Roulette: what are the strategies and is there a winning one?
Roulette is one of the most-famous casino games of all time and thus, is subject to a lot of analysis, with many claiming through books, statistics and journals that there is a fool-proof way to win. If you apply one of these strategies to your next game at: https://casino.betfair.com/c/roulette, there is a possibility it’ll improve your chances of success.
To begin, it’s best to split these strategies into two categories: progressive betting and non-progressive betting. To put it simply, progressive betting is all about increasing the size of your bet after each round; while non-progressive betting is centred around keeping your bet the same throughout the game, or changing it.
Progressive strategies
The Martingale System is possibly the most commonly-used strategy, because it’s the simplest to understand. It’s most effective on outside bets, that have even chances (so betting on red or black, odd or even, 1-18 or 19-36) so not only do you have a 50/50 chance of winning, but because the pay-out is 1:1, you win whatever you put in. The Martingale System is all about doubling up. Say you start with betting £1 per spin, keep betting the same until you lose. When you lose, you then double up your bet, so start at £2 until you lose; then £4 and so on. But when you win, you restart with the smallest amount again.
The Paroli System is also known as the Reverse Martingale and is simply the opposite of the above. This strategy tells you to double your bet when you win, rather than lose.
If the above strategies are too risky, due to their steep progression, the D’Alembert System could be better suited. When you lose games, you gradually increase your bet and when you win, slowly decrease your bet. There’s also the Contre D’Alambert, which is the reverse – so increasing your bet after a win and decreasing it after a loss.
Similarly, the Fibonacci System is low-risk, because the increase of the bet isn’t as big – also meaning that the overall wins aren’t as big, but also the losses aren’t so big, too. The strategy is based on the popular Fibonacci sequence, which looks like this:
1 – 1 – 2 – 3 – 5 – 8 – 13 – 21 – 34 – 55 – 89 – 144 – 233 – 377 – 610 – 987
The numbers in the sequence determine how much you should bet on every game and you don’t need to start at one, as long as you are following the sequence. One disadvantage to this is you only manage to profit if you win on your first bet; winning on the second or third bet will break even; but anything else is a loss, which as you can see gets bigger and bigger.
Non-progressive strategies
Playing the numbers is a risky strategy, whereby players bet on numbers that haven’t made an appearance for a while. The idea is that if these numbers haven’t appeared, they are overdue a win and then likely to win as a result. It also known as the Andrucci System. By law of averages, it’s also more difficult to bet on an individual number than it is on red or black; odd or even.
Neighbouring numbers is another popular strategy and in simple terms, is where you split your bet and place it on five numbers that are next to each other on the roulette wheel. If you wish to bet on an individual number, it also makes sense to minimise the risk and bet on neighbouring numbers, to give yourself more chance of winning.
Finally, we have the James Bond Strategy, which was devised by author Ian Fleming and made popular by 007 himself. This system is a flat betting system, so means you will bet the same amount each round. The following bets are placed: £14 on 19-36, £5 on a line bet; £1 on 0. With chips positioned in this way, there will be 25 numbers where you win and 12 where you lose. Obviously you don’t need to bet £20, but do need to keep the proportions the same.
Is there a winning strategy?
In short, no. In reality, while these methods may increase your chances of winning, none of them will work every time – after all, roulette is a game of luck. Similarly, the casinos wouldn’t allow you to play a game that could be easily won. While you’ll win some, and lose some, that’s what makes the game so exciting.