The Basics of Roulette

Roulette offers glamour, mystery, and excitement to casino-goers around the world. This game has a surprising level of depth for serious bettors who know how to play it properly. We’ll help you get started with the basics so that you can be ready to place your bets at the table and handle your winnings like a pro.

Roulette is a casino game played on a large circular table with a special grid that outlines the wheel’s numbers. Bets can be made on single numbers, various groupings of numbers (streets, columns, and dozens), whether the number is odd or even, and the color red or black.

The game was invented in France in the 17th century, although fanciful stories have it originating earlier than that. In its early days, the game was widely favored in France’s illegal gambling dens and spread quickly across Europe. Its popularity continued to grow when a single-zero pocket was introduced in 1843, which massively decreased the house edge and increased the game’s appeal.

The Roulette wheel consists of a solid wooden disk slightly convex in shape. A metal rim surrounds the outer perimeter, with thirty-six compartments, painted alternately red and black, that are numbered nonconsecutively from 1 to 36. A 37th compartment, painted green, carries the number 0. The spindle of the wheel is perfectly balanced and the ball, when released, glides effortlessly through the compartments until it comes to rest in one of them. Once the wheel has stopped, the dealer will place a marker on the winning number and payouts are made. Winning chips are kept on the table and, in the absence of a request to the contrary, can be used again on the next spin.