Roulette is a game in which players place bets on which number a ball will land after spinning a wheel. Bets are placed by laying chips on a betting mat with precise locations indicating the bet type.

You can place a bet on individual numbers, small groups of numbers or even bigger groups of numbers. You can also place “outside bets” which pay out at lower odds than inside bets.

Origin

The origin of roullete is a little uncertain, though many websites claim it was invented by the 17th century French mathematician Blaise Pascal. He is credited with developing roulette as a way to study probability theory, but it was probably around before then and most likely derived from earlier games such as portique, hoca, bassett, and even-odd or roly poly.

Regardless of its actual origin, the name seems to have come from the French word for a small wheel — roelete, based on the Latin rotella. As more Europeans came to America, it was only a matter of time before they brought their games with them, including roulette. The game became so popular that it soon caught on in other parts of the world.

Bets

Roulette odds are based on the probability that a specific number will appear on the wheel. Players can place several types of bets, including outside bets that pay 2-1. These bets can include street, splits and corner bets. A Voisins bet, for instance, costs nine chips and covers 17 numbers. This type of special bet is among the riskier wagers as it can increase the player’s initial investment by a factor of 17. The payouts for this wager can vary from PS18 to PS24.