Roulette is a gambling game in which you try to predict where the ball will land on a spinning wheel. Its simplicity and low house edge make it a popular casino game, but there are a few important things to keep in mind before you start betting your money.
The first rule of roulette is no more bets once the dealer announces “no more bets!” This prevents players from placing chips on the table as the wheel comes to a stop, preventing them from gaining an unfair advantage. This is a good rule to remember as it can be easy to forget, especially if you are playing online roulette.
During the course of a round, a croupier (that’s what they call the dealer in roulette) spins the wheel and then throws a small ball into it. The wheel has a number of different pockets that are numbered non-consecutively from 1 to 36. Two of these compartments – called a zero and a double-zero on American-style wheels – are painted green and carry the symbols 0 and 00. The remaining thirty-six are red or black and arranged in a series of blocks, called a tiers, on the roulette table.
Inside bets are placed on the numbered portion of the roulette table and have a much higher house edge than outside bets. They also offer smaller payouts, but they have the potential to hit big. A bet on a single number will win if it lands in that pocket, while a bet on a row of numbers will pay out based on the total amount wagered on the row (excluding the winning number).
The Line Bet/Six Number Bet/Sixline Bet: This bet is also known as a cheval in French, and places your chip(s) to straddle the line between two rows. It’s a more conservative bet than other types of bets, but it offers a good payout of 5-1.
Outside bets are a great choice for beginners because they are more straightforward to understand. They place your chips on a group of numbers or propositions, rather than on individual numbers. These bets have a lower house edge than inside bets, but they also tend to pay out less.
The High or Low Bet (Passe et Manque in French) is an even-money bet that wagers on the number one through 18 (1-18), 19-36) or the first and last 18 numbers (19-36). It loses when the ball hits the 0 or 00.
