Any research you’ve done on the game of roulette has probably already informed you of the inherent advantage the house has over you. From there, you probably began immediately researching betting systems and strategies that promise to undercut the house advantage. Unfortunately, as any knowledgeable roulette player can attest, it is virtually impossible to beat the house edge. Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean that turning a profit in roulette isn’t possible either. The answer is NO, you cannot beat the house edge, but there are ways to diminish the house edge and improve your odds of winning.

The major reason that one cannot beat the house edge is that the payouts don’t accurately reflect what the bets are worth. This is why, even when you do win, the house still wins because you must consider how much you lost before you won and how much you should’ve won in comparison to what you actually won. “Beating” the house is more complicated than just winning as was explained above, which is why aiming to beat the house edge is a fruitless endeavor.

One method intended to improve your chances of winning is to only bet the table minimum and stick with outside bets. Keeping your bets low and simple gives you a longer table life, and betting on red or black covers just under half the table and pays 1:1. The randomness of roulette is why you should keep your bets at the minimum; it’s very easy to lose most of your available bankroll in just a few hands. Straight bets have a better payout but a much greater chance of losing, and straight bets tend to burn right through your bankroll very quickly.

Another way you can improve your odds, thus decreasing the house advantage is placing equal but different outside bets. For example you may want to place $30 on an even money bet (red/black, even/odd, or high/low) as well as $30 on a column or dozen bet. This allows you more action and more chances of winning, but it’s also easy to follow so you don’t get lost. This method increases your chances of winning because inevitably some of your numbers will be covered twice; as a column or dozen and as an even money bet.

Many books and websites claim to have the answers to effectively beating the house advantage, but it’s just a gambler’s fallacy. Casinos have highly paid experts whose sole responsibility is to make sure the house always maintains the advantage in all casino games. When you notice a decline in the number of roulette tables at the casino, then you can be certain that someone has found a way to beat the house advantage. Until then, all you can hope for is improving odds.

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