Like Black jack, the game of roulette has its origins in France. In the 17th century the French mathematician Blaise Pascal attempted to create a perpetual motion device.
Pascal loved games and saw the potential of his spinning wheel as an early form of the game we called roulette today. In the 18th century it appears that many similar games were amalgamated to form roulette. In 1796 in a book by the French writer Jacques Lablee (La Roulette, ou le Jour), there is mention of a roulette table in Paris’ Palais Royale.
As roulette evolved and spread through Europe, gambling became outlawed in many countries including France and Germany during the 19th century. Eventually the game found a safe home in Monte Carlo, where it was adopted as its principle casino game. These days roulette can be found in almost every casino in the world. It has been glamorised by the movies, especially the James Bond films.
On roulette tables in Europe there are usually 37 slots (36 numbers and 0). On roulette tables in America there are usually 38 slots (36 numbers, 0 and 00), giving the house better odds over the gambler. There are inside bets and outside bets in roulette.
Inside bets are number bets – placing money on specific numbers to win. Outside bets are bets where a player has chosen what colour or whether the ball will land on an odd or even number. Outside bets are easier to win but they have smaller payouts.
The rules of roulette couldn’t be any simpler. Put your designated chips on the number, or group of numbers, that you think will win. A small ball is flung around the roulette wheel, and when it stops in a slot, this is the winning number.
You can bet on an odd or an even number coming, you can bet on red or black (a slightly less than 50% chance, what with 0 and 00 on the wheel), you can bet on the winning number being in the first, second or third third of the numbers, or you can bet on the various rows and columns on the felt. You can pretty much bet on anything between 00 and 36!
There is no real strategy to roulette. It is a game of chance, pure and simple. This is what has made it so popular; it is a game where anyone can win, and no skill is required to take down a huge win.
Place a bet on a single number and win and you’ll see a return of 35:1. Of course, as with every game in a casino, the odds are always slightly against you, so don’t be too surprised when you don’t win, but roulette has always had, and will continue to have that allure of the unexpected and the unpredictable. Make sure you know if you are on the European or American wheel, place your bets and have fun.
