The roulette wheel is probably one of the oldest known casino devices. Because of its uniqueness, the roulette wheel layout has garnered much speculation from the gambling public.

Roulette Wheel Layout – History

It is believed that the original roulette wheel layout could be traced back to Asia where the Ancient Chinese and Tibetans played a game using 37 animal statuettes. Back then, the roulette wheel layout did not follow the standard “wheel” form that we see now. Instead, the Chinese used a “magic square” with numbers that total up to 666. Incidentally, this is the same total that we come up with if we add all the numbers in a modern roulette wheel layout from 0 to 36.

After the Chinese, it is said that the game was brought to Europe by French Dominican monks who were on a missionary quest in Asia. The roulette wheel layout underwent a few modifications in 14th century France. Around 1655, the French mathematician and scientist Blaise Pascal invented the first wheel based on that ancient Chinese game brought by the monks. This roulette wheel layout became widely used in early casinos.

In 1842, Frenchmen Francois and Louis Blanc introduced the double-zero (0, 00) to the roulette wheel layout so now the standard wheel contains 38 numbers. When gambling was banned in France, Louis Blanc and his child Camille moved to Hamburg, Germany where they once again popularized the single-zero roulette wheel layout. For years, this roulette wheel layout was standard in all casinos, especially in Monte Carlo, Monaco’s most famous casino.

Eventually, roulette found its way into American soil where the roulette wheel layout underwent another major change.

Roulette Wheel Layout – Types

There are two general types of roulette wheel layouts. The first type is the one used in American roulette. This roulette wheel layout uses the double-zero format with 38 numbers, including the 0, 00, and 1 through 36. This type of roulette wheel layout allows a house advantage of 5.26%.

The other type of roulette wheel layout is the standard for all European wheels. It has only 37 numbers, including 0 and 1 through 36. The house advantage for this type of roulette wheel layout is significantly lower at 2.7% compared to the American wheel.

Roulette Wheel Layout – Number and Color Placement

The roulette wheel layout is impressive in terms of mathematics and balance. All the numbers, including the low, high, odd, and even, are alternated and spaced out over the wheel. The colors red, black, and green (for the two zeros) are also alternated and evenly separated.

In a typical roulette wheel layout, when you add up all the numbers, you get a total of 666. However, if you add all the 18 odd colors, you only have 342. This makes it impossible to achieve perfect mathematical balance in a roulette wheel layout.

To overcome this one flaw, manufacturers have devised a specific arrangement for roulette wheel layouts to give them the best possible mathematical balance. The result is that you have the two zeros, 0 and 00, arranged opposite each other and colored green to distinguish them from the other numbers. The rest of the 18 numbers are then alternated on each side of the two zeros. The single-zero or 0 is between two black numbers and as the wheel progresses, the color alternates until you end with two red numbers on each side of the double-zero or 00.

Time and time again, it has been emphasized by seasoned gamblers and casino-owners that roulette is a game of chance. The mere randomness of the game is enough to discourage anyone who’s thinking of cheating. However, some people find it hard to believe that such randomness in a game even exists. There must be a mathematical equation to cheating in roulette or even a device that could aid in roulette cheating.

Just recently, two men and a woman were arrested for allegedly cheating in roulette at London’s Ritz hotel casino. They were reported to have used a mobile phone equipped with a laser scanner to win up to UK 1.3 million. The scanner is said to be a device used in cheating at roulette by guessing the probable finishing point of the ball. It is possible that such a device can do that but authorities are skeptical if that device, or any device for that matter, could do it fast enough to allow the gambler to place a winning bet.

According to UK gambling laws, a “no spin” is called if the ball does not circle the wheel at least three times. And after three spins, the croupier makes the call “no more bets.” The time difference between the third spin and the call is possibly around 14 to 15 seconds, not enough for such a device for cheating in roulette to work.

In theory, roulette cheating is perhaps possible. One only needs to use a device that could judge the speed of the wheel and of the ball. Aside from that, this device for roulette cheating must be able to gauge the rate at which the speed of both degrades. But in order for this device to work successfully in roulette cheating, it must be able to do all these within a few seconds so the gambler has time enough to place his bet on the winning number.

