Roulette is one of the most exciting and entertaining casino games to be found and many people enjoy taking the wheel for a spin. The history of roulette dates all the way back to 1655, when a French mathematician called Blaise Pascal came up with the original roulette wheel while trying to invent the perpetual motion machine. Pascal’s machine was updated by Francois and Lois Blanc in 1842 for King Charles III of Monaco.
By adding a zero – which gives the house an extra edge – the Blanc brothers and King Charles brought the modern French version of roulette into being. The game shortly after made its way to America, where it was further adapted for US players. Since then, keen gamblers have been trying their luck against the roulette wheel for both fun and fortune.
The popularity of roulette for both online and offline players lies in the attraction of the spectacle of roulette, the simplicity of play, and the fact that at heart roulette is truly a game of pure chance. Despite the random nature of roulette, however, many different strategies have been developed to try and help players gain an edge against both the house and the fickle nature of Lady Luck. In this article, we’ll be taking a closer look at some of the most popular roulette strategies that have been used by players for centuries.
Roulette Basics
Roulette is a casino game named after the French word meaning “little wheel” and the game is pretty easy to understand. The players place their bets on a single number, various groupings of numbers, the colours red or black, whether the number is odd or even, or if the numbers are high (19–36) or low (1–18).
A French or European roulette wheel will have 37 pockets numbered from 0 to 36. An American roulette wheel will have 38 pockets numbered from 00 to 36. In front of the wheel will be the roulette betting section.
To determine the winning number and colour, a croupier spins a wheel in one direction, and then spins a ball in the opposite direction. Eventually the ball falls into one of the coloured and numbered pockets on the wheel.
It’s random where the ball lands, but you can still do something to increase your chances of winning at the roulette.
The Benefits of Having a Roulette Strategy
It must be said that using any kind of roulette strategy is not going to guarantee that you will walk away a winner. Just like in slot machines, all results are based on randomness. Casino Professor compares online casinos and lists the most reliable ones if you want to try your luck in slot games. Rather, roulette strategies seek to increase the chances of a player maximizing their winnings over time. No roulette strategy will change the odds of the game or its random nature, but using an organised and disciplined method of play can help you to win bigger jackpots as play continues.
Generally, the majority of roulette strategies are based on making progressive wagers. This means that players increase their bets each time they win a spin. What strategy you choose depends on your own personality. You may opt for a fast-paced, riskier strategy or play it cool with a slower, safer system. Whatever type of strategy you choose, playing roulette to a system rather than just randomly choosing numbers will help you to increase your winnings and enhance your overall enjoyment of the game.
The Martingale System
We’ll first take a look at one of the most common roulette strategies: the Martingale System. The Martingale Roulette Strategy depends on doubling your bets after you take a loss, with the goal of recouping all previous losses and gaining a small profit. The idea with this strategy is, that if you place your bet only on a single colour and continue doubling it until you win, you recover your losses If the player hits a winning streak, the Martingale system can result in big earnings, quickly.
The downside to the Martingale is that a player can find themselves out of funds extremely fast if luck turns against them. Often used by beginners, the Martingale is shunned by more experienced players.
But it is important to know that often, the casinos have limits to how much you can bet. Therefore, there is a limit to how many times you can double your bet. Furthermore, it is difficult to win a lot of money with this strategy if you have lost just a few times in a row. For instance if your first bet is £5 and you lose five times in a row your next bet has to be £160 just to win £5.
If you still want to use this strategy you should begin with finding a table with a small minimum bet and a high maximum bet. It is essential that you start small, because you want the ability to double your losing bets as much as possible. You should place your bet on either black or red, even or odd or 1-18 or 19-36. If you win, keep the winnings and bet the same small wager again. If you lose, double the wager and try again.
Watch out for that gambler’s fallacy – just because one colour has won 100 times in a row doesn’t mean that the other colour is more likely to appear on the next spin.
The Reverse Martingale Roulette Strategy
The Reverse Martingale Roulette Strategy is the opposite of the Martingale Strategy. In the reverse strategy the main is to increase your bets when you win and lower them after losing. Underneath is a how-to step by step guide to The Reverse Martingale Roulette Strategy:
Again you should begin with finding a table with a small minimum bet and a high maximum bet. And, again, you should place your bet on either black or red, even or odd, or 1-18 or 19-36. You have to keep your wager on the same spot on the table until you hit it, and if you keep losing, you should keep betting a very small amount.
When you hit your bet and win, you need to double your bet on the same spot for the next round. If you keep winning, keep doubling your bet, and if you lose, then move back down to your original bet.
