Three-zero wheel ups the house advantage

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Updated: January 23, 2012 2:04AM

Anna was a casual acquaintance in college, a friend of a friend of a friend who I used to run into at the odd party. I was more than a little surprised to receive a message from her via Facebook — and then I saw it was about gambling.

“At a charity casino night, they had a roulette wheel with three zeroes,” she wrote. “That’s worse odds, right? Could they make a wheel with no zeroes? What would that do to the odds?”

I told her that a wheel with three zeroes does indeed increase the house advantage. On a double-zero wheel of the type you usually see in American casinos, each number is one of 38 — 1 through 36, and the two zeroes. Single-number bets pay 35-1, while true odds are 37-1. That difference between the true odds and the actual payoff gives the house its edge of 5.26 percent.

Or take single number bets. If you bet on black, you have 18 winning black numbers, and 20 losing numbers — the 18 reds and the two green zeroes. That difference between the 20 losers and 18 winners gives the house its edge of, yep, 5.26 percent.

Adding another zero to the mix widens the gaps. Now there are 39 numbers, including three zeroes. True odds against winning a single-number bet are now 38-1, the payoff remains 35-1, and the bigger gap yields a house edge of 7.69 percent.

Betting on black on a triple-zero wheel leaves you with 21 possible losers against your 18 winning numbers, and that wider gap gives the house that same 7.69-percent edge it would have on single numbers, corners, columns or other bets on such a wheel.

I, too, have come across triple-zero wheels in noncasino roulette games. My advice is to limit losses to an amount you would be willing to donate to the sponsoring charity and do not take the play too seriously.

But what about a no-zero wheel, as Anna asked. How would that work?

If no other changes were made, a no-zero wheel would be an even game, with no edge to either house or player. Of course, no one running a game would allow that to happen. The payoffs would have to change.

It’d be easy enough on some bets — a single-number bet that paid 33-1 on a no-zero wheel would give the house a 5.56 percent. But when you got down to bets that pay even money — red/black, odd/even, first 18/last 18 — you’d be dealing in fractions. The house would have to pay less than a dollar per dollar wagered to keep the game going.

It’s far easier on both dealer and players to keep the zeroes and traditional payoffs. You’re unlikely ever to see that combo zeroed out.

Casino news, notes

■ Texas Hold’em games at Hollywood Casino Joliet in Illinois now feature a bad-beat jackpot. Players who lose with four 5s or better get half the progressive jackpot, with 25 percent to the hand winner and 25 percent split among other players. Visit hollywoodcasinojoliet.com.

■ Tuesdays bring “Down Home Cookin’” to the Passports Buffet at Majestic Star in Gary. For $9.99, choices include fried chicken, fried catfish, beef stew, cornbread and more. Visit majesticstarcasino.com.

John Grochowski’s “Casino Answer Man” tips air at 5:18 p.m. Tuesday through Friday on WLS-AM (890).