What makes roulette cheating even more difficult is that the wheels are designed specifically to ensure just the right amount of randomness in the game. When the wheel is turned, the ball bounces slightly, increasing the randomness of its movement. All these odds make roulette cheating impossible.

This however does not stop some from staying dogged to the idea of roulette cheating. These types of people are desperate enough or simply unwilling to lose their last dollar to the casino.

Some people developed a mathematical system where probability and odds play big parts. They believe that roulette cheating is possible since the game involves numbers. Like in poker, this type of roulette cheating system uses the process of elimination in determining all the possible outcomes of a spin. But roulette is unlike the card game of poker.

Let’s explain this type of roulette cheating through an example. Say you make a bet Straight Up on 35. On the first spin, you get a 31. Now, just because you got a 31 in the first spin doesn’t mean that you only have to grapple with only 37 possible outcomes. There’s still every chance that the number 31 will come up on the next spin so this completely defeats the purpose. If you plan on cheating on roulette, probability is not the answer either.

The history of roulette is awash with many fanciful stories. Some of these stories on the history of roulette seem plausible enough while others are improbable. Nevertheless, stories on the history of roulette continue to circle, adding to the air of mystery in this game of luck and chance.

It is a common belief that the history of roulette began in 17th century France. However, others have reported that an ancient and crude version of the game was played in China several centuries earlier. Thus the history of roulette probably began much earlier than reported.

According to this version of the history of roulette, there was an old Chinese game that quite resembled the mechanics of the modern-day roulette. The object of the game was to arrange 37 statuettes of animals but instead of using a “wheel,” the Ancient Chinese used a “magic square” of 666. This version of the history of roulette goes on to say that the game was later played in Tibet. When French Dominican monks on a missionary quest in Asia saw the game, they became so fascinated by it that they brought it back with them to Europe.

According to the history of roulette, these monks later made a few renditions to the game, using a revolving wheel instead with numbers 0 to 36 arranged haphazardly. Then around 1655, the French scientist and mathematician Blaise Pascal discovered the game during his monastic retreat.

Now, according to traditional history of roulette, Blaise Pascal was reported to have invented the roulette wheel. Perhaps, this is true. However, it seems rather implausible since the game had existed way before his time. It is likely though that Pascal merely modified the roulette wheel, giving it 38 numbers with two zeros instead of one. Then again, here comes another loophole in the history of roulette.

Historians have stated that the single-zero roulette wheel did not exist until 1842 when Frenchmen Francois and Louis Blanc invented it. According to a more fanciful version of the history of roulette, these two men were said to have sold their souls to the devil. This story on the history of roulette probably sprung from the fact that when you add all the numbers in the roulette wheel, you come up with the devil’s code: 666. However shrouded the history of roulette may be, the game eventually found itself in America.

At this point in the history of roulette, the single-zero wheel was widely used but then later on, the Americans began to adopt the double-zero system since this gives a far higher house edge. This act changed the history of roulette forever and to this day, the double-zero comes standard in all American wheels while the single-zero has become a symbol of the European origins of the game.

In the mid-19th century, gambling was outlawed in Germany as in several European states. This led the inventor of the single-zero machine, Louis Blanc to go to Monaco where he was invited as a guest of the royal family. According to the history of roulette, Prince Charles, then ruler of Monaco was looking for ways to alleviate the poverty in his country and saw the solution in gambling. Thus, the history of roulette was made within the boundaries of this tiny kingdom.

Roulette became an exclusive game played only in Monaco’s most famous and luxurious casino, Monte Carlo, until 1933. When gambling became once more legalized in many states, several casinos cropped up and one of their main attractions is the game of roulette.

It is said that the first man to play roulette was from 17th century France but the origin of the game is hazier than some people would want us to believe. Today, many people play roulette as it is now one of the most popular gambling games. Monte Carlo in Monaco is quite well known since it is one of the most famous places where you can play roulette.

