Roulette players who bet and win big are often considered heroes. Those with the biggest wins have etched themselves in the game's history.
But placing big wagers isn't always a wise decision. In fact, some roulette legends have become famous for making downright stupid choices.
I am a gambling addict and just today I lost everything I have in gambling including the last cents in my pockets, I decided a few weeks ago to stop gambling and start new life working online so I asked my family again to send me some money for invest it in PPC campaigns, hosting, etc. Roulette RTP and house edge Every casino game can be characterized by the so-called return to player (RTP), which describes the percentage of each placed bet returned back to the player, statistically. If a game had an RTP of 100%, the chances of winning or losing would be the same. The reformed gambler, who wants to remain anonymous, told BirminghamLive last year how his life was in ruins after he lost thousands on roulette. He said how he had hidden his gambling secret from. Over 50% of players betting $4 on a specific number (Straight up) lost everything before enjoying a single winning game round, as these players lost 25 rounds in a row. When playing live roulette, this adds up to about 45 minutes of play time. I taught school during the day and worked in one of the big strip casinos at night for a number of years to save $$ to purchase my house. Many times people would come in with the 'plan' to win big in Las Vegas!
I'm going to discuss a few notable players who made dumb wagers. I'll also cover better strategies to use in place of these bad ones.
1 – Ashley Revell
Few great ideas surface after a long night of drinking. Britain's Ashley Revell is a perfect example of this fact.
Revell and his buddies were talking about roulette at the pub one night. They discussed how crazy it would be to bet everything they owned on a single roulette spin.
Most people forget these types of thoughts when they sober up the next day. But Revell somehow still thought that betting his life savings on roulette was a great idea.
He proposed this plan to his friends and family in 2004. The latter tried convincing him to drop this insane notion but to no avail.
Revell proceeded to sell all of his notable possessions, including a home, car, Rolex, and more. When the fire sale was finished, he'd accumulated $135,300.
He was able to recoup some of the money after signing a sponsorship deal with the English bookmaker Blue Square. He changed his legal name to Ashley 'Blue Square' Revell as part of the deal.
Even still, the young Brit was risking a lot of money on a random outcome. Revell never wavered, though, and set off to Las Vegas' Plaza Hotel to make his bet.
Adding to the drama, Sky One made his story into a mini-series called Double or Nothing. E! also added him to a special called THS Investigates: Vegas Winners & Losers.
With the stage set, Revell was now ready to make his wager. Interestingly enough, he still didn't know which bet he wanted to place.
Revell finally put $135k worth of chips on red in the red/black wager. The ball came to a rest on red 7, thus giving him a $270k payout.
I needn't go too far into the specifics of why this was such a dumb bet. First off, he was putting his life savings into a negative-expectation wager.
The casino holds a 5.26% house edge on an American roulette wheel. Revell got very lucky and overcame the odds to win.
Secondly, he concocted this idea with his drinking buddies. The fact that he went through with it afterward is even worse.
Revell at least tried to do something productive with his winnings. He started an online poker room called Poker UTD and website called iGaming Recruitment. Unfortunately for him, neither venture proved a long-term success.
2 – Jake Cody
Jake Cody is a professional poker player from the UK. He's had a lot of success on the felt, beginning with when he won the 2010 EPT Deauville Main Event along with €857,000.
He's since gone on to win over $4.5 million in live tournaments. These results are impressive when considering that his poker career began with a meager $10 online deposit.
Cody has become successful by playing up to 12 hours per day, studying strategy, and discussing hands with fellow pros. Therefore, he's a pretty smart player.
But Cody wasn't so smart after a victory in the 2018 partypoker UK Championships £2,200 High Roller.
He earned a $60,000 payout for his win. But rather than adding the money to his bankroll, Cody made the crazy decision to bet the entire amount on a single roulette spin. Déjà vu?
This wager is the same type of all-or-nothing bet that Revell made. However, I'll cut Cody some slack because at least he didn't put his entire net worth on the table.
The idea came from one of his friends. Word got around the Nottingham's Dusk Till Dawn casino, where Cody was relishing his poker victory.
He didn't truly consider putting his tournament prize into play at first. However, he relented after several people asking him about the bet.
The buzz surrounding the wager grew so loud in the room that the casino's owner, Rob Yong, decided to spin the wheel himself.
Cody bet on black and watched intently as Yong spun the wheel. The ball quickly landed on a black space and doubled Cody's money.
The entire event was caught on a number of smartphones. It later became a big news story.
