There’s never a shortage of new things to look at in the world of gambling, which isn’t always a good thing. Several years ago, Las Vegas casinos implemented a new roulette variation which threatens to be the worst innovation yet. It’s called the Triple Zero Roulette, and it does exactly what you expect it to.
Triple Zero Roulette is a variation of traditional casino roulette which uses wheels with three zeros. This is in contrast to standard wheels, which use either one or two for European and American Roulette respectively.
Why Play Triple Zero Roulette?
The short answer is – don’t. It’s extremely unfriendly to the player and merely serves to tip the scales further in the house’s favour.
Those of you with some online casino experience know how Roulette works in terms of house edge and RTP rates. We’ll explain in detail for everyone else in a moment. For now, we want to make it as clear as possible: Triple Zero Roulette has worse RTP than any other type of Roulette. As such, it should be avoided by players in all situations.
Now, some of those savvier with online roulette games will know that there’s usually a trade-off involved with things like this. Generally, top casino games decrease the RTP with one feature but increase it with another. For instance, games with jackpot mechanics usually have a lower RTP rate in general, but compensate with the jackpot. So what do Triple Zero Roulette payouts do to compensate the added risk?
Absolutely nothing. Apparently, the origins of the variant are in brick-and-mortar casinos, which isn’t a surprise. Originally, the trade-off was that players could play Triple Zero Roulette at lower minimums. Specifically, they could give the wheel a spin for $10 instead of the usual $15.
In terms of online roulette, though, you’re probably aware that this is laughable. Most of the best online casinos offer a minimum roulette wager of around $1. As such, even this one perceived “advantage” is completely null and void.
As far as we’re aware, there are no online roulette games with three zero pockets. This horrorshow remains exclusive to land-based casinos, which is good. Still, we care about all roulette players here. If you ever run into a Triple Zero Roulette wheel in any setting, we suggest you find a different table.
Why Triple Zero Roulette is So Bad
House Edge in roulette is a bit of a complex subject, but we’ll give you a quick explanation for a quick answer.
Essentially, the green zero pocket in roulette is there to nudge the odds in the casino’s favour. It is the basis of the “the house always wins” adage – at least in the case of roulette.
Roulette payouts work by giving you returns based on the likelihood of the bet coming true. As an example, let’s use going for one of the “even money” bets – red or black, for instance. Because there is exactly the same number of red and black pockets on a roulette wheel, the probability of winning this bet is 50%. The payout is usually 2:1, which matches this probability perfectly.
Except it doesn’t. The zero pocket is green, giving a third possible outcome. This means that the likelihood of winning a red/black bet is actually 47.30% – assuming a single zero like in European Roulette. This shifts the odds in the casino’s favour by 2.70% – which is the European roulette house edge.
Given enough wheel spins and bets, this means that a casino will always receive 2.70% more than they pay out.
If you’ve ever wondered “Is roulette rigged?” – there’s your answer. Not exactly, because this advantage is explicitly stated, but the odds are tipped in the casino’s favour.
Now, American roulette is almost always worse than European roulette. Why? Because the two zero pockets mean that the house boasts an edge of 5.40%. This translates to 94.60% Return to Player, and a bigger RTP is always better.
Now apply what we’ve learned to a Triple Zero Roulette Wheel. Because of yet another zero, the Triple Zero Roulette house edge sits at 8.10%. It’s strictly worse and should be avoided always.
