18-September-2009

 

There’s really only one way to beat roulette: “Clocking.” If you’re not into to wasting months, perhaps years, looking for a biased wheel, though, your only option is to lose more slowly. There are a couple ways of doing this. For instance, you can bet fewer chips on each spin, play only even-money bets and play at tables that use special En Prison or Surrender rules. Still, the best all-around way to lose less at roulette is to always play Single-Zero, or “European,” Roulette. By doing so you’ll cut the 5.26 percent house edge of regular American Roulette wheels down to 2.7 percent, a difference of over one-half.

And yet obviously if you live in Europe you don’t need this advice; not only do most European brick-and-mortar casinos offer the form of roulette named for the continent they’re built on, but most EU member states allow their citizens to gamble at online casinos – most of which have Single-Zero Roulette games. Ironically, laws that outlaw online gambling hurt roulette players more than help them, and nowhere is this truer than in the U.S. where Double-Zero Roulette dominates. An American player's only option is to find B&Ms that offer Single-Zero roulette and hope the place doesn’t close due to recessionary woes before he gets there. Worse still, because many land-based casinos in the U.S. reserve their Single-Zero wheels for high rollers, figuring out where they’ve hidden them can be a chore unto itself.

That’s why we here at AceHoyle.com decided to do the legwork for our American readers. After all, no one should lose more than they have to. And, since the Ace Hoyle crew has the resources and time to devote to such quixotic quests, we figured, “Why not?” Besides, our American readers can’t play at any or our advertisers’ sites anyhow. And we have to give them something worth reading too, right?

Where ‘da Wheels At: 10 Single-Zero Roulette Wheels in the U.S.

No. 1 – The Trump Marina (Atlantic City, New Jersey)
Though soon to be the Donald’s no more, this AC casino long benefited from its namesake’s canny feel for the gambling business. It even advertises its Single-Zero wheel on its Web site, fully aware that it will draw more roulette players.

No. 2 – Trump Plaza (Atlantic City, New Jersey)
Another Single-Zero wheel at a Trump casino, this one also aims to attract roulette players with discriminating tastes. The downside to this and other Trump Single-Zeros is that unlike their Double-Zero cousins throughout AC they don’t honor the Surrender rule.

No. 3 – The Trump Taj Mahal (Atlantic City, New Jersey)
Score another one for the Donald, this wheel is one of the casino’s collection of 10 wheels, but is the only one with one zero. Unlike the other European wheels in Trump’s bankrupt Jersey empire, though, this one’s stuffed away in the baccarat room.

No. 4 – The Hilton (Las Vegas, Nevada)
Paris’s daddy apparently took a page from the Donald’s playbook and had this bad boy installed in his own gambling fun-house. Too bad he’ll only let it out of storage on special request from high rollers.

No. 5 – The MGM Grand (Las Vegas, Nevada)
The Grand actually boasts two Single-Zero wheels, one in its VIP area and one in The Mansion. Better still, they’re both open 24/7 – excluding cleaning times, of course.

No. 6 – The Mirage (Las Vegas, Nevada)
The Mirage also has two Single-Zero wheels – presumably to keep up with the Grand, or vice versa. The best part about the Mirage's Single-Zero wheels, though, is that there are no special gimmicks attached to them: One of them is out in the open and the other is by-request in the high rollers’ section. Both are available 24/7.

No. 7 – The Monte Carlo (Las Vegas, Nevada)
You’d expect an American casino named after Europe’s most famous gambling town would have its own Single-Zero wheel. Why the staff would only let it out its cage on Friday and Saturday nights is beyond us.

No. 8 – Paris (Las Vegas, Nevada)
The Paris Resort and Casino goes further than any other B&M in the U.S. by offering a proper French Roulette wheel, complete with a neighbor-bet layout. Sorry to say, though, only high rollers get access to it and only if that ask really nicely.

No. 9 – The Bellagio (Las Vegas, Nevada)
The Bellagio stocks two wheels like the Grand and the Mirage, and neither are difficult to access. They're both in the baccarat room, in Pit 6, and at least one of them is in operation at all times.

No. 10 – The Stratosphere (Las Vegas, Nevada)
Check this one out when you aren't busy being shot up in the air, teeter-tottered or whipped around on the Strat’s ungodly tower. It’s peacefully hidden in plain view in the middle of the casino’s main floor.

By: Phill Provance
phill.provance@acehoyle.com

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