Roullete is a game of chance where players try to correctly guess the number or type of number that the roulette ball will land on when croupiers spin a metal ball around a rotating disc. It has offered glamour, mystery and excitement to casino-goers since the 17th century, in part because its rules are relatively simple and in part because a serious strategy can reap high rewards.

A wheel consists of a solid wooden disk slightly convex in shape, with a series of metal compartments (called frets or canoes by croupiers) lined with alternately red and black cloths. Thirty-six of these compartments are numbered nonconsecutively from 1 to 36; one, called the green zero on American wheels, carries the sign of 0. A croupier or dealer then spins the wheel and releases the ball into its final resting position by placing it in a special pocket called a slit.

After the croupier has spun the wheel, all bets are settled and winning players are paid. Then the dealer clears off the losing chips from the table and starts a new round. When playing, it is best to start by wagering on “outside bets” (groups of numbers instead of individual digits). These bets are cheaper and have a higher likelihood of hitting. It is also a good idea to make your bankroll last longer by betting smaller bets.

On the grand scale of American casino games, roulette has a small following, compared to slot machines, video poker, blackjack and craps. But in Europe, the game draws huge crowds. In fact, in Monte Carlo, the game is a mainstay of the casino floor. Despite the game’s small following in America, many players seek to find a way to beat the odds. A quick search on the Internet returns thousands (possibly millions) of roulette systems. Some are easy, some complicated, some well described, some not. Ultimately, though, all roulette systems have the same underlying assumption: that there is a mathematically optimal bet for each situation, and that the house edge can be overcome by properly placing bets.