Roulette

By Will Veda

There is no Russian Roulette allowed in the casinos, since they do not allow firearms.   Unless, of course, you’re in the mob.  Speaking of Russia, every Roulette enthusiast should read Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s “The Gambler.”   The book is about a character named, Alexey Ivanovitch, who is addicted to the game of Roulette, but in fact the story is really about the author’s addiction. 

Roulette is a simple game where a small marble ball spins in the opposite direction of a numbered wheel and where the ball lands, that number and/or color wins.  The Roulette wheel includes the numbers 1 through 36 and 0 and 00 (European wheels only include the 0, which is a much better option—more on that later).  The numbers are also represented by the colors red or black.  The red numbers are: 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 12, 14, 16, 18, 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, 30, 32, 34, and 36.  The black numbers are: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11, 13, 15, 17, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 29, 31, 33, and 35.  The 0s are colored green. 

When playing Roulette it is important to understand the wagering placard.  This placard will indicate the minimum and maximum of what are called inside and outside bets.  Inside bets are the bets on the individual numbers.  Outside are bets are for variations and/or combinations of numbers or colors.  No outside bet includes the 0 or 00 or the color green. 

If the placard states a $5 minimum on the inside, it is stating that you can put the total of $5 on one number or divide the $5 up in increments of $1 for a total of $5 or more; $5 minimum on the outside means that each outside bet has to be at least $5. 

Table etiquette is also very important.  When you walk up to a table, wait until the croupier (dealer) has removed the marker (a crystal knick knack-looking thing) from the previous spin’s winning number, before placing any money on the table.  The croupier will exchange your money for chips that are similar to standard casino cheques, except they can only be used at that particular Roulette table.  Do not walk off with these chips, as they cannot be exchanged back into cash anywhere but the table where they were obtained.  Players are assigned a stack of different colored chips to differentiate their bets from one another.  These chips can also be of any denomination, but are usually assigned $1. 

The croupier will announce: “Place your bets” and begin spinning the wheel a little harder than it was spinning after the previous spin’s outcome.  At this time players start placing their chips all over the table layout and after a few moments, the croupier will spin the ball on the upper rim of the wheel, then soon will announce: “No more bets.”  The ball spins in the opposite direction of the wheel and eventually starts to fall into the number wells area.  The wheel includes several diamond-shaped pegs and embossed number dividers that cause the ball to sometimes violently bounce around until it finally finds a resting place: the winning number and/or color.   

Types of Bets

BLACK OR RED BET (outside) - A bet that either a black number or red number will hit on the next spin -- pays even money. 

COLUMN BET (outside) - The layout is divided into three columns -- pays 2 to 1. 

Column 1 includes 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 25, 28, 31, and 34.

Column 2 includes 2, 5, 8, 11, 14, 17, 20, 23, 26, 29, 32, and 35.

Column 3 includes 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21, 24, 27, 30, 33, and 36.

CORNER BET (inside) - A bet on four numbers (one of the four to hit), placed on the corner of four numbers’ betting boxes -- pays 8 to 1. 

DOUBLE STREET (LINE) BET (inside) - A bet on six numbers (one of the six to hit), placed on the edge of two three-number “mini-columns” (called a line) -- pays 5 to 1. 

EVEN or ODD BET (outside) - A bet that either an even or an odd number will hit -- pays even money.  The 0 or 00 is considered neither an even nor an odd number. 

FIRST 12 BET (outside) - A bet that one of the first twelve numbers: 1-12 will hit – pays 2 to 1. 

HIGH BET (SECOND 18) BET (outside) - A bet that one of the second set of 18 numbers: 19-36 will hit -- pays even money. 

LOW BET (FIRST 18) BET (outside) - A bet that one of the first set of 18 numbers: 1-18 will hit -- pays even money. 

SECOND 12 BET (outside) - A bet that one of the second set of twelve numbers: 13-24 will hit -- pays 2 to 1. 

THIRD 12 BET (outside) - A bet that one of the third set of twelve numbers: 15-36 will hit -- pays 2 to 1. 