Play Roulette: The Basics

Before you play roulette you need to know a few basics involved in the game. The number of players who play roulette is usually eight although 6 players can also play roulette quite aptly. The players play roulette against the house which is represented by the dealer who is sometimes called the croupier.

To play roulette, the dealer spins the wheel and lets the players place their bets on the table. The European roulette wheel is comprised of 37 slots that are numbered from 0 to 36. The American version of the wheel contains 38 slots since it has an extra zero, the double-zero or 00.

When you play roulette you need chips which represent your bets in the game. The chips used in roulette are different from other casino chips since the roulette chips are unique to each roulette table. The colors of the chips are used to distinguish one player’s bet from another.

Play Roulette: Placing the Bets

To play roulette, you need to place your bets on numbers indicated in the table layout, either inside or outside. When all the players in the table have placed their bets, the croupier spins the wheel in one direction and launches the ball in another direction. At this time, players can continue to change their bets or place in more bets until such a time that the croupier declares, “No more bets.” When that moment occurs, no one in the table is allowed to change or place his bet until the ball rests on one of the slots.

When you play roulette, the winner is determined by the number of the slot on which the ball rests after the spin. The dealer places a dolly or a win marker on the winning number on the table and collects all the losing bets.

Play Roulette: The House Advantage

When you play roulette, it is important that you know what the house advantage is. Every casino has a certain percentage of advantage over the gamblers. Think of it as tax or whatever since it is unalterable. In American roulette where the number of slots is 38, the house advantage is 5.26%. This means that when you play roulette at an American table, your $100-bet turns up a casino profit of $5.26. In contrast, the European only has 37 slots so this means that the house advantage is significantly lower at 2.7%. So if you want to play roulette and get the best chances of winning, it might be a good idea to play in European tables.

The Russian roulette game is a game for desperados. The game is basically roulette with a wacky twist. In a Russian roulette game, what you do is load a revolver with one bullet, leaving 5 chambers empty. Each player then takes turn in putting the gun to his head and pulling the trigger. The Russian roulette game does not stop until the gun fires. If the gun fires on you, you die, you lose. If you get lucky, you win and survive.

Now, you might think that this is just plain sick. You might be right on that but when you think about it, Russian roulette game is not so bad when you’re in a desperate situation. This type of gambling is usually acceptable when the situation is so bad you’re willing to wager your life for a chance to win.

Russian Roulette Game: Where It Came From

It is believed that the Russian roulette game derived its name from the country where it was reportedly invented. Rumor has it that poor, unemployed Russians invented the Russian roulette game as a way to escape starvation. Faced with death by starvation, many Russians were willing to bet their lives and thus came up with this strange gambling game.

The game provided these poor Russians with a win-win situation. Losing in Russian roulette game meant a quick death by a bullet rather than a slow one by starvation. On the other hand, if you emerge as the winner, you win a reasonable amount of money to help you overcome starvation.

Russian Roulette Game: The Odds

A first glance, it seems your odds of winning in a Russian roulette game are best if you’re the first player and worst if you’re the sixth player. This supposition in Russian roulette game is quite believable since a revolver has 6 chambers and one has a bullet. When you make your initial calculations, you find that player 1 has 1 to 6 odds of dying, player 2 as 1 to 5, player 3 has 1 to 4, and so on. This leaves player 6 with a 6/6 guarantee to die in Russian roulette game.

On second thought, the numbers are only partially true. Yes, player 1 does have a 5 to 6 chance of survival which is approximately 83%, but so does player 6. Let’s not eliminate the fact that each player before him could get the bullet so there’s a good chance that the gun could fire before player 6 could even take his turn. Player 6 thus has approximately 83% chance of surviving and winning in Russian roulette game.

The game of roulette has been considered one of the most popular casino games since the early 1800s. This was the time when Prince Charles of Monaco introduced roulette gambling in his country in an effort to raise its economy. Since then, the furor over roulette gambling never quite died down. Now, the roulette wheel is considered a famous icon especially in European casinos.

