The game of roulette is hundreds of years old, but remains one of the most popular games in the world. One of the reasons so many people are drawn to roulette is that it seems to be a game of pure chance, which makes it easy for newcomers to jump in and get playing quickly.
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However, there are actually a number of subtleties that can determine outcomes in roulette. One of the most overlooked factors is a player’s betting strategy.
If you’re really serious about increasing your chances of winning big at roulette, then you need to come up with a good betting strategy. Here are some tips to consider:
Finding the Right Betting Strategy
When it comes to roulette, there are a few different betting strategies to choose from. They all have one of two goals: limiting your losses if you have a losing streak, or maximizing your winnings if you’re having a winning streak.
Of course, roulette is a game of chance, so improving your betting strategy won’t save you from losing money. However, it will keep you from losing your entire budget on a couple spins, effectively giving you more opportunities to win.
The Martingale Strategy
The Martingale Strategy is almost as old as the game of roulette itself. The premise behind this regressive betting system is pretty simple: you double your bets every time you lose and keep them the same when you win.
As long as you have enough money to hold out on your losses, you’ll have a net win equivalent to your initial bet. It won’t matter how many times you lose. However, for this system to work, you’ll need to make sure that you start with a low enough bet that you won’t burn your entire budget. Losses add up exponentially if you’re too ambitious. Starting with around $5 works well, as you’ll only need a budget of $315 as long as you win within six spins.
The Reverse Martingale Strategy
The Martingale strategy works well over the short-term, but you can face steep losses if you keep playing. If you’ll be at the table for a while, a less risky strategy to consider is the Reverse Martingale Strategy. This strategy is meant to give an edge to players on a winning streak.
Here’s how it works:
*You start off with the minimum bet. *You keep betting the same minimum until you win. *You double your bet after winning. *You then reduce it to your original, minimum bet.
The idea here is to ride your winning streaks, but to protect your budget when you’re losing.
(As a side note, while the traditional Martingale system can be used all over the table, using the Reverse Martingale in this way isn’t practical, as you’re betting on repeaters.)
Which Approach is Better?
Many players tend to try some variation of the Reverse Martingale Strategy, even if they have never heard of it. They keep betting higher after they win, because they think they’re on a streak.
But here’s the problem with that line of thinking: past outcomes are not predictors of future ones. Any winning streaks you have in roulette are due solely to chance. If you double your bet every time you win, then you’ll inevitably face a loss that will cost more than all of your previous winnings.
Here is an example of how the Martingale and Reverse Martingale strategies would play out in a real game:
Martingale Strategy
You start off betting $5. You lose on your first spin, so you double your bet to $10. You lose again, and double your bet to $20. You lose a third time and double your bet to $40. This time, you win and collect your $40.
In this case, you spent $35 altogether, leaving you ahead by $5.
Reverse Martingale Strategy
You started off betting $5. You lose three times and keep your bets the same after each loss, so you’ve spent $15 altogether. You finally win on your fourth spin and collect $5, which means that you’re facing a $15 loss so far.
After you win, you decide to double your bet to $10. You win again and double your bet to $20. You win a third time and double it to $40. You’re on a nice winning streak, and you’re feeling good. Unfortunately, on the next spin, you end up losing your $40 wager.
According to this strategy, you’d drop your wager back down to $5, but at this point, you’ve spent $90 and only won back $35. You decide that your winning streak is over and walk away with a $65 loss.
The Bottom Line: Strategy Matters
As you can see from this scenario, you would’ve come out ahead if you stuck with the Martingale Strategy (and if you learned to walk away from the table while you were ahead). You only need to win once with the Martingale strategy to make a positive return.
The problem with the Reverse Martingale Strategy is that if you don’t win on your first spin, you need to win multiple times to be in the black. The upside of this strategy is that, if you really do have a winning streak, then you’ll have a chance to come out much further ahead. It can be a lot more exciting, but remember that you’re putting your money on chance rather than a strategy that’s proven to make you a small return over the short-term.
Here is the risk with the Martingale Strategy, though… By the time you finally win, you’ll probably have lowered your bet by half, which will put you at a much higher wager than when you started. Since your bet will be increasing exponentially, you could blow through all of your entire budget by the time you finally make it back. The people that walk away with a small profit from the Martingale Strategy are the ones that have the self-control to walk away while the stakes are still low and they’re slightly ahead.
Ultimately, even though roulette is a game of chance, your betting strategy plays a huge role in your payouts. It can make the difference between walking away having lost your budget or making back a small profit – as long as you’re happy taking smaller winnings and walking away while you’re still up.