Craps Tips

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Dice and dice games date all the way back to the Middle Eastern Crusades, but current craps is just about a century old. Modern craps come about from the old English game referred to as Hazard. Nobody knows for certain the ancestry of the game, but Hazard is said to have been discovered by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, around the 12th century. It is presumed that Sir William’s horsemen bet on Hazard amid a siege on the fortification Hazarth in 1125 AD. The name Hazard was derived from the fortification’s name.

Early French settlers imported the game Hazard to Nova Scotia. In the 18th century, when driven away by the English, the French moved down south and settled in southern Louisiana where they after a while became Cajuns. When they were driven out of Acadia, they brought their best-loved game, Hazard, along. The Cajuns broke down the game and made it mathematically fair. It’s believed that the Cajuns adjusted the title to craps, which was derived from the name of the bad luck toss of 2 in the game of Hazard, recognized as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game moved to the Mississippi river boats and across the country. A good many acknowledge the dice maker John H. Winn as the father of current craps. In 1907, Winn assembled the modern craps layout. He added the Don’t Pass line so gamblers could bet on the dice to lose. Later, he created the boxes for Place wagers and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.