When playing roulette, a lot of players like to use a betting system. Some players think it gives them an edge over the house, some do it purely for fun and others do it because they are sadists that want to lose their money as quickly as possible and pick the Martingale betting system!
Whatever your reason for using a betting system when playing roulette, you should be familiar with the concept of progressive betting systems, and the positive and negative variations. In short, a progressive betting system is one that progresses through a series of bets depending on the outcome of the previous bet in the system. For example, the system might be to half your bet depending on the outcome. A positive progression would be where you progress to the next step every time you make a winning bet. So, in our example, you half your bet every time you win. A negative progression would be where you progress to the next step every time you make a losing bet. Again, in our example, you would half your bet every time you lost. A progressive betting system should also always have a set end. So, you might end the progression once you have 5 consecutive winning bets, or you might end it once you have lost 10 in a row. That is entirely up to you.
Progressive betting systems are perhaps more popular than negative betting systems because you are, in essence, playing mostly with the house’s money, not your own, as you would be when using a negative progression. And one of the most popular progressive betting systems that you can use when playing roulette is the Paroli betting system.
The idea behind the Paroli betting system is simple: every time a bet wins, you double the bet. So, if you start with a $10 bet, your next bet would be $20 and if that wins your next bet is $40 and so on until you decide to stop or you lose. Of course, if your initial bet loses, your next bet stays at $10.
There are a few things you need to establish before you start using the Paroli betting system at the roulette table. First of all, you need to work out the value of 1 unit. To do this, take your bankroll (how much you are willing to gamble in that one session) and divide it by 100. So if you have $1,000 to play with, 1 unit would be worth $10. If you had $200, 1 unit would be $2. Secondly, you need to decide on a bet. The Paroli betting system, like most progressive betting systems, works best using a 50-50 chance, and in roulette you can use red/black or odd/even. Finally, you need to set a limit on how many steps your progression has. You might want to try and crush the casino and set your progression at 20 steps, but try and be realistic when setting targets; somewhere in the region of 3-5 steps is an achievable goal and should give you some entertainment. With all of those factors decided, you can then head to the roulette table and start playing.
The main reason for using the Paroli betting system is that you can potentially win big for a small outlay. You only ever risk 1 unit on each progression, whereas you could end up wagering ridiculous amounts of your own money using a negative progression. So it can limit your losses if you go on a cold steak, but the Paroli betting system can also help you achieve big wins because it capitalizes on hot streaks. For example, if 1 unit is worth $10 and you go on a 5 spin losing streak, you have lost $50 (five bets of $10). If you then go on a 5 spin winning streak, you will have $320 in your possession ($10 becomes $20, $20 becomes $40, $40 becomes $80, $80 becomes $160, $160 becomes $320), giving you a net profit of $260 over the ten spins.
While there are pros to using the Paroli betting system, please do not think it is guarantee of success. Like most betting systems, the Paroli betting system relies on the idea of Gambler’s Fallacy – previous spins have a bearing on future results. Each spin is still 50-50, so even if black has come up the last 10 spins, it is still just as likely to come up black on the next spin as it is red. The Paroli betting system also requires a lot of self-discipline – you need to stick to your progressive betting strategy and end it on the step you decided at the start, instead of continuing on just because you ‘feel lucky’, as that is a quick way to lose any profits.
But if you do have the discipline to use the Paroli betting system, it is definitely one of the better betting systems to use when playing roulette, especially when compared to negative progression betting systems simply because you are never chasing losses during a progression. Use it with caution and it can make your session at the roulette table just that little bit more enjoyable.