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Become Versed in Craps – Pointers and Techniques: The Background of Craps

Be smart, play smart, and pickup craps the correct way!

Games that use dice and the dice themselves date back to the Crusades, but modern craps is approximately a century old. Current craps evolved from the ancient English game called Hazard. No one absolutely knows the origin of the game, but Hazard is believed to have been made up by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, around the 12th century. It’s supposed that Sir William’s horsemen wagered on Hazard through a siege on the fortress Hazarth in 1125 AD. The name Hazard was derived from the fortification’s name.

Early French colonizers imported the game Hazard to Acadia. In the 18th century, when banished by the English, the French relocated south and discovered sanctuary in the south of Louisiana where they after a while became known as Cajuns. When they left Acadia, they brought their favored game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns simplified the game and made it mathematically fair. It’s said that the Cajuns changed the title to craps, which is acquired from the name of the bad luck toss of snake-eyes in the game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game extended to the Mississippi riverboats and across the nation. A few think the dice builder John H. Winn as the creator of current craps. In the early 1900s, Winn built the modern craps setup. He put in place the Do not Pass line so gamblers could wager on the dice to lose. At another time, he created the spaces for Place bets and put in place the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.

Posted in Craps.


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