A GLASGOW dice player has seen his numbers come up after being crowned Scottish champion.

Forty-four-year-old Ian Smith, from Hillhead, took the title at the Scottish regional championships of Perudo, or liar dice.

The game, which involves bluffing about numbers on dice, was held in the Citizen Hotel and saw long-time player Ian win through.

The insurance director now goes on to the world championships in London in September.

Ian admitted he's had plenty of practice at the game, having been previously crowned champion 20 years ago.

He said: "I won the first Scottish championships 20 years ago but they didn't hold any more until last year so I held the title for 19 years!

"I came second last year and lost the title."

Now it's his again although Ian admits he didn't think he played very well on the evening.

He said: "I thought I played terribly.

"I think I was lucky - I wasn't involved in some of the mini battles that were taking place between people around the table. I was quite passive, not aggressive. I didn't feel like I played like a winner."

He explained the game sees six players shake a dice with five dice in. Each person covers their own dice with a cup, so they can see the total number showing.

People then make "bids" of the numbers showing on all 30 dice. If someone thinks a bid is too high or unlikely, they challenge the person who made it and the dice are revealed.

If the challenger is correct, their opponent loses a dice, otherwise they do. The winner is the one with the most dice.

Ian said it was all about working out odds and having a poker face.

He said: "It's essentially a betting game.

"It's a game you can pick up very quickly. You either choose to make confident bids about the total but appear to bluff, or make nonsensical bids and be confident."

He said he couldn't understand why the game remained "underground" in the gaming world and had not become more mainstream.

He and his friends have set up a gaming group and play different games - including Perudo - every Wednesday in Glasgow.

He added: "People who play it fall in love with it.

"Everyone I know - including my wife Julia - plays it."

Ian and runner-up Stephen Kelly, 36, a barber in the East End, will travel to London for the championships.

He said people in England tended to take it more seriously.

He said: "For us, it's about winding up your opponents.

"In London, they can be very strategic and calculating, they tend to be more straight-laced.

"We turn up there, abuse a few people, we don't have the desire to play it too seriously! When I last played there I did ok for the first couple of rounds then my game collapsed!"

Ian beat last year's champion Mark Hall, 30, from Glasgow's west end, who came third.

Mark, a GP, got into the game around 10 years ago.

He said: "We had a friend who taught us and we meet up with a couple of beers. It doesn't need a lot of practice!"

The game, which featured in the Pirates of the Caribbean, when Johnny Depp played for his life, originated in Peru.

Mark said games were all about "gentle intimidation of your opponents and keeping a good poker face."

He said: "It's about getting an advantage over them and making them nervous!"

Mark said the open championships were open to players from across Scotland and there were no qualifying heats.

"It's very casual," he said.

This year marks the 26th year Perudo has been played, with clubs established around the world.

Richard Wells, Sales Director, Paul Lamond Games said Ian had played "brilliantly."

He added: "Perudo always attract an enthusiastic crowd with genuine passion and a large dose of competitiveness - and the regional qualifier in Glasgow was no exception.

"The evening featured the usual bluff, counterbluff and hilarity. Ian played brilliantly and deserves to be Scotland's champion. We look forward to seeing his Perudo playing skills back in action at the championships."