Can You Win at Roulette?
Roulette – the famous wheel game, and a game of chance to boot. Your odds of success are random, a mere twist of fate, right? Not entirely. While blackjack players use Basic Strategy to improve their odds of success, and poker players allegedly rely on skill to see them through, might there be something to aid roulette players in landing a win?
Let us be clear on this; there is no guaranteed way to secure a win in roulette, either online or in brick-and-mortar casinos. However, that does not mean to say that you cannot do certain things and play a specific way to bolster your chances of winning. These topics are the focal point of this guide.
With our roulette guide, we will take you on a tour of some of the internet’s top roulette tips. We will discuss strategies (both effective and ineffective) and unravel the mystery behind the tactics and techniques of winning at roulette. At the very least, our handy hints should help you stand a better chance of bagging that all-important win. If you are ready to begin, let us get started.
Choosing the Correct Wheel
You are going to stand a much better chance of landing a win if you get the groundwork right. For seasoned roulette pros, this will be old news. However, if you are new to roulette, picking the correct wheel is the single most important thing you can do to lower the house’s edge.
There are effectively three types of roulette games you can play, although, in essence, two of them are virtually identical: American roulette, French roulette, and European roulette. American roulette is the least attractive proposition. It features two zero pockets, namely the zero (0) and double zero (00). European and French roulette have just the one.
As you will be aware, landing the ball in a zero pocket sees you lose. This gives the house a 2.70% edge when a single zero pocket is used, such as in European roulette. The presence of an additional zero pocket (00), doubles the house edge to 5.26% in American roulette, so we want to eliminate that option immediately.
When you opt to play with French roulette, you will get more than just fancy-sounding names for bets. This game also features a single zero pocket, and officially, its house edge is 2.70%. However, French roulette also has a few tweaks on gameplay, which if used effectively, can drop the house edge to 1.35%. It is clearly the best option if you want to lower the house edge and improve your chances of success, so let us look closer at that.
Opt for La Partage/En Prison Rules
The two tweaks on the rules in French roulette are La Partage and En Prison. These translate as “The Sharing” and “In Prison”, respectively. These added rules only apply to even money bets. Here is how they work:
– La Partage
If you place an even-money bet (reds, blacks, odds, evens, lows, or highs), and you land in the zero pocket, you will get half of your bet returned to you.
– En Prison
Placing even money bets with the En Prison rule and landing on zero will see you lose half your bet. The other half is “in prison”. You can then place a new even money bet on the next round. If you win, you will also get the bet back. If you lose, then it, too, is lost.
If you regularly wager on even money bets, you have little to lose by playing with the La Partage and En Prison rules. La Partage is the more favourable of the two as it guarantees half your bet back and drops the house edge.
Understand Inside and Outside Bets
You do not have to be a number wizard to understand roulette’s betting options. In fact, all you really need is to memorise the odds of success for each type of bet and learn what each group of bets mean. The two most common types of roulette bets are inside bets and outside bets. Here is what to look for:
– Inside Bets
Inside bets are those which are the least likely to occur but to offset that, have the greatest payouts. For instance, here are the probabilities of the most common inside bets being landed successfully:
– Corners: 10.81%
– Streets: 8.11%
– Splits: 5.41%
– Straights: 2.70%
– Outside Bets
Outside bets are ideal for rookies. They are far more likely to come good, but consequently, they are not worth a great deal in terms of prizes. The probability that one of these bets wins is much more favourable. Like so…
– Columns and Dozens: 32.40%
– Lows and Highs: 48.60%
– Reds, Blacks, Odds and Evens: 48.60%
It is entirely up to you to see the value in these odds and decide which you wish to go with. However, knowing how likely each bet is to appear on the wheel on any given spin is an important part of increasing your chances of landing any win at all.
