Best roulette strategies are:
- Roulette and craps are probably the two oldest casino games. It is known that dice were first used as serious incantations to find out the will of the gods. That was probably five thousand (or more) years ago. Shall our army attack the village on the other side of the valley? Let the bones roll – yes, dice were made of either sheep or human bones – and we will find out what to do.
- Roulette was much the same, except that many soldiers used their shields in place of dice, and the rotation of the shield determined what would happen in the next battle or war. It is believed that some soldiers, drunk on bad wine, spun themselves on the shields. I have no idea if this is true, but you never know.
- Please consider: Were these instruments also used for playing, as we do today, just for fun? Indeed they were. There is even evidence in ancient literature that soldiers and civilians used such instruments in war, peace and play. Since the beginning of gaming history, people have played games to pass the time.
- Roulette was probably the first real casino game and was probably introduced in the Middle Ages. Noblemen tried to win roulette with different systems. If we had time machines, we could go back to that age and tell them that the systems they invented and used were fun, but gave no real mathematical advantage over the bank. It’s lucky the peasants didn’t play in casinos, they were peasants after all.
The systems of the past are still used today. Why? Because they are fun and structure the player’s game plan in a way that makes sense to the player. When a player plays according to a system, he always knows what he will do next. There is no room for guesswork.
I will explain the old bones, and even some of the newer ones. This will take a few articles, but be patient. Patience is a virtue, especially for offline and online casino players. And you might just find a system or two that appeals to you.
So here we go, starting the journey to the most inspiring, enjoyable and (sometimes) exhilarating ways to play roulette. Here come two simple systems that can structure your game. These are two of the oldest gambling systems.
Martingale Roulette Strategy
Those of you who have ever played in a casino, even if it was only a few times, have probably heard of the Martingale system, even if you didn’t know the term Martingale. You may have even thought you invented it. I certainly did. It seems that this is the first concept of most players and it is expressed in the following sentence: “Sooner or later I have to win, right?”
However, this sentence is completely wrong for casino games based on the Martingale system.
But what is the Martingale betting system? It’s simple: the player doubles his bet if he loses, because “sooner or later he has to win, right?” It would then look like this: The player bets $10 and loses; now he bets $20. If he wins with the bet of $20, he has made up his original loss of $10.
Betting on red in roulette
However, do not rejoice too soon. If the $20 bet also loses, the player doubles it to $40. If he loses again, he goes to $80. If he loses again, he goes to $160. If he loses again, he goes to $320. If he loses again, he goes to $640. If he loses again, he may go to $1,280, but many casinos limit the maximum bet players can place. That $1,280 might be too much.
Hold on. That means that a losing streak of six,seven (or eight) defeats can ruin the player. Yes, exactly!
Please consider:
- Martingale is a lot like the iceberg that sank the Titanic. Losing six to eight consecutive games sounds extremely unlikely; however, every roulette player has often gone through such long series with red or black, even or odd, or high or low. Casinos can limit the maximum bet per person, so such relatively short series can ruin a Martingale player.
What can a player achieve if he reaches the upper limits of the Martingale? Very little. Let’s stay with the amounts mentioned above. Even if the player bets $640 or $1,280, his profit in the end is just $10. That’s an enormously high stake for a profit of $10. Each step of the traditional Martingale system only brings in $10. Non-traditional Martingales are even worse! If you must play Martingale, use the traditional system.
The Martingale technique can be summarised as playing against losses without wins. It is a negative roulette strategy that increases bets because previous games were lost. It is true, the player will win those $10 most of the time, but it is inevitable that the devastating losing streak will come. The statement, “Sooner or later I have to win!” should be changed to “Sooner or later I’m going to get hit!”.
Consider:
- While a devastating loss is inevitable in the Martingale system, of course, by then you will often win that $10? Is that enough to make up for the loss? No.
Scobe’s Simple Gun-And-Run Martingale
I would apply Martingale only to roulette’s Even Money outside bets, bets on even or odd numbers, on the lower or upper 18 numbers, on black or red. These bets offer the player 18 chances of winning and 20 chances of losing on the American double zero roulette wheel and 18 chances of winning and 19 chances of losing on European roulette (single zero). Where possible, European Roulette is of course preferred as long as the stakes match your funds.
Your first bet on any of the outside bets is $10 (or what you normally bet). If you lose, you raise to $20. Now you sit out two rounds. That’s right, don’t bet. After these two rounds, you raise your bet to $40. If you lose this? Then you give up and go back to your original bet. You have lost $70.
Roulette win
With this roulette strategy I am trying to save you from the devastating losses that are part of the Martingale strategy. Often the two rounds you sit out would be winning rounds – if you had bet. Even more often, however, they are losing rounds. Remember, the bank has an advantage over all outside bettors. You should be aware of this at all times. Never think you are playing a fair game against the bank.
If you lose that $70, you can start over, move to another roulette table or take a break, whatever you want.
If you had started with a game budget of $500, you would still have $430 left.
Scobe’s Simple Paroli System
The Paroli betting system is also one of the roulette systems that newcomers come up with on their own. It is a positive betting system where you try to win on a game where a player has recently won. Players of the Paroli system assume that roulette wins follow wins. Sometimes this is the case, sometimes not.
The Paroli system is nothing more than the Parley system that many players use: You increase your bet after a win and keep increasing it as the wins increase. Basically, a Paroli player will play three rounds before lowering his bet back to his original amount. So $10, then a win, and then a bet of $20, another win, and another bet of $40. Players keep their winnings and then start a new series with the original bet of $10.
Please bear in mind: Unfortunately, there are Paroli players who want to take advantage of long winning stretches by doubling their previous winnings. The excellent film “The Gambler” shows what becomes of a gambler who tries this.
My opinion of the Paroli system is to use a three-win method, starting after the bet has gone up. The first game won does not involve raising the stake for the second game. Instead, the bet for the second game is again $10. Winning this game puts the player’s game budget, $500, above the minimum. With this second win, the player can follow the Paroli system. With each loss, the player goes back to his original bet of $10.
This is the order:
- 1st bet $10 (win).
- 2nd bet $10 (win).
- 3rd bet $20 (win).
- 4th bet 40 $ (win).
- Total winnings 80 $.
The pattern here is interesting. The first two wins bring your gambling budget to 520 $. Even if the third game of $20 is now lost, the player still has his initial gambling budget of $500. He then returns to his initial bet of $10 and then tries to win with the paroli strategy.
A loss of $40 means that the player also returns to his initial bet of $10. This is a relatively safe system (as far as systems can be safe), and as long as the player does not try to magically achieve a truly long paroli, this can be a rewarding method of play.
Once again, the paroli system in roulette should be played with outside bets.
Which roulette system is the best?
I’ll name my favourite of the two systems straight away, but here’s the catch: over time, the total bet will fall victim to the banker’s advantage, only the pattern of wins and losses will be different. You cannot escape the bank advantage of 5.26% on American Roulette and 2.7% on European Roulette.
Large Roulette Layout
I prefer the Paroli method because the stress factor is not as high as with a long losing streak with the Martingale method. Imagine you have a bet of $600 and you know that this is the last double you can make. In my opinion, this is no fun.
With the Paroli Roulette strategy, losses can be made up quickly. You find your own “point X” where you give up.
I don’t think I’ll be as stressed with gun-and-run Martingale. I still prefer the “Gun-and-Run” Paroli.
But every player has to decide for himself how he wants to play and bet.
Good luck inside and outside the casinos!