One of the most exciting of the casino games, roulette is a very simple game to understand.  The game consists of a table with betting fields, a roulette wheel and a roulette wheel ball.  The wheel is divided into 38 slots, numbered 1 through 36, 0, and 00.  The zero slots are colored green and the other numbered slots are black and red.  You begin the game by placing a bet with the special chips provided by the dealer.  Each player gets a different colored chip to make each player’s bet easier to identify.  The game begins after the players have placed their bets on the betting field.  At this point, the dealer spins the roulette wheel in one direction and the little ball in the opposite direction.  Bets can be placed up until the moment the dealer says: “no more bets”.  The numbered field that the ball stops on contains the winning number.  The dealer then marks the winning field and pays out the bets accordingly.

Placing Bets

There are a number of different bets that can be placed and, while they may appear complicated, they are really relatively easy to make.  Below you will find a roulette table layout that will help explain the betting process.  The white chips indicate the wagers that can be placed.

The Table

1.  The Straight Bet:  With this bet the player can place a chip on anyone of the 38 slots. This bet offers the highest odds in this game.  Odds are 35:1 that the ball will land on the number you selected.  Make sure that you place the ball securely in the square surrounding the number you choose so that there can be no confusion on the part of the dealer as to which number you placed your wager.

2. Split or Two Number Bet:  In a split bet the chip is placed on the line between two neighboring numbers (12 and 15). The player wins if the ball lands on either of those numbers. The odds on this bet are 17:1.

3. Street or Three Number: With this bet you can bet on an entire row on the table.  To make this type of bet, place your chip on the outside line of the row you want to bet on.  If those three numbers come up, you are a winner.  Odds for the street bet are 11:1.

4. Corner Bet:  The corner bet covers four numbers. To place this bet, you must put your chip right in the middle of the four numbers where they join corners. In this case they are 20, 21, 23 and 24. The odds for a corner bet are 8:1.

5. Five Number Bet: With this bet you place your chip on the only possible five number street option. 0, 00 1, 2 and 3 are the only numbers covered with the five number bet. If just one these numbers comes up you will get paid 6:1 odds.

6. Six Bet Number: With this bet you can cover two rows of three numbers each.  To place this bet, you must put your chip on the outside line of the two rows you want to cover. In this case the numbers are 28, 29, 30, 31, 32 and 33. The odds on this particular bet are 5:1.

7. Any Red or Black Bet:  For this type of bet, you place your chip on either the black or the red field on the outside.  Depending upon which color you choose, this covers all the red or black numbers on the field.  The odds for this bet are 1:1.

8. Low or High Number Bet: For this bet the field of numbers are divided into a low group of numbers (1-18) and a high group of numbers (19-36).  The player bets on whether the ball will land on a number between 1-18 or 19-36.  If the 0 or 00 come up, the player loses.  The odds for this bet are 1:1.

9. An Even or Odd Bet: As the name implies, with this bet you are betting on whether the next number that comes up will be even or odd.  As in the high/low bet, each bet covers a field of 18 numbers and a 0 or 00 means a loss.  The odds of this bet are also 1:1.

10. Dozen Bet:  This divides the numbers into three groups of a dozen: 1 to 12, 13 to 24 and 25 to 36.  The player’s bet covers all the numbers in the dozen he bet upon.  For example, if a player bet on the first dozen numbers, numbers 1 through 12 would be covered by the bet. Winners are paid 2:1.

11. Column Bets: With this bet, there are three columns (1st, 2nd, and 3rd) each of which covers 12 numbers.  If any of the numbers in your column come up, you are paid at 2:1 odds.

Roulette is purely a game of chance so there are no particular strategies to recommend.  You can, however, maximize your chances of winning by placing only straight bets, which offer the highest payback rates in the game.