Use Call Bets to Cover the Wheel
If you want to branch out, there are a few other types of bets you can make which can help you win. These are known as call bets, and they involve covering the wheel. As its name suggests, covering the wheel involves placing strategic wagers on large portions of the roulette wheel at once. As it greatly increases your success rate, it is naturally tricky to understand.
Unlike conventional roulette bets, these involve betting on the numbers as they appear on the wheel. While it is entirely possible to wager on these bets by placing chips on the standard betting table, most French roulette (and some European games) come with a separate betting table, known as the racetrack which facilitates these bets.
The most common call bets include:
– Voisins du Zéro
Also known as Neighbours of Zero, this bet covers all seventeen numbers which are close to the zero. Its odds of success are 45.9%. You need to wager at least nine chips, as follows: two chips on the 0-2-3 trio and single-chip split bets on 4-7, 12-15, 18-21, 19-22, 32-35, followed by a two-chip corner bet on 25, 26, 28 and 29.
– Jeu Zéro
The Zero Game bet sees you wager on the sevens numbers closest to the zero, including the zero itself. The chances of success with Jeu Zéro bets are 18.9%. You are looking at four chips here, with split bets placed on 0-3, 12-15 and 32-35, as well as a single, straight-up bet on number 26.
– Tiers du Cylindre
Also known as Third of the Wheel bets, these are wagers on the twelve numbers across from the zero on the other side of the wheel. You will have a 32.4% chance of success here, with the wager similar to a column or dozen bet in terms of prizes. Comprising six chips, it involves six split bets on 5-8, 10-11, 13-16, 23-24, 27-30 and 33-36.
– Orphelins
Any numbers which have thus far not featured in call bets can be wagered on with Orphelins, or Orphan bets. This wager has a 21.6% chance of success. Six chips are used, with five split bets placed on 6-9, 14-17, 17-20 and 31-34. The last chip is used for a straight-up bet on number 1.
While tricky, these bets are quite clearly more favourable than many traditional inside bets. Any skilled roulette player who wants to improve their game will take them to heart, memorise them, and put them to good use to improve their chances of landing a win.
Using the Infamous Roulette Betting Strategies
You may have heard talk of roulette strategies being ideal to land wins? This is where elements of myth come into the game. There is no sure-fire winning roulette strategy. In fact, what is detailed below are better known as roulette betting systems. While they cannot guarantee a win, they can (at times) be used to ensure that you improve your odds of making a profit in the long-term. This is based on the logic that when you eventually win, you will win enough to cover all your losses and a little on the side.
We would exercise caution before using any of the following betting systems. Some of them can pay dividends if you are on a winning streak. Others can see you run out of chips rapidly if you go on a losing streak. There are two types of betting systems worth mentioning. They include Progressive Betting Systems, which effectively see you increase your bet when you win, and decrease it when you lose, and Negative Progression Betting Systems, which see you double your stakes when you lose and reduce them following a win.
Before we explain the pros and cons of these systems, let us introduce you to five of the most common options:
– The Martingale System
Arguably the most famous of the betting systems, the Martingale is also used for many other gambling games. This is a negative progression betting system used on even money bets. Starting with the table minimum, you double your bet on each losing spin. Following a win, you restart the system.
– The Reverse Martingale
This is a progressive betting system, again used on even-money wagers. Starting with the table minimum, you double your bet following a win. You restart the system when you lose. This system allows you to avoid the pitfalls of lengthy losing streaks commonly associated with the Martingale.
– The D’Alembert System
Again, this is an even-money betting strategy. To begin with, you need to define “a unit”. For the sake of argument, let us say a unit is $1. On every losing spin, you increase your bet by one unit. Following a win, you decrease the bet by one unit.
– The Fibonacci System
First, a sequence needs to be formed, starting with a single unit (again, let us say $1 for simplicity). Then you form a sequence by adding numbers together. For instance, a typical sequence might consist of 1-1-2-3-5-8-13-21. Your first bet is the leftmost number in the sequence. You will work your way through the sequence. Following a win, you move back two spots in the sequence (unless you are at the beginning when you bet the leftmost amount), and after a loss, you move onto the next number in the chain.