Of course, nobody was talking about how dumb it is to bet an entire $60k poker prize on a lone roulette wager. Instead, news outlets celebrated him like a hero.
Hopefully, no one took this event too seriously. Even for a wealthy poker player, betting this much on a roulette spin is nuts.
The good news is that Cody realized it. He said that he normally gambles with an edge, but got caught up in the moment. He also noted that this was a one-off event that won't happen again.
3 – Charlie Wells
Unlike the other gamblers on this list, Charlie Wells didn't risk an exorbitant amount of money on one spin. Instead, he made a series of stupid decisions that not only left him broke but also imprisoned.
Wells' story began in the latter part of the nineteenth century. He was a British conman who used various means to bilk people out of money.
One of his most-notable schemes involved cobbling together £4,000 in investments for a musical jump rope. But rather than work on the proposed invention, he took the money to Monte Carlo for a gambling excursion.
Wells could've easily lost the entire amount when considering the house edge. Instead, he went on what may be the luckiest gambling run of all time.
Wells 'broke the bank' at several roulette tables. Breaking the bank refers to winning every chip available at a certain table.
By the end of his trip, Wells had accumulated over 1 million francs. He returned to Britain as a very wealthy man.
However, he wasn't quite satisfied yet. Wells decided to return to Monte Carlo and try his luck again.
The hot streak continued as he netted another 1 million francs. Upon going back to England this time, he was a celebrity.
Wells became the subject of high-profile interviews. He boasted about his infallible roulette strategy and refused to reveal his 'secret.'
In reality, there was no secret. Wells was just trying different betting strategies and getting lucky each time.
He proved so by doing the unthinkable and visiting Monte Carlo yet again. This third time would prove fateful as he lost everything that he'd previously won.
Besides losing his fortune, Wells had conned more people with another invention idea before leaving. He was promptly thrown in prison for years upon returning home. Wells proved that it's best not to push your luck too many times.
What Are More Appropriate Roulette Strategies?
All-or-nothing bets and pushing your luck obviously aren't great roulette strategies. You'll instead want to consider the following advice in order to boost your odds.
Flat Betting
You don't really need a fancy strategy to win in roulette. In fact, you're better off avoiding all of the gambling systems that create a false sense of reality.
Flat betting is just as good as any specific wagering strategy. It involves placing the same-sized bets in every round. For example, you may place $10 on even-money wagers for each spin.
Rather than putting everything you have into a single bet, like Cody or Revell, you spread your gambling out over the night.
The downside of flat betting is that it's not as exciting as using a gambling system. You merely place the same wagers every time and let fate do the rest.
Contrast this to the Labouchere, where your bets are governed by a string of numbers. This system adds more depth to the roulette experience.
Weighing the pros and cons, flat gambling is still the way to go if you want more enjoyment out of your funds. It's not as wild of a strategy as some others use in this game.
Hunt for the Best Roulette Games
Roulette doesn't allow for much maneuvering regarding strategy. The only thing you can do to lower the house edge is to choose the right games.
Again, the American wheel features a 5.26% house advantage. This is the worst that it gets outside of obscure roulette variations.
The European wheel has a 2.70% house edge. It only has one house-friendly pocket (zero), instead of two like American roulette (zero and double zero).
French roulette is played on a European wheel with the la partage rule. The latter refers to getting half back on even-money bets that lose when the ball lands on zero.
The French version has a 1.35% house edge, which is the best in roulette. However, you'll have extreme difficulties finding it in land-based casinos.
You may have to head to an online casino to find this game. Realtime Gaming (RTG) casinos are examples of gaming sites where you can enjoy French roulette.
Play Online Roulette and Take Advantage of Bonuses
Almost every online casino features European wheels. As mentioned above, some even offer French roulette.
Internet casinos are great for finding the best roulette games. You won't have to struggle to enjoy either a 1.35% or 2.70% house edge.
Internet casinos are also nice because they don't require any travel. Instead, you just pick up your smartphone or sit down to the PC and begin playing.
Finally, online roulette offers deposit bonuses that are, in many cases, better than land-based casino comps. Some of these bonuses are worth hundreds of dollars. You just need to keep an eye on casino promotions to take advantage of these deals.
Conclusion
As you can see, I don't personally recommend complicated strategies when playing roulette. Your best chance to win is to simply find good games and cash in on bonuses and VIP rewards.
You might vary your strategy every once in a while for something different. But whatever you do, don't follow the paths of the gamblers covered above.
