Craps is one of the most popular table games in casinos around the world (Image: http://steedinvestments.com/)

Craps is the world’s most common dice game and is played in virtually every land/based casino and online. This game of pure chance is well-loved by players since it has a low house advantage and even total beginners can win, if they’re lucky enough.

In this article, we share five interesting and unusual facts about the game of craps.

Fact #1: You can trace the history of craps back to medieval times

The original craps was a game called Hazard, of which records have been found that date back to the Crusades! This game continued to evolve throughout history and eventually made its way to America via French and British immigrants who brought craps with them.

The name craps derives from the French crapaud, meaning toad, which is probably a reference to the way players would squat down to shoot dice on the streets when craps tables were unavailable.

The layout and design of the modern craps table you see at a casino or online is a recent invention by a dice-maker called John H. Winn, who also created the betting styles used today and contributed to the surge in popularity of craps during the 20th century.

Fact #2: It takes four people to manage craps tables properly

Craps tables are usually the centre of activity in the casino, with plenty of people buzzing around them, some playing and some just enjoying the show. Craps tables are also unique because they require more dealers to manage them; which is why you’re likely to find fewer craps tables at a casino compared to other table games!

In fact, there are typically four casino employees standing around a craps table. There’s the box person who takes note of the outcome of every roll and keep an eye on the chips being passed around, two dealers who place bets on the table and push chips to and fro, as well as the stickman who gives the dice to the players and takes care of the proposition bets placed at the centre of the table.

Fact #3: The longest craps dice roll ever lasted over 4 hours

If you thought it was impossible, think again! New Jersey grandmother Patricia Demauro beat the one-in-a-1.56 trillion odds of rolling a pair of dice 154 consecutive times at the craps table.

While indulging in a night at Atlantic City’s Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa with a friend, Demauro grew tired of working the penny slots and decided to shoot some dice at the craps table. Four hours and 18 minutes later, she was still sending the dice flying having become apparently immune to “sevening out” in that span of time.

The exhausted grandma caused quite a stir after a crowd of people formed around her to witness the miracle as she rolled every combination possible except a seven. When she finally bowed out, Demauro admitted to a lady who was standing next to her that she didn’t know how to play the game!

Kiss those dice and let the fun times roll (Image: SilverOakCasino.com)

Fact #4: Scary number seven

Another incredible fact about craps is the large number of superstitions that are connected with this game, like throwing a penny under the table or getting a lady to blow on the dice to bring good luck, probably more than any other casino table game.

Even more weirdly, many of these strange beliefs have something to do with the number seven, which is both the most beloved and feared number in the game. Many players will refuse to mention the number seven by name, preferring to call it “it” or “the devil” while playing.

There are more statistical chances that a seven will be rolled than any other outcome in craps, and people believe that seven will show up more frequently when there is a larger number of players betting on the don’t pass line or when there are more so-called “wrong” players around the table, which means they will lose when a seven is thrown in the come out rolls.

Fact #5: Holy craps! Biggest money records of the game

Like all casino games, craps has its share of stars who become loaded after a lucky night of shooting dice.

Archie Karas, gambler extraordinaire, has gone down in history books as the guy who managed to turn a $17 million fortune into an eye-popping $40 million over a period of several months betting on craps in the mid-1990s, sometimes betting as much as a hundred grand on one roll.

One of the most daring bets ever placed at craps happened in 1980, when William Lee Bergstrom wagered $777,000 on the don’t pass line and won!

Conclusion

For a beginner, standing at the craps table can be an intimidating experience. There are so many bets you can place and a whole new language to learn!

Thanks to free online craps and the abundance of tutorials and videos on the internet, you can quickly grasp the basic of this fascinating game and learn the fundamental skills needed to succeed, such as the different probabilities of rolling certain numbers.

Thanks to real money craps betting online, as well as on mobile devices, you can put your skills to the test and maybe even win a nice stash. That will help you to sit at the higher stakes tables in a real casino with confidence.