle are two betting strips (90, 100), the interior betting strip (90) allowing a location for the player to place his or her bet and the exterior betting strip (100) allowing a location for the shooter to place his or her bet. The interior betting strip (90) and the exterior betting strip (100) can be segmented to allow access for stick persons; such segmentation would make sense since stick persons need to have access to the playing surface (5) without disturbing interior betting strip (90) and the exterior betting strip (100). Two listings (40, 50) are emblazoned upon the playing surface, along with the mandated odds to players when none of the designated indicia turns up in a roll of dice, providing easy mnemonic aids in recollecting what combinations of indicia qualify as winning in the game. An emblem (130) is also placed upon the playing surface. The particular emblem (130) depicted in FIG. 2 is merely a suggestion and is not meant to exhaust the possibilities.

[0027] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but also extends to all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. The process of playing a betting game with a pair of dice, comprising the steps of:

placing bets on the outcome of a roll of the pair of dice;

rolling the pair of dice;

declaring the participant who rolled the pair of dice a winner of the bets if the rolled pair of dice are in the combination of 6-6, 5-5, 3-3, or 5-4; and

declaring any other betting participants winners if the rolled pair of dice are in the combination of 1-1, 2-2, 4-4, or 1-2.

2. The process of claim 1, further comprising the step of passing the pair of dice to another betting participant after the pair of dice have been rolled.

3. The process of claim 2, wherein said step of passing the pair of dice to another betting participant after the pair of dice have been rolled only occurs if any other betting participant is a winner.

4. The process of claim 1, further comprising the step of terming the participant who rolled the pair of dice the “shooter.

5. The process of claim 1, further comprising the step of terming other betting participants the “players.

6. The process of claim 1, further comprising the step of recognizing the rolled pair of dice if the rolled pair of dice comes to rest in a designated dice throw zone.

7. The process of claim 1, further comprising the step of terming at least one non-betting participant a “stick person.

8. The process of claim 1, further comprising the step of declaring the participant who rolled the pair of dice and any other betting participants losers if the rolled dice land in a combination of 4-5.

9. The process of claim 1, further comprising the step of choosing the pair of dice from five dice before the pair of dice are rolled.

10. The process of claim 1, further comprising the step of repeating all steps after any winners or losers are determined.

11. The process of claim 1 0, further comprising the step of choosing the pair of dice from five dice before the pair of dice are rolled, and upon repeating all steps after any winner or losers are determined, the pair of dice is not changed unless the participant to roll the pair of dice desires to choose the pair of dice from five dice.

12. The process of playing a betting game with dice, comprising the steps of:

assigning one player the role of shooter for a round consisting of one throw of the dice;

recognizing all other playing participants as players;

recognizing any additional betting parties as non-participating bettors;

placing bets on the outcome of the dice;

placing said bets on the bettor's preference for the outcome of the dice to be in favor of the shooter and/or any player(s) and/or the house;

rolling the dice;

assessing the results of numerical indicia on the upturned dice, after they have been thrown and come to rest in one of the two designated dice throw zones;

determining the winners and/or losers based upon the upturned results of the thrown dice;

distributing and/or collecting the necessary wager returns in accordance with the dice results and any predetermined odds;

determining the shooter of the next round based upon the upturned results of the thrown dice;

placing bets;

throwing the dice; and

repeating the preceding steps until the game is terminated by the controlling party.

13. The process of claim 12, wherein the number of dice rolled at one time is two.

14. The process of claim 12, wherein the shooter is deemed the winner when the dice land in combinations of (i) six and six, (ii) five and five, (iii) three and three, or (iv) six and five.

15. The process of claim 12, wherein the player is deemed the winner when the dice land in combinations of (i) one and one, (ii) two and two, (iii) four and four, and (iv) two and one.

16. The process described in claim 12, wherein both the shooter and the player lose if the rolled dice land in a combination of four and five;

all bettors in such round resulting in a combination of four and five will be compensated at a ratio of 6 to 1 on the amount of their original bet; and

such a roll will move the dice along to the next eligible “shooter”.

17. The process described in claim 25, wherein the number of dice thrown per round exceeds two, at the controlling party's choice.