FIVE NUMBER BET (inside) - A five number bet that includes 0, 00, 1, 2, 3 -- pays 6 to 1.  The worst bet in Roulette. 

SPLIT BET (inside) - A bet on two numbers -- pays 17 to 1. 

STRAIGHT BET (inside) - A bet on one number -- pays 35 to 1. 

STREET (LINE) BET (inside) - A bet on three numbers, placed on the edge of one three-number “mini-column”  -- pays 11 to 1.  

Insights on Roulette

A standard double-0 wheel game has a huge house edge of 5.26%, except for the five number bet (0, 00, 1, 2, 3), that carries a whopping 7.89% edge.  When the 00 is eliminated, the house edge goes down to a more respectable 2.70%.  I can’t count how many times I have been at a casino that includes both types of wheels, like Las Vegas’ Monte Carlo, and witnessed more people playing on a double-0 wheel a the single-0 wheel.  Cracks me up.   

European-rules Roulette, with the single-0 wheel, offers a nice surrender-type option called the en prison rule. If a player places an even money bet (red/black, odd/even, 1-18, 19-36) and the ball lands on zero, the player can either get half the bet back (a surrender) or imprison the bet.  If the imprisoned bet “hits” on the next spin, the full bet amount is given back to the player without any winnings.  What if the next spin is once again a zero?  There are actually different rules in European casinos.  Some casinos keep the bet imprisoned until a non-zero spin hits; some casinos consider this a loss; some casinos return half the bet (like a surrender); and some even call this a double-imprisonment, which means a non-zero hit must occur twice before returning the bet.  But the player has the option to take the surrender, getting back half the bet.  

A lot of casinos include a number/color tower that indicates the past 20 or so winning numbers/colors.  Even though Roulette is a random game without any memory—meaning there is as much a chance that 15 sevens will hit in row as no sevens will hit in 15 spins—players use the tower for information.  If you know what to look for, however, you can spot a bias wheel or a croupier’s “signature” by tracking the history of winning numbers.  

My Favorite Strategy

I rarely play Roulette, except for a one spin strategy that receives strange looks from other players, the croupiers, and even pit personnel.  I discovered this strategy from a very insightful book, “Gamble to Win: A Complete Guide for the Serious Player” by R. D. Ellison.  Mr. Ellison illustrates many unusual strategies for Roulette, Craps, and Baccarat in this book.  A Roulette strategy that caught my attention is what he calls a Sledgehammer.  This bet includes making four double street (line) bets of equal amounts.  I always play the numbers 7-12, 13-18, 19-24, 25-30; but any four lines can be played.   

Wow, that’s genius you say, you’ve covered 24 of the 36 (plus 0/00) numbers, how can you lose?  Well, the odds are actually laid with the payout being 1 to 2.  For example, place four $5 bets ($20) on the numbers above and if one of the numbers hits you are paid 5 to 1 ($25), but the profit is only $10 because the other three $5 bets lose; you are risking $20 to win $10.  The actual probability (not odds!), however, is 24 to 14 on a double-0 wheel and 24 to 13 on a single-0 wheel.  In my history of making this bet, I have enjoyed an approximate 85% win ratio.  But, like I said, I always make it a one-spin bet for a quick $10 to use for a celebratory Scotch or two.  And when I pick up my usually winning profit, the confused players, the inquisitive croupiers, and the scoffing pit personnel do the math and say in unison, “Aha.” 

Roulette Glossary 

BIAS WHEEL - A Roulette wheel that has either a mechanical or surface flaw that causes the ball to frequently land in certain areas. 

CLOCKING - Keeping track of the numbers that are appearing to try to find out if the wheel could be bias.  It takes a lot of time, patience, and number recording to certify a biased wheel. 

CROUPIER – The official name for the Roulette dealer. 

SLICE - Eliminating the 0 and 00, the wheel can be divided up by four “slices” with nine numbers in each slice.  This is useful to know when clocking the wheel looking for evidence of a bias.  If certain numbers keep re-appearing within a certain slice, the bias flaw may be in this area of the wheel.