Roulette Table Setup

The roulette table is similar in casinos all over the world. It is useful to be familiar with the roulette table setup before playing.

The Roulette Table Setup

The roulette table consists of two parts.  The first part is the wheel, which is well known, and instantly recognizable as a roulette wheel.  The second part of the roulette table setup is the felt (usually green), which has the layout of the many bets drawn on it.

The Roulette Wheel - Basic Guidelines

It is important to be able to recognize the different roulette wheels available, as the different style games have differing odds.  The more spaces on a roulette wheel, the higher the house edge.

The European roulette table has a wheel with 37 crevices in which the ball can land.  The numbers range from zero to thirty-six.

The American roulette table has a wheel with 38 crevices in which the ball can land.  The highest number is also thirty-six, as it is for the European version of the roulette table, however, in the American version, there is a zero (0), and a double zero (00).

The odds of the European version of the roulette wheel are more in favor of the players, and less so for the house.

The wheel is spun in one direction, while a small ball is rolled in the opposite direction.  The bets are paid out according to where the ball has landed.  The wheel is divided into alternating red and black wedges, with numbers on each wedge.  The numbers are not in any particular order on a roulette wheel.  The zero (and double zero) are on green wedges, making it quite easy to identify which wheel you are playing on.

The Felt - The Space to Place Your Bets

Inside bets are bets which are placed on individual numbers, or combinations of individual numbers.  There are squares which are clearly marked on the roulette table by numbers and colors as found on the accompanying roulette wheel.

Outside bets are generally broader bets.  This includes all the bets that are for groups of numbers.  For example, it is possible to bet on either the first, second or third set of twelve numbers in the game.  It is also possible to select one column of numbers and bet that one of those numbers will be that one on which the ball will land.  Outside bets also include the options to bet on either red or black being the color the ball will land on, or odds and evens (whether the number the ball will land on will be an odd or an even number).

While the zeros are physically somewhat on the outside of the main body of numbers, they are still considered to be inside bets as they are individual numbers, and do not form part of a broader group.

The Dealer

There is usually a space in the roulette table setup where the dealer can sit, next to which there is a special area of the roulette table on which dealer's chips are kept.  The space where the dealer's chips are kept is usually a bulge which goes part-way around the area where the roulette wheel is located.