Craps Tips

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Dice and dice games date back to the Crusades, but modern craps is only about a century old. Current craps come about from the 12th Century Anglo game called Hazard. No one absolutely knows the beginnings of the game, but Hazard is said to have been discovered by the Anglo, Sir William of Tyre, in the twelfth century. It’s believed that Sir William’s soldiers enjoyed Hazard amid a blockade on the fortification Hazarth in 1125 AD. The title Hazard was acquired from the castle’s name.

Early French colonizers imported the game Hazard to Nova Scotia. In the 18th century, when banished by the British, the French relocated down south and discovered sanctuary in the south of Louisiana where they a while later became Cajuns. When they left Acadia, they took their favored game, Hazard, along. The Cajuns modernized the game and made it mathematically fair. It is believed that the Cajuns altered the name to craps, which is derived from the name of the non-winning toss of two in the game of Hazard, known as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game extended to the Mississippi barges and across the nation. A good many consider the dice builder John H. Winn as the father of current craps. In the early 1900s, Winn designed the modern craps setup. He put in place the Do not Pass line so players could bet on the dice to not win. Later, he created the boxes for Place wagers and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.