Roulette

The main object of roulette is to predict where the ball will land on the roulette wheel after it has been spun by the croupier and comes to a stop. Players are then paid out according to their bets. Payouts can be as little as 1:1 and as much as 35:1.

Each roulette wheel consists of 37 or 38 numbers (depending on whether it is a European or an American version of the game). Each number has its own slot into which the ball can fall. The wheel is arranged so that pairs of odd numbers alternate with pairs of even numbers, as well as black and red slots. Zeros are green.

The roulette table is designed in such a way that players can place their chips on it to predict where the ball will fall. All the numbers (except the zeros) are arranged in three columns of 12, with the first numbers of the first row across being 1, 2 and 3. Around these columns, players can place alternative bets for groups of numbers.

American and European roulette differ not only in the layout of the wheel, but also in the color of the chips. American roulette offers players different color chips, while European roulette has chips of the same color for all the players. Players wager chips of different denominations and these can be exchanged back for cash at the end of the game.

Players consider which bets they wish to make and then place their chips on the roulette table. Once everyone around the table has placed their bets, the croupier will announce that there are no more bets to be taken and will spin the wheel. When the ball lands after the wheel stops spinning, the croupier will isolate the winning numbers on the table and clear all those that didn’t win. Only when the croupier has finished paying out the winners, can players place new bets on the table.

Name of Bet	What it Predicts	Payout
Straight bets	One number will come up on the wheel.	35:1
Split bets	One of two adjacent numbers will come up.	17:1
Street bets	Any number in one particular row will come up.	11:1
Corner bets	A group of four numbers will come up. Any number of the 4 will pay out.	8:1
Five number bets	The 0, 00, 1, 2 or 3 will win.  Applicable to American roulette only.	6:1
Six Line Bets	One of six numbers on two adjacent rows will appear. Any number of the six will pay out.	6:1

Name of Bet	What it Predicts	Payout
Column bet	A number in a specific column will come up.	2:1
Dozen bet	A bet that a number from one of three sections of 12 numbers each will come up (1-12, 13-24, 25-36).	2:1
Red bet	The next number to come up will be a red.	1:1
Black bet	The next number to come up will be a black.	1:1
Even bet	The next number to come up will be even	1:1
Odd bet	The next number to come up will be odd	1:1
High bet	The next number to come up will be between 19 and 36.	1:1
Low bet	The next number to come up will be between 1 and 18.	1:1

En Prison: This rule is applicable to outside even-money bets and is offered when the game is played with a European wheel. If the ball lands on a zero, the player can either take back half the bet, or leave the money ‘imprisoned’ for the duration of another spin. If a second zero is spun, the entire wager is lost. This is an attractive option that can bring the house edge down to only 1.352%

La Partage: Similar to ‘En Prison’, except that the player cannot leave the bet for the next spin.

[ Continue to Final Part of this Roulette Guide ]