Roulette Gambling: The Basics

In roulette gambling, the dealer is often called the croupier and he is responsible for spinning the wheel, paying the winners, and collecting the losing bets. The wheel used in roulette gambling is comprised of 37 numbers from 0 through 36. There is also another wheel used where an additional double-zero is added to make 38 slots. This type of wheel is commonly seen in American roulette gambling. The extra zero in American wheels causes the house advantage to increase up to 5.26%, much higher than the European one at 2.72%.

Roulette Gambling: The Bets

In Roulette gambling, there are two types of bets involved, called the inside and the outside bets. The inside bets are those that are placed on the numbers 1 through 36. Bets that are outside the numbered grid on the roulette table are termed as outside bets. The payoff odds for each bet vary. For instance, if you place an inside bet on a single number, you get the largest payoff odds of 35 to 1.

You may also place bets on two or more numbers in roulette gambling. As mentioned, the payoff odds change, depending on how many numbers you are betting for. Sometimes, you can also bet for an entire row of numbers.

When it comes to outside bets, roulette gambling allows you seven options. You can choose from betting red, black, even, odd, low, high, or selected thirds of numbers.

Roulette Gambling: The Rules

Roulette gambling involves two special rules. These rules may or may not be applied, depending on the casino. The first rule in roulette gambling is the En Prison rule. This rule can only be applied in even-money tables in a few casinos. According to this rule in roulette gambling, if you get a zero at the first spin, you have the option to leave your bet as is until the next spin or surrender half of it.

The other rule in roulette gambling is the La Partage rule which is often applied on the ‘outside’ even-money bets, like Red/Black, High/Low, or Odd/Even. In this rule, when you land a zero, you will have to give up half of your bet without the option to leave it for the next spin, like in the En Prison rule.

When we talk about winning roulette strategy, many people believe that there’s very little to discuss. This believe about winning roulette strategy is only partly true. The truth of the matter is, a winning roulette strategy is quite simple yet it entails a spectrum of subtle complexities.

Like in most gambling games, there is a tiny bit of math involved in winning roulette strategy. Again, mathematics in winning roulette strategy is simple once you understand the basics.

Winning Roulette Strategy: The House Advantage

One of the main factors you need to consider when deciding on your winning roulette strategy is the house advantage. When you play American roulette, every bet you make except one gives the house an edge percentage of 5.26%. The number grows worse when you consider the five-number bet. The house edge when you make this bet goes up to 7.29%.

Sad but true. In roulette, the house advantage is unalterable and you would do well to not adopt any sort of winning roulette strategy that is guaranteed to eliminate it. It’s not going to work.

Winning Roulette Strategy: Extended Rules

Now, while eliminating the house advantage is next to impossible, there are some ways that can help you overcome it. For your winning roulette strategy to be effective, all you need to do is look for casinos with extended rules. Extended rules can help you minimize your losses and maximize your winnings.

Some casinos have special rules that are beneficial to players who want to try out their winning roulette strategy. Casinos located in Atlantic City have this special rule called “surrender.” With this kind of rule, the chances of a successful winning roulette strategy increase.

The surrender rule is applicable only to outside bets that pay even money. This means that this rule will work only on red/black, even/odd, and high/low bets. So if the ball rests on the 0 pocket or the 00, you lose half of your bet. The good thing about this winning roulette strategy is that instead of losing your entire bet, you lose only half. In addition, with this kind of rule in place, the house edge drops to about 2.63%, giving your winning roulette strategy a better chance at working.

Winning Roulette Strategy: The Wheel

There are two kinds of wheels used in standard roulette. Your chances of winning depend much on what type of wheel you are playing at. The American wheel has a double zero (0, 00) which gives the house an edge of 5.26%. You know that this kind of game would definitely not work in your favor so a good winning roulette strategy would be to avoid any game that employs the American wheel all together.

The European wheel on the other hand has only one zero and the house advantage is definitely lower than that of the American version. The house advantage in European wheels is 2.7% and will at least give you a better chance at winning.

For a game that relies on the whims of Lady Luck and Dame Fortune, roulette has inspired quite a lot of people to invent roulette systems that are “guaranteed” to work. But despite the simple mathematics that governs most roulette games, there is no such thing as a perfect roulette system. Reason number one is that you cannot alter the house advantage of 5.26%. Reason number two is that no roulette system can accurately determine the outcome of each spin.

