A Roulette table can look like a confusing grid of numbers and betting areas. But all the bets fall into two categories: inside bets and outside bets. Each offers different risk levels and payout odds.
The Roulette wheel has 37 compartments (American wheels have an additional 00). Players place chips in the betting areas of the table. They have until the dealer says “No more bets.”
Origin
The origin of roulette is a bit contested, but the game has roots in several other gambling games, including portique, hoca, bassette and even-odd. Its name is thought to have come from a Latin word meaning little wheel. The current version of the game was derived from these earlier games in the early 18th century. Its modern layout and wheel structure are French, and the game gained popularity among Parisian gamblers.
Blaise Pascal, a famous French mathematician and physicist, is believed to have invented the modern game of roulette in 1655 during his pursuit of the first perpetual motion machine. He was at Port-Royal-des-Champs monastery when he conceived the game as part of his experiments with a weighted wheel. However, he didn’t intend the wheel to be used for gambling purposes.