Roulette Bankroll Management: Tips for Longer Sessions

Despite being a very simple game, roulette has a grand selection of betting possibilities, attracting players of all levels. It is very easy to get started, and even beginners can jump straight in and start building their betting systems from the get-go. Beneath the simple veneer lies a fascinating array of bets, and it is easy to get carried away.

The betting odds start from 1:1 and go up to 35:1, and you can bet on anything from individual numbers to odds/even, red/black, and more. If you really want, you can cover half the entire table in chips, selecting all your lucky numbers. That is why, before jumping into the deep end, you must have a plan to ensure you don’t go bust.

Importance of Bankroll Planning in Roulette

Players do not have the same type of control over what happens in roulette as they do in card games such as blackjack, poker or baccarat. In those games, they can influence the outcome of a hand. Not that this means they will necessarily win, but this does open the possibility of using strategies to maximize their chances of winning. In roulette, no matter what you bet, the outcome will be decided by where the ball falls, something neither you or the dealer can control.

However, your area of control lies on the paytable. Namely, you are given the flexibility to play with as much risk as you like. Roulette also has betting strategies, but these do not refer to the bets themselves, but rather how much you stake. These range from very moderate, conservative systems to the ultra-aggressive and risky roulette strategies. One thing they all have in common is that they are intended for longer gaming sessions. These systems do not really work if you limit yourself to a handful of rounds. Therefore, you will need a good budgeting plan to ensure you can play for long enough to see the fruits of your labor, something we will analyze now.

Forming a Bankroll

The easiest way to control how much money you spend is by setting deposit limits for your gaming account. If you set a weekly, or monthly, limit – you will never end up pumping money you cannot afford into your account. You should not look at roulette, or any casino game, as a financial institution for investing money. These casino games are designed for entertainment purposes, and so when transferring money, you should never assume it will make you a profit. Only spend as much as you can afford to lose – we aren’t saying you will – but don’t rule out the possibility.

Once you have set limits and made your deposit, you will have to make that money last until your next deposit. Say you play roulette twice a week, then you can easily take your weekly budget and halve it, or divide it monthly into four equal portions. The point is to ensure you have enough to play with, and you can decide whether to play with the winnings or set them aside for a payout.

Choosing a Stake Size

Calculating how much you want to wager each round is a very personal decision, especially as not all gamers go for the same roulette bets. Players who use less risky bets such as 1:1 or 2:1 tend to bet with higher stakes than those who are playing for longshot wagers such as straight bets, doubles or corners. Instead of talking about payouts and types of bets, we will focus on how long you would like to play.

Generally, real roulette tables have around 40 to 50 spins per hour. If you are betting $1 per round, you are looking at up to $50 per hour, which some players may find quite expensive. But it pales in comparison to the online roulette tables, where you can expect anywhere from 100 to 150 spins per hour. We are only talking about gross spending, and chances are, you will pull in a handful of wins over the course of the hour.

Most players don’t give gross spending a second thought. The bankroll takes priority as it is the number that most will look at to gauge their success or failure. However, the bankroll alone does not paint the full picture. Let’s look at a few examples.

Example of Longer Odds Betting

Let’s say that you have 4 lucky numbers and you play them and no other bets. You spend $0.25 on each straight bet, meaning you spend $1 per round, for a chance to win $9. You play at an online roulette table for an hour, resulting in 60 spins. On average, you will win 6.48 times – so let’s assume you win 7 times. You are counting on playing for a full hour, so your starting bankroll for this gaming session is $120.

• Starting Bankroll = $120
• Gross Spending = $60
• Gross Wins = $63
• Bankroll After Half an Hour = $123
• 2.5% Increase in Bankroll

After winning 7 times in the space of half an hour, you are up by $3, or 2.5% of your entire bankroll. That speaks nothing about the 52.5% you won in total and the 50% you spent.

Example of Shorter Odds Betting

The next time you play, you decide to abandon the lucky numbers and pick something a little simpler. You pick a bet on red and will play half an hour on the same game. With the same starting bankroll of $60 for the half hour, you can confidently stake a dollar on red for each round. Let’s say you win 28 of the 60 rounds, that would come out to the following.