The biggest disadvantage to this roulette strategy is that the method has everything to do with timing. The Reverse Martingale Strategy is really risky because as soon as you lose, you lose your entire earnings. For this strategy to work really well you need to hit a hot streak and quit before you lose, which is difficult for many gamblers.
The Martinez System
Devised by a former Los Angeles Times editor Andres Martinez, the Martinez system is often called the ‘Dopey System’ and was initially developed as an experiment rather than a strategy. First introduced in the book ‘24/7: Living It Up and Doubling Down’, the Martinez system involves dividing your money into 35 even amounts. Then, you simply choose a number and stick to it for 35 spins of the wheel, making the same bet every time.
If you win, you can choose to play on using the house money or put your profits aside and keep playing from your stake. A run of losses, however, will wipe you out. The Martinez system is not a serious strategy but will result in a fun game of roulette!
The d’Alembert System
Now let us move on to a more serious roulette strategy, one that has been used by seasoned gamblers for many years: the d’Alembert System. Created in the 18th century by a French mathematician named Jean Le Rond D’Alembert, this strategy is low risk, simple and can be highly effective.
The d’Alembert System is actually based on the same premise as the Martingale system. First, a player must decide on their stake – the amount they will bet. If the player wins, then they decrease their stake by one amount. If the player loses, they increase their stake by one unit. So: bet 5, lose, your next bet would be ten. Bet ten and win, your next bet would also be ten, allowing you to pocket the profits.
This strategy works by assuming that if a player wins the same amount of bets as they lose, then they will come out ahead in the end. It allows for players with small bankrolls the opportunity to enjoy a long and exciting game of roulette.
The Labouchere System
The Labouchere strategy is a mathematically complicated system that was thought up by British aristocrat Henry Labouchere in the 19th century. Although it can be quite difficult to learn, the Labouchere system is popular with seasoned gamblers. The Labouchere system is, like the Martingale, a progressive strategy, but one which does not seek to recoup losses with just one win.
Also called the Split Martingale, the American Progression and the Cancellation System, the Labouchere strategy works by increasing the stake after a losing bet.
Firstly, a player should decide on the amount they wish to eventually win. Then, they should separate that figure into smaller numbers that add up to the total. So, if a player wanted to win $10, they could devise a sequence that might look like: 1-2-2-1-2-1-1. Then, the player would make their bets according to the sum of the number on the right and the number of the left. If the player wins, then they would cross out the leftmost and rightmost numbers and move down the sequence. If the spin is a loss, the player does not cross out any numbers but adds the amount of the loss to the rightmost side of the sequence.
One of the benefits of the Labouchere strategy is that if a player wins as much as they lose, then they will surely come out ahead. Although losing streaks are not as damaging with this system, a prolonged run of bad luck will make the sequence hard to manage.
However, using the Labouchere strategy means that a layer can keep better track of their winnings and losses and can be an extremely satisfying way to play roulette.
The Fibonacci System
If you are a math whiz, you have probably already heard of the famous Fibonacci sequence. A Fibonacci sequence is a run of numbers whereby each progressive number is equal to the sum of the two before it. A Fibonacci sequence, for example, might look like this: 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34.
To use the Fibonacci strategy, a player moves up the sequence one place after a loss and moves down two places after a win. So, if the first bet is 3 and a player wins, the next bet will be 1. If a player bets 3 and loses, their next bet should be 5.
By increasing and decreasing their betting amounts, a player should theoretically be able to recoup their losses and reach their intended winnings goal. Although it may take some getting used to, the Fibonacci is an easy system to follow and is ideally suited to games such as roulette.
Final Thoughts
Using any type of roulette strategy will not give you an iron-clad edge against the house and no system is an absolute guarantee of success. However, playing roulette by following a system can increase your enjoyment and the overall excitement of the game and is usually a better option than just randomly choosing numbers.
A good roulette strategy can help you to keep control over how much you spend at the roulette table and allow you to play the game at a speed that suits you.
Whatever roulette strategy you choose to use, we recommend that you always play responsibly and never bet more than you can afford to lose. Always keep in mind that although roulette is a game of pure chance, the house always has the edge against the player.
So these are the most popular roulette strategies. But which one is right for you? The only way to discover the best roulette winning strategy for you is by trying them out for yourself. You can try them out on an online roulette game. Be aware: there is a difference between American and European roulette wheels.
We hope you have found this article informative and wish you luck and enjoyment during your next spin of the roulette wheel.