Be smart, play brilliant, and become versed in craps the right way!
Dice and dice games goes all the way back to the Crusades, but modern craps is approximately one hundred years old. Modern craps formed from the old Anglo game referred to as Hazard. Nobody knows for sure the origin of the game, however Hazard is believed to have been discovered by the Anglo, Sir William of Tyre, sometime in the twelfth century. It is supposed that Sir William’s soldiers bet on Hazard through a blockade on the citadel Hazarth in 1125 AD. The name Hazard was derived from the castle’s name.
Early French colonizers imported the game Hazard to Canada. In the 18th century, when banished by the English, the French relocated down south and settled in southern Louisiana where they eventually became Cajuns. When they departed Acadia, they took their preferred game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns simplified the game and made it fair mathematically. It is said that the Cajuns changed the name to craps, which is acquired from the name of the bad luck throw of snake-eyes in the game of Hazard, known as "crabs."
From Louisiana, the game migrated to the Mississippi riverboats and across the nation. Many consider the dice maker John H. Winn as the founder of modern craps. In 1907, Winn created the current craps setup. He added the Don’t Pass line so gamblers could wager on the dice to lose. Later, he invented the spots for Place wagers and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.