– The Labouchère System
This is another number sequence roulette betting strategy. You need first to decide how much you wish to bet. Divide that figure into a number sequence. For instance, if you want to bet $10, you might choose a sequence like 1-1-1-2-2-2-1. You will always bet the leftmost and rightmost figures in the chain. For example, in our chain, that bet would be $2 (1+1). When you win, cross out the numbers in the sequence you used and move on to the next one, which will now be the next innermost figures (1+2 = $3). However, if you lose, you do not cross out numbers. Instead, you add the total number you just wagered to the rightmost side of the sequence. Then, you resume playing using the outer numbers once more. This is one of those roulette betting strategies which will require a sharp mathematical mind, or at the very least, a pen and paper.
Do Roulette Betting Systems Work?
The whole purpose of roulette betting systems is not to guarantee that you will walk away from the table (digital or otherwise) with a stack of chips. Roulette is, unquestionably a game of chance and is, therefore, not cheatable with any conventional strategy. Instead, they are designed so that when you do eventually win, you will recoup your losses. Therein, is the potential flaw.
With negative progression betting systems – which see you double your bet following a loss – there is a high degree of risk involved. If you go on a lengthy losing streak, you could rapidly run out of chips long before you win. Progressive betting systems – doubling your bet following a win – are, therefore, a safer option. However, even they cannot guarantee success. Think of roulette betting systems and strategies as nothing more than methods to “potentially” help you break even. To be perfectly frank, while popular, they are nowhere near as effective as placing call bets and playing on single-zero wheels.
Play Online Roulette for Free
For a roulette player who wants to win real money, it might sound somewhat counterintuitive to play roulette games for free online. However, there are a few excellent reasons why you might want to do this.
– Playing roulette games for free can allow you to experiment with betting systems in a risk-free environment.
– Free roulette games are ideal for learning how the call and racetrack bets work.
– Opting to play roulette for free can see you make notes and learn about the different types of bets the game has to offer.
While live dealer casino roulette games cannot be played for free, their RNG (random number generator) counterparts can. Aside from a few subtle alterations, such as playing with a human dealer, these games are akin to standard online roulette titles. Any RNG roulette game should make for an adequate training ground before you tackle live roulette online.
Additional Top Roulette Tips
Before you nip off, it is worth briefly touching on a few top roulette tips. Of course, we strongly recommend that you deploy all the advice already covered if you wish to improve your odds of success playing roulette. However, these handy hints are not going to hurt either, so you should consider using them. They include:
– Stay Away from Those Side-Bets:
Some roulette games feature side-bets. We would recommend staying away from these, as they often increase the house’s edge and have low probability.
– Choose a Reputable Casino/Game:
The RTP and house edges in games can vary. It is important to play the right roulette game. Choosing to play at a licensed and reputable casino, which carries many roulette titles from a plethora of software providers will give you more choice, allowing you to pick the appropriate game for you.
– Ignore Hot and Cold Numbers:
Some people really do pay attention to hot and cold numbers and base their bets off them. Hot numbers (those which have appeared frequently) and cold numbers (those which have not) make little difference in a game of chance, though. Betting with them will not guarantee success any more than wagering on other numbers will.
– Avoid Negative Progression Betting Systems:
As touched on, negative progression betting systems can see you rapidly run out of funds on a losing streak. If you insist on playing with roulette betting strategies, opt for progressive ones, such as the Reverse Martingale.
Conclusion: Will I Get My Win Playing Roulette?
After exploring the many different techniques and tactics listed above, you will come to the same conclusion that we first expressed at the beginning of this article. There is no such thing as a guaranteed, sure-fire way to win at roulette. However, if used correctly, the methods listed above can certainly improve your odds of success, which for a game of chance as roulette is, is not a bad thing at all.
