Roulette theory – is it real?
Roulette is known as one of the simplest casino games you can choose to play, in the past it’s been taken as a fact that when playing roulette, the odds are always tipped in the house’s favour. A spinning wheel of red and black stripes and 38 numbers to bet on; it seems as though there’s little in the way of skill or mathematical prowess that could alter your chances. However, a leading mathematician and physicist has come forward lately to challenge this thinking. Richard Muller, a professor of physics at the University of California, claims to have developed a method of beating the house more often by exploiting the ‘bet in play’ rule. This rule, designed to encourage more plays, allows gamblers to place bets after the ball has been dropped, but before it lands. The professor believes that the few seconds between the ball being dropped and the ball landing provide enough time for calculations to take place and bets to be made accordingly. Rather than predicting with pinpoint accuracy where the ball is about to fall, the method involves reducing the number of likely numbers by around half. Muller argues that by doing this, roulette players can improve their odds by 3% each time the ball is thrown – an improvement that is large enough for them to enjoy an overall winning average.
One major drawback of the method is that it requires the user to carry with them a special device. It also means that the player must calibrate the roulette wheel’s measurements and statistics before they begin to play. When the ball is dropped, the gambler taps a switch by his toe. Additionally, every time the wheel spins, the user taps a different switch. The machine combines the incoming data with the information it already contains about the wheel itself. It then runs all these figures through a computer programme, which serves to eliminate a proportion of the numbers on the wheel. Finally, the gambler chooses at random one of the numbers not eliminated and quickly places his bet using the ‘bet in play’ rule.
There are many obvious drawbacks to this technology, the main one being that casinos simply would not allow it to be used and anyone who attempted to take such a machine into a casino would soon find themselves banned.
For many, one of the roulette wheel’s primary attractions is that it offers a level playing field. No matter your experience, whether you’re a real world player or if you feel like playing roulette online for real money now and having fun, your chances of winning (until now) have been as good as those of anyone else. Take, for example, amateur roulette player Mark Vaccarezza, who walked away with a staggering £25,000 playing in Birmingham earlier this year. Despite being up against four pros, the novice simply ploughed ahead and luck just happened to be on his side. Mark’s experience, and that of others like him, just goes to show that even if you’ve developed a fancy theory and you face the roulette wheel armed with mathematical equations and mind-boggling physics, sometimes simple chance will win the day.