Revell is the most-idiotic roulette player of all time. He pawned off everything he owned just for a chance at gambling glory.
The worst aspect is that he risked absolutely everything for a bet that has a 47.37% chance of doubling his money. Thankfully for Revell, the roulette gods shined upon him that day.
Jake Cody pulled the same stunt after winning a poker tournament. Pressured by friends and other casino patrons, Cody caved and placed his entire $60k on black.
At least in this case, he was dealing with the more-favorable European wheel. But he still needed to get somewhat lucky to win.
Charles Wells was a moron in a number of ways. Most glaringly, he thought that he could just continue having seven-figure roulette runs in Monte Carlo.
Not satisfied with his first two wins of 1 million francs, Wells went back one more time and lost everything. His illegal schemes unraveled around the same time, and he spent most of his remaining years in prison.
All three of these gamblers pulled off extraordinary feats. However, they should be chastised for their decisions — not celebrated.
Many gamblers strive just to win meager profits. But a small percentage of players have actually managed to become rich through gambling.
The biggest winners often have the perfect mix of talent, fearlessness, and bankroll management. Unfortunately, some big winners are lacking in the latter category.
These same players have won and lost fortunes due to their inability to handle money and/or walk away. The following 7 gamblers serve as cautionary tales for knowing when to quit.
1 – Stu Ungar
Stu Ungar is best known for winning three WSOP Main Event titles. He took down this prestigious tournament in 1980, 1981, and 1997. The latter title earned him the nickname 'The Comeback Kid.'
However, Ungar was proficient in more than just poker. He first became a professional gambler through gin rummy.
After standing out in the New York gin rummy scene, Ungar travelled to Las Vegas in search of action. He dominated the competition so badly that nobody would play him anymore.
Ungar was also extremely good at blackjack. He was so good, in fact, that he could count a six-deck shoe and know what the final card was.
While Ungar was excellent at various forms of gambling, he did poorly with sports betting. He also developed a bad cocaine habit that would fester throughout the years.
The combination of sports betting and coke led to Ungar losing everything he made on the gambling tables. But he still experienced a shining moment after winning the 1997 WSOP Main Event.
Ungar split the $1 million prize with his backer, Billy Baxter. Sadly, he blew his $500,000 share on drugs and sports gambling.
Just a few months later, he died in a seedy motel of a heart attack. The heart attack was the result of years' of cocaine usage.
2 – Erick Lindgren
Erick Lindgren was one of the biggest beneficiaries of the poker boom (2003-2006). He won multiple WSOP gold bracelets and World Poker Tour titles at the height of poker mania.
'E-Dog' also landed a sponsorship deal with Full Tilt Poker that paid him $300,000 per month. Lindgren used his wealth to bet on sports and fantasy sports.
The latter caused his sports gambling problem to surface in 2012. Fellow gamblers began complaining that Lindgren failed to cover a $100,000 buy-in into a private fantasy league.
Soon, others came forward with stories about the two-time WSOP champ owing them money. He eventually declared bankruptcy after realizing that he had no chance to cover some $12 million worth of debt.
He owed $3.8 million in back taxes to the IRS. Lindgren also owed fellow gamblers, including poker pro Andy Bloch, an estimated $6.1 million.
He's since gone into gambling rehab multiple times and continues to play poker. But Lindgren will never be able to pay all the people whom he owes money. Of course, bankruptcy court probably took care of most of this debt for him.
3 – Terrance Watanabe
Unlike many other gamblers on this list, Terrance Watanabe has never been a professional. Instead, he's a whale who formerly ran Oriental Trading Co.
Watanabe took over the family business in 1977 and helped it become a prominent brand. The Japanese-American businessman sold his stake in Oriental Trading in 2000 and retired a wealthy man.
He set out to be a great philanthropist in his retirement. However, he spent far more time in Vegas casinos.
Watanabe was the biggest fish in the casino and would play everything from keno to slot machines. He lost big playing these games and others.
Of course, Vegas was more than willing to offer him generous comps. Caesars, for example, created a special 'Chairman' VIP level just for Watanabe.
The CEO would proceed to lose over $200 million through gambling alone. He eventually sued Caesars Entertainment in an effort to avoid paying up on a $14 million debt. The two sides settled out of court.
4 – Ryazan
'Ryazan' became one of the most-famous daily fantasy sports (DFS) pros in the mid-2000s. He won a fortune through football and other games in 2015.
Feeling good about his skills, Ryazan began challenging other noted pros like Martin 'Papagates' Crowley and Saahil Sud to matches.
