Chicago Sun-Times: Betting outside, inside on roulette

Walk up to any casino table game, and you'll find a placard standing on one corner listing the minimum bets at that table.

In blackjack, that's simple enough. If the placard says, "$5 minimum," you can't put less than $5 on the betting spot and expect the dealer to accept the wager.

But what about roulette. If you see a placard that says, "Minimum bets $5 inside, $5 outside," what is the least you can wager on any one proposition?

That depends. Are you making inside bets, outside bets or both?

Check out the layout on the table felt. There's a large area in which each of the 38 numbers on the wheel, including 0 and 00, has its own space. Eighteen of those numbered spaces have red backgrounds, 18 have black backgrounds, and 0 and 00 are backed with green. Make your bets in that area, and you're betting on the inside.

Along the edges of that area, there are rectangular areas marked off for wagers including red or black; even or odd; first 18 or last 18; first 12, second 12 or third 12, and 12-number columns. Bet in those areas, and you're betting on the outside.

If you bet on the outside, your wager on any one of the propositions must be at least the table minimum. If there is a $5 minimum and you bet on red, that wager must be at least $5. If you decide you want more action and bet on both red and the first dozen, you must bet at least $5 on red and at least another $5 on the first dozen.

Things are different on the inside. Those of you who were with me for last Sunday's column know that you may divide your chips into smaller denominations than the table minimum. With a $5 minimum bet, most casinos will allow you to break chips down into $1 denominations, and many will allow 50-cent or even 25-cent chips.

That's because on inside bets, we're allowed to spread the table minimum across several propositions. If we want to meet the $5 minimum on the inside by betting $1 each on five different propositions, that's OK. We're allowed to meet the house minimum with the sum of our inside wagers.

So how can you bet your money? Let's check it out.

OUTSIDE BETS: Red or black, odd or even and 1 through 18 or 19 through 36 pay even money. A bet on red, for example, would win if the ball lands on any of the 18 numbers shown on a red background on the layout and on the wheel.

Bets on the first 12, second 12 and third 12, and bets on any of the three columns of 12 numbers on the layout pay 2-1. What's the difference between a dozen and a column? Dozens are numbers in the usual sequence_1 through 12 is the first dozen, 13 through 24 is the second, and 25 through 36 is the third. Columns are 12 numbers as you read them down the roulette table layout. The first column, for example, is 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, 25, 28, 31 and 34. The odds of winning are the same on either columns or dozens.

Zero and 00, shown in green on the layout and the wheel, are neither odd nor even, neither red nor black. They don't belong to columns or dozens, and they're outside the first 18 or last 18. If either shows up, all outside bets lose.

INSIDE BETS: Wagers on individual numbers, placed by putting a chip or chips fully inside the box for a number, including 0 and 00, pay 35-1. You also can bet inside numbers in several different combinations.

A chip straddling the line between two numbers is called a split. If either number hits, it pays 17-1.

A three-number bet, called a street, is made by placing a chip on the line separating the inside from the outside, indicating a row of three consecutive numbers, such as 1, 2 and 3. It pays 11-1.

Move the chip so that it straddles two rows of numbers as well as the inside; outside line, and you have a six-number double street, paying 5-1.

One of the most common bets is the corner, with a chip placed at the intersection of four numbers. If any of the four comes up, the bet pays 8-1.

There's one more inside bet, a five-number combination of 0, 00, 1, 2 and 3. It's placed with the chip straddling the line between 0- 00 and the 1-2-3 row. It pays 5-1, but it's a bet to be avoided. Why? Check back next Sunday for a look at the house edge in roulette.