Best Bet in Roulette

Dear Mark,
If you had to make but one bet on a roulette table, what would it be? You've mentioned in the past playing on a single zero wheel if you can find one, but is there any bet that is better than another on that table? Frank S.

Hip, hip, Frank, always go for searching out a single zero roulette game, as that little extra effort -- if successful -- allows you to chop the house edge from 5.26% to 2.63%. Now, that's something; you cut it in half! But your base question still remains: is there one bet that stands out over all others on a single zero game?

Yep, Frank, there's one. The absolute best bet is an "even-money" wager on a French (or single zero) wheel that offers the En Prison (Surrender) option. The house edge with this one wager is slashed to 1.35%.

And what the heck do I mean by En Prison? Guess.

The French phrase "en prison" signifies that if you're betting an even money outside wager like red, and the next number called is green 0, the dealer won't snatch your losing chips. Instead, he or she will put a small marker on top of your bet.

It's then en prison, Frank; your bet is temporarily held hostage until the outcome of the next spin. If black or the green 0 appears on the next spin, you would then lose your entire original wager. But if red reappears, the dealer will remove the en prison marker and you are free to either pick up your bet or replay it.

By the way, Frank, when I mentioned above "one bet that stands out over all others," it's important to note that most players erroneously believe that certain wagers on a roulette table are superior to others. Not so. All bets, except one (the five-number bet, 0, 00, 1, 2, and 3) suffer the same 5.26% house edge on a double zero wheel. Switching to a single zero game guillotines the house edge about in half on every wager on the layout except for the En Prison bet.

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