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Roulette is a very old casino game, dating back to 1796. It originated in France, hence the name "roulette", which in French means "small wheel". The game is very popular in Europe but less so in America.
Gameplay Basics
The dealer in roulette is known as a croupier (pronounced crou-pee-ay). The game apparatus include a revolving wheel with numbered pockets, alternating between red and black; a ball; and a betting table. The game consists of the croupier spinning the wheel in one direction and spinning the ball around the wheel in the opposite direction, after players have made bets as to which pocket the ball will come to rest in. Players can bet on multiple pockets, as well as whether the ball will rest in an even/odd pocket or a red/black pocket.
Game Variations
Roulette comes in a number of forms, including European, French and American variations. The variations differ in the bet types that are allowed but more importantly in the number of pockets found in the roulette wheel. In the European and French variations, the wheel has 37 pockets (0-36), while in the American variation, the wheel has 38 pockets. The additional pocket resulted from the addition of a double zero (00) pocket, which was in aid of increasing the house edge to 5.26%. In European and French roulette, the house edge is 2.70%. As such, it is always advised to only play Eurpean or French roulette, and not American roulette, which has much more of a risk.
The Betting Table and Bet Types
Inside Bets
- Straight Up: a bet on any single number, including "0". The roulette chip is placed directly on the number
- Split Bet: a bet on two adjacent numbers. The roulette chip is placed on the line where the two numbers meet
- Street Bet: a bet on all three numbers in a row. The roulette chip is placed on the line at the end of the row
- Corner Bet: a bet on a group of four numbers. The roulette chip is placed at the corner where the 4 numbers meet
- Line Bet: a bet on six numbers (2 rows of 3 numbers). The roulette chip is placed at the end of two rows on the line where the two rows meet
Outside Bets
- Column Bet: a bet on an entire column, placed on a 2-1 box at the end of a column
- Dozen Bet: a bet on a group of 12 numbers, placed on the 1st 12 box (numbers 1-12), 2nd 12 box (numbers 13-24), or 3rd 12 box (numbers 25-36)
- Colour Bet: a bet on all three numbers in a row, placed on the line at the end of the row. Can also be placed on 0, 1, and 2. Or 0, 2 and 3
- Even/Odd: a bet on all of the red numbers or all of the black numbers, placed on the red box (all red numbers) or the black box (all black numbers)
- Low/High Number: a bet on all low numbers or all high numbers, placed on the low box (numbers 1-18) or the high box (numbers 19-36)
Payouts
| Bet Type | Payout |
|---|---|
| Straight Up | 35:1 |
| Split | 17:1 |
| Street | 11:1 |
| Corner | 8:1 |
| Line | 5:1 |
| Column | 2:1 |
| Dozen | 2:1 |
| Low numbers (1-18) | 1:1 |
| High numbers (19-36) | 1:1 |
| Red or Black | 1:1 |
| Odd or Even | 1:1 |
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