Roulette System: Probability Theory

Some authors base their roulette systems on probability. Now, while this kind of roulette system works perfectly in poker games, in roulette, it’s not likely. Probability in a roulette system works by determining all the possible outcomes through the process of elimination.

So for instance, you make a Straight Up bet on 35. The first spin shows you 31. In the next spin, it doesn’t mean that you only have 37 odds left since you subtracted 31 from your 38 possible outcomes. It’s quite possible that the next spin will result in the same number, the number 31.

This is why a roulette system that is based on pure probability will not work. In theory, perhaps this roulette system works but in practice, it’s not likely and you’ll end up losing more than you intend.

Roulette System: Martingale

Several roulette systems are variations of the martingale system, which is basically a “double up until you win” approach to gambling. In its simplest form this type of roulette system tells you to double your bet after each loss until such a time that you encounter a winning spin. In this roulette system, your final winning bet will make up for the money you lost in all the previous bets and give a profit that is equal to your original bet.

For example, you bet $5 and lose the first spin. Using the roulette system based on the Martingale system, you double up the bet to $10, $20, and then $40, which total up to $75 worth of losses. On the fifth spin, you double your wager from $40 to $80 so now you have $155 at risk. However, you get lucky and win, earning you a profit of $5. Sounds good, right? Wrong.

This roulette system only works if you have an infinite amount of money and an infinite amount of free time. Sure, it is true that you would eventually win. That’s the thing with luck. It comes and it goes but to wager all you’ve got on that one time win is a complete waste.

As we all know the poker is now a mainstream name that due to its being well- known not only on its place of origin which is the United States but also in other parts of the world, many people today greatly catered and engaged to this latest gambling fever.

With the rise of the poker industry, many poker supplies like the casino poker chips and others have come to surface for several purposes in the world of poker. In this article, I will mainly deal with the casino poker chips as having the largest part of role played in poker.

In dealing with the casino poker chips, it is just necessary to consider that the poker game is about the casino poker chips. However, many poker players lose sight of this fact, for the fact that most of them just concentrate on how to get the pot regardless of its being full or not. Playing poker is playing with the casino poker chips, which means that you should do something to get more casino poker chips so to win the pot.

Given such fact about the importance of the casino poker chips for the success of the poker game, it is just interesting to learn that just like some forms of poker chips, the casino poker chips also vary from different designs and styles. In the market today, most of the casino poker chips that most of the companies offered are the clay casino poker chips which are one the most preferred poker chips due to its durability and high-quality, and there is also the plastic casino poker chips.

For particular emphasis, most of the companies today like the Casino4You.com offered their best molded casino poker chips like the Casino King Casino Grade Poker Chips, which are really made with a 39mm, traditional three tab style, and a full 10 gram clay composite casino grade poker chips. This type of the offered casino poker chips is said to be great that it has a beautiful poker chip features like the professional recessed inlay to accommodate full, four shades labeling. Aside from that, this particular casino poker chips does not contain a metal insert.

Aside from such mentioned casino poker chips, there is also the Continental Clay Poker Chips. This kind of casino poker chips is actually a poker chip with a Euro style plain rim and body. Just like the Casino King, this casino poker chip is also a 39mm, full 10 gram clay composite casino grade poker chip and features professional inlay at the center portion to accommodate a full, four shade labeling.

For further information, another leap to casino poker chips is the introduction of the G Six Stripe Casino Grade Poker Chip which is really an 8 gram, 39 professional size of poker chip. Aside from that, this casino poker chips has finished turned edges and popular six stripe designs in the sides of the chip. With such quality, it is no doubt that this poker chip is considered to be the traditional favorite of the casino poker players for its professional casino feel.

Lastly, such kinds of casino poker chips have colors like light blue, yellow, black, green, orange, gray, white, red, brown, pink, mulberry and lavender. And some of the casino poker chips can be personalized depending on what the casino poker chips buyers want.