Roulette Rules and History

Roulette is a well-established game in both traditional and online casinos.  Roulette relies on pure luck, yet it remains one of the most popular casino games in the world. 

The game uses a spinning wheel situated into a small depression in a table.  A small white ball spins around the wheel and falls in a numbered slot, which determines if a player wins or loses his bet.

Roulette may appear to be a complicated game, but it is easy to grasp the basics.  The Roulette table displays a large grid of numbers next to the wheel.  The croupier is a casino worker who oversees bets, spins the wheel, and drops the ball in onto the wheel.

The Roulette wheel has numbered slots along its edge.  The numbers run from one to thirty-six and switch from red to black.  European wheels have a green zero slot, while American wheels have both single-zero and double-zero slots. 

Gamblers initially lay wagers on where the twirling ball will fall.  They put their chips on the sections of the grid that represent their bets.  The croupier will spin the wheel and drop the ball into the wheel well.  When the ball stops spinning, it will land in one of the numbered slots.  The slot that the ball lands in decides which players have won their bets.

Many people ask the question: how can I be sure of making a winning Roulette bet?  The ultimate answer is that no one can be sure of making a winning bet before ball lands.  Unlike poker or blackjack, Roulette is not a game where a player's skill level can determine the outcome.  Success or failure is completely determined by blind fortune.  The player hopes that the ball will fall where he expected.

One glance at the Roulette table will inform a player that a wide range of betting choices are available.  A variety of different payouts are in play at the table, and it is crucial to recognize just how much money a player could win.

The easiest style of bet is called an “Outside Bet”.  Outside bets pay less than other bets, but have much better odds.  A normal outside bet is betting on either an even number or an odd number.  This bet means that, if the player bets on "Odd" and the ball falls in an odd-numbered slot, the player wins.  The probabilities of winning this bet are almost exactly even.  Other types of outside bets include "red/black", "high/low", columns and dozens.

The other primary type of bet is called an “Inside Bet”.  The odds of winning inside bets are much worse than outside bets, but give better payouts.  A normal inside bet is a “straight up” or "single number" bet.  A player puts a bet down on a particular number in hopes that the ball will fall in that slot. 

Since the probabilities of winning this bet are far lower (one out of thirty-seven or thirty-eight), the payout is much higher (thirty-five to one).  Other types of inside bets incorporate using combinations of numbers on the grid, such as rows, corners and adjoining squares.  

Not only is Roulette a simple game to learn, it’s also easy to get in over your head.  Players can lose all of their cash before they know what hit them, thanks to the reckless nature of the game. Think of establishing a spending limit and not to put down too much money on a bet as you play Roulette.