Craps

Read more about the
Las Vegas 2024 Super
Bowl Streaker!

Be smart, play clever, and pickup craps the proper way!

Dice and dice games date back to the Crusades, but current craps is only about 100 years old. Modern craps evolved from the 12th Century Anglo game called Hazard. Nobody knows for certain the birth of the game, although Hazard is believed to have been invented by the Englishman, Sir William of Tyre, in the twelfth century. It’s believed that Sir William’s paladins wagered on Hazard during a blockade on the fortress Hazarth in 1125 AD. The name Hazard was acquired from the citadel’s name.

Early French colonists imported the game Hazard to Acadia. In the 1700s, when displaced by the English, the French headed south and settled in the south of Louisiana where they at a later time became Cajuns. When they left Acadia, they brought their favored game, Hazard, with them. The Cajuns simplified the game and made it mathematically fair. It is said that the Cajuns adjusted the title to craps, which is derived from the term for the losing throw of two in the game of Hazard, referred to as "crabs."

From Louisiana, the game migrated to the Mississippi riverboats and throughout the nation. A great many acknowledge the dice builder John H. Winn as the founder of modern craps. In the early 1900s, Winn developed the current craps layout. He appended the Do not Pass line so gamblers could bet on the dice to not win. At another time, he created the boxes for Place wagers and added the Big 6, Big 8, and Hardways.