Roulette is a game of pure guessing and minimal strategy. The wheel, as stated, has between 37 and 38 pockets and a win comes from guessing rather than beating the other players, or the dealer’s hand. The game is not an all-or-nothing situation, however. That is, guessing the exact number on which the ball will fall is not the only way to win. The chances for any kind of win in that situation would be so small that the game would not be very attractive to anxious players. Getting that one in thirty seven or thirty eight bet will indeed give you the table’s biggest payout. But, just as in golf, a hole in one is not the only way to collect winnings in a game. You can make your life easier (and the payout smaller, unfortunately) by taking one of several betting options on the table:
Your bet on the table is determined on where you place your chips. You can place them on several places on the edge of the table where bets are placed and set yourself for different possibilities. You choose from a selection of common characteristics of the numbers on the wheel - odd/even, red or black, and low/high. The payouts are as follows:
Straight Bet - The big one. Betting on the single number on which the ball eventually lands pays 35 to 1.
Split Bet - Betting on two adjacent numbers and seeing the ball land in one of the two pays you 17 to 1.
Street Bet - Betting on three numbers in a horizontal line pays you 11 to 1.
Corner Bet - Betting on a block of four numbers pays you 8 to 1.
Line Bet - Betting on six numbers in two adjacent rows pays you 5 to 1.
Columns – A bet on the 12 numbers contained in any one of the three columns on the table. Pays 2 to 1.
Red / Black – A bet that the winning number will be the color you bet on. Pays even money 1 to 1.
Odd / Even – A bet that the winning number will be either an odd or even number. Pays even money 1 to 1.
Low / High – A bet that the ball will either fall in the series of lower numbers (1-18) or the series of high numbers (19-36). Pays even money 1 to 1.
Dozens – a bet on either the first dozen numbers (1-12), the second dozen (13-24), or the third dozen (25-36). Pays 2 to 1.
The Roulette table is a grid composed of three columns and 12 rows. The places that are designated to places the chips to indicate what you’re betting on can be very easily understood once you have a visual picture of the table in front of you. Examine it for just a few moments and you’re on your way to being part of the racket around the roulette wheel.
