Each roulette table moves in
sessions, each session is associated with a spin of the wheel and that spin's
result. You trade in
your checks (which most people think of as regular casino chips, but they're
actually called checks) for roulette chips when a new session starts, and the
dealer assigns you a number and denomination. All of your chips of the same
color are worth the same amount. There aren't many specific things that can be
considered roulette rules at the table, but here's one you shouldn't forget. Split bet - you
can place a single bet on two individual numbers if those numbers are beside
each other on the table layout. Street bet - this is a bet not unlike a split.
It allows you to bet on three different numbers with the same bet. Fiver number bet - there
is only one five number bet available. The outside bets on a roulette board are
simply the bets that reside 'outside' of the main playing area of 38 numbers. There
are the different types of outside bets. Red or Black - you can choose to bet on
the outcome either being a red number, or a black number.
You should always calculate your expected
loss and how long you can play on a given bankroll before playing any game, but
with roulette it's especially important. For most bets it's fairly obvious - you can't miss the
Red diamond for Red bets, and things like Even, 1-18, and 1st 12 are written out
in plain English. You don't have to make just one kind of bet for
each spin, you can make several, and you win if the ball lands on any of your
numbers. In most games players can continue
making bets even while the ball is still spinning. When the ball is getting
ready to drop, the dealer will wave his hand over the table, which means "No
more bets". Each player's chips are a different color. That way if
two players bet on the same number (or set of numbers), then the dealer knows
who to pay, and arguments can't arise over who bet what. In other games the color of the chip
denotes the denomination, but in Roulette the color denotes only which player
the chip belongs to. Remember that
you can bet inside or outside if you like; there's no requirement to bet both on
a given spin. It most other games a bet usually wins only even money, but
Roulette gives you the chance to win 35 times your bet (a winning bet placed on
a single number) There's an old saying,
"The wheel has no memory. " That means it doesn't know what it spun
before, and even if it did, the wheel can't select what number comes up out of
its own volition. It's more important to know what the house edge is, than how to calculate
it, but here's a quick analysis in case you're interested. Your odds of winning a
one-number bet are 37 to 1 (37 ways to lose, 1 way to win) The European
wheel has a lower house edge (2.63%) because it has only 37 slots instead of 38
(no 00) Atlantic City has a special rule which
reduces the house edge to 2.7% on even money bets (Red/Black, Odd/Even,
1-18/19-36): If 0 or 00 comes up on on even money bet, you lose only half your
bet. On even money bets when 0 comes up, instead of losing right
away, your bet is "imprisoned" and rides again for the next spin.