When you look at a Roulette table, you see all those numbers and all those bets. Sometimes this causes people to feel overwhelmed by the amount of options available and prefer not to play. The truth, however, is that the game of Roulette may seem complicated, but you can become a good player without too much difficulty and you can also learn to bet with the confidence of a professional in a very short time.
One of the first things you should learn is what kind of bets can be placed at the Roulette table. Once you understand how each bet works, you will be able to advance your knowledge and learn different strategies. Even though, in the end, Roulette is a game of chance, handling these strategies will make your wins more frequent.
This strategy guide covers the most common bets in American, European and French Roulette. It is important, however, that you understand that not all bets can be placed on the American version. This type of Roulette is easy to identify thanks to the presence of two green spaces identified as ”0” and ”00”. The European and the French, on the other hand, only have a zero.
The outside bets at the Roulette table
On the Roulette table there are two clearly identifiable areas. In the upper area all the numbers represented on the wheel appear, while in the lower part we can find three large rectangles on a row of six smaller rectangles. The bets placed on these rectangles, or on the three green rectangles on the right, are called “outside bets”. There are several ways to place these bets:
Outside “pairs” bets
The bottom six sections of the Roulette table are “even” bets. That is, bets in which you win exactly the same as you bet. In other words, if you bet $20 and win, you’ll receive $20 more and double your money.
Here, you will have the same chances to win as to lose. If you are playing American Roulette and the ball lands on zero or double zero, you will have lost all the money you bet. In the European and French versions, on the other hand, you will lose only half of what you bet if the ball lands on zero.
This type of bet can include:
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Red and Black
The two inner rectangles correspond to all the red numbers and all the black numbers. If you bet on red or black, you win if the ball lands on a number of that color.
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Even and Odd
The next two rectangles say ”even” (the one on the left) and ”odd” (the one on the right). The former refers to all even numbers, while the latter to all odd numbers. If you bet on one of them, you will win if the ball lands on a number of the type you chose.
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Low numbers
If we go to the left, we see that the left rectangle says ”1-18”. We refer to these as “low numbers”. If you put your chips here, you will win if the ball lands on numbers between 1 and 18.
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High numbers
If we go to the right, we find a rectangle that says ”19-36”, which we refer to as ”high numbers”. If you place this bet, you will win if the ball lands on a number within that range.
2 to 1 Outside Bets
The three rectangles that are on top of the “couples” bets pay 2 to 1, but the odds of hitting are lower. If you bet $10 and win, you will receive $20. In this type of bet, if the ball lands on zero or double zero, you will lose all the money wagered.
There are two types of 2 to 1 bets:
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The dozens
The three rectangles below correspond to the dozens. The 12 numbers that, on the table, appear directly on these rectangles.
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The Columns
The three rectangles to the right of the Roulette table correspond to the columns. That is, all the numbers that appear directly to the right of each of these rectangles.
Inside bets
There are different types of bets that can be placed on the numbers. That is, the red and black rectangles that appear at the top of the cloth. These bets include:
- Six (or street): A six includes all six adjacent numbers and pays 5 to 1.
- Basta: A basket includes 0, 1, 2 and 3 and pays 6 to 1.
- Frame: A frame includes all four adjacent numbers and pays 8 to 1.
- Cross: A cross bet includes three vertical numbers and pays 11 to 1.
- Horse: A horse covers two contiguous numbers and pays 7 to 1.
- Full: A full covers a single number and pays 35 to 1.
Side Bets on European and French Roulette
In the European and French versions of Roulette, you can also make two other types of bets:
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Section Bets
which include numbers that are in three different regions: tier du culinder (near the cylinder), voisins du zero (neighbors of zero) and orphelins (orphans).
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Neighbor Bets
which include the chosen number, the two numbers directly to the left and the two numbers directly to the right on the wheel (ie not consecutive numbers, but based on their presence on the cylinder).