Anyone who says that you can improve your odds at the roulette table
by incorporating strategy is either lying or simply ignorant of the
truth. Roulette is a game based completely on chance - the spinning
wheel, the rolling ball, and at the end of the tunnel, the squares
upon which you’ve actually placed your chips.
That being said, there seem to be a number of systems of betting
that have gained popularity over the years. We want to talk about
the three major betting systems: martingale, grand martingale and
cancellation.
Martingale
In martingale, the player is meant to double his bet each time he
loses. The idea here is that after a series of unfortunate losses,
the martingale system will net the player a profit that is at least
equal to his first bet so that he leaves the table, at worst, in the
same position that he started.
settled spin on a roulette wheel
Martingale may sound tempting, but it's critical to realize that a
particularly bad series of losses (and let's be honest: it's very
easy to have a bad day at the casino) could mean complete financial
ruin in a very short time. Remember, simply because the spinning
wheel selected a 13 in one round does not mean it will not purposely
vary where it lands in future rounds. This makes it fairly amusing
when roulette tables list which numbers were selected in the
previous 10 rounds. It doesn't make a shred of difference what these
numbers are. At any point in the game, before any spin, there is an
equal chance of any number of being selected no matter what preceded
it.
Grand Martingale
In grand martingale, players do not simply double their bet after
each successive loss, but actually add another unit so that they're
betting more and more every time. If a player loses on a $10 bet,
then according to the grand martingale system he should bet $30 on
his next wager. As you can imagine, these numbers add up
substantially very quickly. At best, grand martingale can be
enormously profitable. At worst, however, it can be financially
debilitating and can ruin you quicker than probably any other system
or game ever could at the casino.
Cancellation
In cancellation, players start with a number or series of numbers
and bet the total on either end of the series. If the player wins,
then he cancels the numbers that he just played. If he loses,
however, then he adds the total that he just played to the end of
the series. Once all the numbers have been canceled, the result is
supposed to be a profit that is equal to the sum of the original
series. There's no mathematical substance in cancellation, but it
can be a fun and systematic way to wager your money.
Remember: nothing is guaranteed in roulette, and a victory in one
round could easily translates into a loss in another one. Decide in
advance how much your bankroll will be, and stick to that no matter
what happens. That will make roulette a fun and exciting adventure.
