The invention of the game that we're familiar with today is generally attributed to the French philosopher and mathematician, Blaise Pascal, who is credited with originating the probability theory. But forerunners of Roulette, basically carnival wheel games, were in use throughout Europe, as early as the mid-1500s. In fact, the earliest gambling action in Monaco consisted of two gaming wheels in a barn. Roulette is a very easy game to learn. They fall under one of two categories: "inside" bets and "outside" bets. Inside bets are made on the individual numbers, one through 36, and the zeros. Betting on a single number is called a "straight-up" wager. Say you bet on number 23. If the ball drops into the number 23 pocket, you're paid off at 35-1. Not bad, huh? To bet on two numbers, place your chips on the line between the two numbers you wish to bet on, such as between 1 and 2, or 1 and the single zero, or 1 and 4. This "split" bet pays off at 17-1. You can bet on three numbers at a time, paying 11-1, four numbers (8-1), five numbers (6-1) and six numbers (5-1) These bets pay even money. You can bet on 12 numbers each in the "column" boxes at the far end of the layout. The first 12, second 12 and third 12 all pay 2-1. If you put a $5 chip in the second column and the ball drops into number 17, you win $10. You can mix, match and make as many bets as you like on a single spin. Unlike other casino games where bets must be kept separate, Roulette players can stack their bets on top of one another's. There will be a table minimum and a chip minimum. The table minimum applies to all bets on the table. It has a whopping casino edge of 7.89%. Some casinos provide reader boards that track the last 20 to 30 spins. While interesting to observe and look for patterns, they don't provide much information of practical use.

Roulette Tips

Before searching for the appropriate casino to play online roulette, which is an important factor before playing the game, the roulette player needs to be soundly informed about the rules of the game, and understand each and every bet or action that can potentially be made (See the 'Roulette Rules' page)  Beginning with the different types of bets one will see there is a vast assortment of payout odds and House Edge.

In order of payout odds, the roulette bets are as follows:

• The even money bets (red/black, high/low, and even/odd) payout 1:1
   

• The dozens and column bet pays out 2:1
   

• The five-number bet pays out 5:1
   

• The corner bet pays out 8:1
   

• The street bet pays out 11:1
   

• The split bet pays out 17:1
   

• The straight-up bet pays out 35:1.

For any player who is seeking to place some kind of structure on his or her bankroll, the even money bets, dozens, and column bets are the safest choices.  The even money bets produce the lowest House Edge of all the roulette wagers - in conjunction with the en prison rule the House Edge is lowered even more.  As is the case at any casino game, it is important to place the majority of one's wagers with the bets offering the lowest Casino Advantage.  This isn't to say that a player should cease from some of the more chancy wagers like the street, split or straight-up.  These are very exciting bets to make, and can and do produce some large winners at the wheel.  it is to say that these bets should not be made as often as the even money bets if the player is planning to gamble at online roulette for an indefinite length of time.  Furthermore, if one of these bets does happen to win, this might be a very good time to walk away, depending on your bankroll status. The only excuse for not playing the standard European version is ignorance, because the American version produces a higher House Edge.  European roulette does not offer the 00 on the wheel, thereby taking one more bet out of the equation, and lowering the House Edge to approximately 2.6% - the lowest edge at the table.

Tip - Place more even money bets than other wagers

The even money wagers will give the player the lowest House Edge at online roulette.   These are the Red/Black, High/Low and Even/Odd bets, which have a 50/50 chance of winning.