The Basics of Roullete

Roullete, or roulette as it is commonly known, is a gambling game whereby a small ball is released in the opposite direction of a spinning revolving wheel and players make bets on which red or black numbered compartment it will enter as the wheel comes to rest. The game has been in existence for more than 300 years and it is one of the most popular casino games.

A modern roulette wheel consists of a solid wooden disk slightly convex in shape with thirty-six metal dividers around its rim (called frets by rouletiers) which are alternately painted red and black. There is also a separate green division labelled 0 on European wheels and two green pockets on American ones.

Before the wheel is spun, bets are made by laying chips on a betting mat with the precise position of the chip indicating the type of bet. There are several types of bets including straight-up which picks an individual number, split which bets on two numbers, and corner which selects four numbers forming a square on the betting table. All of these bets are based on the odds which are clearly defined and displayed on the betting table.

The house edge on bets placed on single numbers is 5.26%. Other bets pay out at lower odds depending on the specific bet. A dozen bet pays 2-1 on the odds of hitting any number in the first 12 numbers while an inside bet such as a red/black or odd/even bet pays out at 1-2%.

Despite this fact, there are many (possibly millions) of systems for playing (and supposedly winning) roulette, most of them based on the idea that a player can beat the maths and gain an advantage over the house. It is widely accepted that these systems cannot change the house edge on any bet, although there are some exceptions.