The game is relatively simple. The players predict the outcome of the next spin of the wheel and place their bets. The croupier spins the wheel and releases the ball. At some point, the wheel slows and the ball falls into one of the numbered slots. The winners collect their chips. The losers retire to the bar to drown their sorrows.

Play Roulette In The Best Online Casinos

There is always a table minimum bet. Depending on the value of the chips made available, this may be a single bet or it can be a series of smaller bets that total the minimum. Some casinos operate two minimums for the inside and the outside bets respectively. Online, there are fewer problems because players buy credits which can be used to bet in a highly flexible way. Because of the difference in the House edge, most US casinos operate with a lower table minimum than their European equivalents. Almost every casino has a maximum bet per spin. You have perhaps heard of the song, “The man who broke the bank at Monte Carlo”. It was written in 1892 to celebrate the sensational winning streak of Charles Wells at Monte Carlo. Although no-one has ever won all the cash reserves of a reputable casino, owners like to give themselves a further edge and limit the maximum that can be won at any one spin of the wheel.

In the real world, the pace of the game is actually quite slow. People gather round the wheel and place their bets. There is no limit or restriction on how each person can bet. One player could copy exactly the same bets as another, or could deliberately select different bets. Once all the bets have been made, the wheel is spun. When the winning number is called, the croupier has to calculate all the winnings and pay them out immediately. Only when the table has been cleared of the losing bets and the winnings have all been safely pouched can the cycle begin again. The pace of the game online is significantly faster. Because the players and croupiers are not physically manipulating chips, it is easier to click on the bets required. Similarly, the calculation of the winnings is automated. So the wheel spins far more often online.

A bet may be inside or outside. An inside bet is any bet on a number or set of numbers on the table. The possible options are:

• a single number or straight bet;
• a bet on a pair of adjacent numbers — a split;
• a bet on three numbers in a row — a street;
• a corner or square bet on four numbers;
• a bet on two adjoining rows of six numbers;
• a bet of zero, 1,2 or zero, 2,3 — a trio.

The outside bets are placed on the mat outside the grid of numbers. These are the:

• even money bets on red/black, high/low, odd/even;
• a bet on one of the three groups of twelve numbers;
• a bet on the vertical column of twelve numbers.

European roulette applies the "in prison" rule for even money bets when a zero comes up. This forces you to keep the bet on the table until the next spin of the wheel. At this point, the House may have different consequences assuming the next spin does not also come up with a zero:

• the bet(s) may ride, and win or lose on the next spin; or
• the player may reclaim the whole sum if the bet wins but not the winnings.

Some casinos operate "La Partage" a sharing of the risk which allows the players to take half of the bet back without having to go "into prison".

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