Roulette is a casino game that has offered glamour, mystery and excitement to gamblers since the 17th century. While the game’s rules are relatively simple and easy to understand, there is more skill involved in winning at this classic game than you might think.
Roulette wheels vary from one casino to another, but the basic elements are the same: a wheel made of solid wood slightly convex in shape with metal partitions around its rim. It has 37 pockets that are painted red and black and numbered nonconsecutively from 1 to 36.
During the course of play, the croupier will spin the wheel and drop a small ball inside. The objective is to predict on which pocket the ball will land.
Before the ball is dropped, players may place chips on a betting mat located at the table’s wagering area. The precise location of these chips indicates which bet they are placing.
There are 37 numbers on a European wheel: 18 red and 18 black, with a green division numbered 0 (in America, there is also a double zero). The odds of hitting any number are 35 to 1, but the house pays only about 35 to 1. The only way to beat this is to bet on all 38 numbers or use a system like la partage that reduces the house edge by half.
A typical American roulette wheel has two green divisions marked 00 and two red ones marked 0. The house edge for this type of roulette is 5.26%, which is worse than the European version.
While the house edge is higher in American roulette, the rules are more fair than in European casinos. In Europe, there are some special rules called “La Partage” and “En Prison.” These rules allow even money bets to pay only 1.35%, half of the house edge on all other bets at the same table.
The house edge is also slightly lower in European roulette than in American roulette, and the 2.70% average house edge for a single zero wheel is a better choice than the 5.26% average house edge on a double zero wheel. However, both games have their own idiosyncrasies and each is a good choice for different gamblers.
A roulette table features a layout of chips on a green felt right next to the wheel. Each chip is labeled with a number and represents a bet on that number. To place a bet on a number, players simply lay down the appropriate amount of chips in that space.
In addition to the numbers, there are many other types of bets available in the game. These include column bets, line bets and even money bets.