• Starting Bankroll = $120
• Gross Spending = $60
• Gross Wins = $56
• Bankroll After Half an Hour = $116
• 3.3% Decrease in Bankroll

In this case, your bankroll has gone down by 3.3%. Our problem is that by just looking at the starting and finishing bankrolls in either case – we don’t really see that you have spent $60 and won $63 or $56. Players may want to boost their stakes to see a more sizable impact on their bankroll. Like going up 10-15% after half an hour, but they can just as easily lose the same amount.

Keeping Track of Time and Money Spent

The key here is keeping your stake size and expectations low. A 2.5% profit over the space of half an hour is not exactly something most players will appreciate. But considering they spent half of their bankroll and managed to keep in the green is a positive achievement. Unexperienced players may up their stakes to force bigger wins, and if they lose, they will work all the harder to get back to the starting bankroll.

Your gross spending is not the only thing that may go unnoticed. Roulette is a very fast-paced game and the action is quite repetitive. If you don’t have a timer or clock nearby, you can get sucked in and the first half hour will fly by. Just checking the bankroll and seeing that you are up to 5% over or under your bankroll, it will feel like you spent no time at all playing. But the longer you play, the more at risk you are of falling into psychological traps and cognitive biases.

Therefore, in addition to setting a deposit limit, you are also advised to set win/loss markers and time in reality checks. These are tools that all licensed online casinos provide and give you more control over your gaming sessions. Don’t take them for granted, these tools can keep you from heavy losses.

Optimizing Your Roulette Strategy

Choosing an appropriate stake for long-term play is essential, as mentioned before, most roulette strategies are contingent on longer sessions. No matter whether you are playing 1:1 or up to 35:1 bets, you must plan for plenty of rounds.

The betting systems relate to how you change your stake each round if you do at all. Playing with a fixed stake, called flat betting, is the easiest way to play roulette.

The most famous of these is the Martingale betting system. Essentially, it is doubling up your stake after you lose. This way, if you do eventually win after a few consecutive losses, you will always be in a profit. Most players don’t use this tactic if they are betting on 35:1 roulette bets, but instead 1:1 bets.

The problem is, that the martingale system requires you to have a tremendous bankroll. If you are betting $1 per round on black, and the ball falls on reds for 5 rounds in a row, you will need to wager $32 to keep going. Another 5 rounds of reds (which is improbable but not impossible) means you need $1,024.

Martingale Roulette Betting Alternatives

The martingale and flat betting systems are not the only betting sequences you can use. There are also sequences such as the Paroli, Labouchere, Reverse Martingale, and Fibonacci sequences that also experiment with changing stakes.

The Labouchere and D’Alembert systems are less aggressive. They are not designed to push as hard for the win, and therefore you will not lose as heavily if things don’t go your way. The Fibonacci system is quite an interesting one, as you use the Fibonacci sequence. You increase your wager after losing, moving up the sequence, and when you win, you don’t start from the beginning. Instead, you move back down the sequence. However, this is also quite risky, like the Martingale system.

Avoiding Psychological Traps

Your biggest opponent in roulette is not the house, nor the wheel and ball themselves. After playing for longer periods of time, it is not uncommon for gamers to form biases and bet using emotion, rather than rationale.

The most common is the gambler’s fallacy, which is the belief that the previous outcomes may affect the odds for the next round. If the ball falls on black 6 times in a row, it will surely fall on red next to keep the odds at balance. But that is not the case.

The probabilities never change, and while anomalies can occur, they do not affect what happens in the next few rounds.

Another common bias is the sunk cost fallacy, by which players feel compelled to keep playing as they have spent so much money on the game already. Players may feel unable to quit the game, as then they would have to accept any losses and move on. This can easily result in the player making reckless bets and trying to force the win – which seldom ends well.

Conclusion

When you form a bankroll and set your time and spending limits, you must stick to them. It is imperative to your enjoyment of roulette, and avoiding any heavy losses.

Even the expert gamers who play roulette for big sums of money make precise calculations and know when to quit. Be patient with the wins, and even if you are only up to 5% up on your bankroll, you should take the win.