In fact, he used credit cards to fund his initial bankroll. Ryazan spent much of his 2015 fortune and used credit cards to reload his account. Casino moncton tickets shows.
The result was mounting credit card interest and a diminishing bankroll. His career took a downswing in 2016 that left him unable to cover the massive taxes on his 2015 earnings.
5 – Charles Wells
Charles Wells is similar to Terrance Watanabe in that he didn't become famous for being a professional gambler. In fact, he was a conman long before his gambling ventures came to light in the 1890s.
The Englishman funded his initial gambling bankroll via a phony musical jump rope. He duped investors into giving him a collective £4,000.
Wells took the money and headed to Monte Carlo. Here, he played roulette using the Martingale system and got lucky enough to break the bank (win every chip at a table) multiple times. By the time the trip was over, Wells had earned 1 million francs.
He went back to Monte Carlo shortly after the first big win. He did even better this time, breaking the bank 17 times.
Wells became a celebrity upon returning to Britain. He even toyed with the press that he had a secret roulette strategy.
This notion was just another con. Wells simply got lucky while using an aggressive betting strategy.
The luck would finally run out when he returned to Monte Carlo for a third time. He lost everything and returned to Britain penniless.
As if this wasn't bad enough, Wells was also arrested for fraud. He spent the rest of his life in and out of prison.
6 – Harry Findlay
A professional sports bettor, Harry Findlay has won millions of pounds through different sports and horse racing. He's also become a celebrity in the UK due to his outspoken ways.
Findlay started drinking his own Kool-Aid in 2007. He placed a £2.5 million bet on New Zealand beating France in the Rugby World Cup.
Findlay was so sure of a win that he held a big party at the stadium. His huge bet looked like it would pay off when New Zealand led 13-3 at halftime.
Despite the big lead, Findlay hedged with a relatively small bet on France making a comeback. This wager promised to pay £600,000 if the French pulled off the miracle.
They indeed did so and dealt Findlay a massive lost. He at least salvaged £600k thanks to his halftime hedge.
This was just the beginning as Findlay continued to lose more bets over the years. He also poured money into saving Coventry Stadium's greyhound racing program only to get burned.
Findlay is now worth far less than he used to be. He's still a successful horse bettor but not to the same extend as previously.
Lost Everything Roulette Games
7 – Archie Karas
No story beats Archie Karas' fall from gambling grace. He managed to pull off the greatest gambling run in history only to lose everything.
Karas' tale began in Los Angeles where he was down to his last $50. Rather than saving up money to reload, he headed to Las Vegas in 1992.
Once here, he borrowed $10,000 from a friend and won enough to build a decent bankroll. Karas proceeded to win millions of dollars through a combination of pool and poker.
By the time he was worth $17 million, nobody would play Karas in pool or poker. He resorted to playing high-stakes craps at Binion's Gambling hall.
In 1995, Karas switched to baccarat and lost $11 million. He returned to the craps tables only to lose an additional $18 million.
Following a brief visit back to his native country of Greece, Karas began playing baccarat, craps, and poker in Vegas. All three propelled his losses until he was left with nothing.
Karas has since gone on other large runs only to lose the money. He was arrested in 2013 for marking cards at a San Diego casino.
Conclusion
All the gamblers on this list have had to think ‘what if' when reflecting back on their careers. Each of these players was up big at some point and lost everything.
Ungar is arguably the best all-around gambler ever. But sports betting and cocaine proved to be powerful addictions that he couldn't overcome.
Erick Lindgren once appeared set for life thanks to his poker winnings and Full Tilt sponsorship. But like Ungar, he couldn't resist betting big on sports — much to his detriment.
Lost Everything Roulette Game
Terrance Watanabe built Oriental Trading into a well-known international company. He cashed out in 2000 only to lose over $200 million of his fortune to Vegas casinos.
Ryazan was one of the earliest success stories in DFS. However, his good fortune took a downturn when mounting credit card debt and bad bankroll management caused him to go broke.
Lost Everything Roulette Meaning
Charles Wells was a nineteenth century conman who got extremely lucky playing roulette. He pushed his luck too many times and lost everything.
Harry Findlay won millions of pounds through sports gambling. But big bets and a failed bid to help UK greyhound racing cost him his fortune.
Finally, Archie Karas won $40 million after starting with just $50. He couldn't quit at the top, though, and ended up losing the entire amount.
You may never win as big as any of these gamblers. But if you do, heed their stories so that you can quit with some of your profits.
