The layout of the roulette table in a casino is somewhat curious. The scattering of the numbers across the table has tempted players who are constantly in search of winning systems. One anomaly on the table has generated many system sellers down through the years who believe there is a sucker born every minute. everest poker

John is one of those believers of a system that has been discredited for years. But the appeal of his argument is so strong, he gets at least a ten per cent response whenever he finds a new list upon which to foist his sweet-sounding direct mail efforts.

The system is known as the “third column” system, and John is adept at eXplaining why it should work for you. Because the third column on the roulette table contains eight red numbers and only four black numbers, John reasons that it is a mathematical flaw that can be exploited by roulette players.

John believes that by placing a two-unit bet on black, which pays even-money, and a one-unit bet on the third Column, which pays off at two-to-one, he will mitigate the 5.26 per cent house advantage. With 18 black numbers in action and eight red numbers, he has reduced the prospect of losing to only the 12 remaining numbers (ten red numbers and the “0″ and “00″.

John does very well when he lays this system out for his suckers … er, clients. “You’re covered on 26 of the 38 numbers,” he says. “How can you go wrong?”

Here’s how. Let’s run the maths. For theoretical purposes, let’s use 38 spins, one for each number on the roulette wheel. Let’s assume that each number comes up once. Because you’re betting three units for each spin, you’ve put 114 units in action (3 X 38).
By allowing each number to win once, when you’ve done the experiment, you’ll have lost six units. That’s six out of 114. Can you guess what that makes the house advantage on this bet? That’s right, 5.26 per cent.

John doesn’t want you to do the maths and, because of his winning manner, very few of his clients even question his system. But there’s a loophole in every system. You just have to know where to look.