Roulette

Roulette is a game that is played with a ball and a spinning wheel. In a simple sense, players bet on the number that the ball will land on when released into the wheel. It is a random game and there are a number of different bets that can be placed.

Game Set-Up

The roulette game consists of a roulette wheel with numbered slots. The most common variations of roulette are American roulette and European roulette. In American roulette there are 38 slots on the wheel – the numbers 1 though 36, a zero and a double zero. In European roulette, there are 37 slots on the wheel – the numbers 1 through 36 and a single zero. There is also a roulette table on which the different types of available bets are displayed.

Playing the Game of Roulette

Players must place their bets on the roulette table before the game begins. Bets are able to be placed until the croupier calls out "no more bets" just before the ball drops into a slot. The croupier releases the white roulette ball into the spinning wheel in the opposite direction to the wheel.

Types of Roulette Bets

There are a number of different types of roulette bets that can be placed. These vary slightly between variations of roulette. There are a total of ten bets that can be placed in a game of European roulette and in the game of American roulette the same bets can be placed, plus an extra one for a total of eleven bets. The bets are divided into inside bets and outside bets.

Inside bets are bets that are placed on specific numbers or groups of numbers on the roulette table. Inside bets include straight bets, split bets, row (street) bets, line (double street) bets and corner bets. In American roulette you can also place a five number bet (which includes the 00).

Outside bets are bets that are placed on numbered sections of the table and they include categories of numbers. These bets include the even money bets (red or black; odd or even and high or low bets), column bets and dozen bets.

Winning in a Game of Roulette

You win in a game of roulette if you bet on a number or a group of numbers and the ball lands in that slots on the roulette wheel.

Bets pay out according to the probability that the ball will land on that number.

Red or black bets pay out at 1 to 1.Odd or even bets pay out at 1 to 1.High or low bets pay out at 1 to 1.Column bets pay out at 2 to 1.Dozen bets pay out at 2 to 1.Line bets pay out at 5 to 1.Corner bets pay out at 8 to 1.Street bets pay out at 11 to 1.Split bets pay out at 17 to 1.Straight bets pay out at 35 to 1.

Variations of Roulette

There are a number of different variations of the game of roulette. While some, such as European roulette and American roulette are popular and common, others are less so. With online casinos it is now easier to find some of the less known variations of roulette. Some variations of roulette include:Mini RouletteAs the name implies, this is a mini version of the game of roulette. The roulette wheel consists of 13 numbered slots – the numbers 0 through 12. These numbers are not sequentially ordered on the roulette wheel. Mini roulette also offers inside bets and outside bets and the player is paid out if the ball lands on the number or group of numbers that he bet on. Unlike in other variations of roulette, in mini roulette there is a refund on zero feature – this means that if the balls lands on the 0 then players who bet on other numbers will be refunded with half their bets.French RouletteFrench roulette is played in a similar manner to European and American roulette. The table looks slightly different, but do not be put off by that. Bets in French roulette include inside bets and outside bets, as well as some unique bets including announce bets, neighbor bets and call bets. The La Partage bet exists in French roulette which states that if the ball lands on 0, all even money bets will be refunded with half the bet.