Apr
12
For roulette players, the two most famous progression betting systems they will come across will be the Martingale System and the Labouchere System. The alluring promise of any progression betting system is that you can create winning sessions despite winning less than 50% of the time. This means that you have a chance to beat the inherent house advantage even over a long gambling session. Progression betting systems manage to do this by manipulating bet sizes. If you were to keep your bet sizes constant, the longer you play the more likely the casino is to have won more bets than you. By changing your bet sizes, you can create wins that more than cover previous losses. The effect of this is that you can have a winning session despite only winning 20 or 30% of spins. Mathematically, with the house edge around 5%, you can expect to win 45% of the time. This is more than enough for a good progression betting strategy to give you a winning session.
Your standard martingale system is very simple, you simply double your previous bet following a loss. You continue doubling your bet sizes until you win. So if your previous bet was $5, then your next bet would be $10 following a loss. If you lost again then your next bet would be $20. If you won this $20 bet, then you would have a net gain of $5 despite only winning 1 out of 3 spins. This is in essence what the martingale system is all about. The labouchere system uses a line of numbers to determine your next bet. But the approach is similar in that you will be increasing bets following a loss and decreasing bets following a win.
Without getting bogged down in the mechanics of each progression betting system, each progression system is a little different and players should consider their own gambling style in choosing either their martingale or labouchere system.
First, both systems are inherently aggressive due to the nature of progression betting. So you should avoid any progression betting system if you are not comfortable with bankroll volatility and placing large amounts on a single spin. These systems are for the daring and if you find aggressive betting painful, then you should stick to more the more timid roulette strategies.
Second, the labouchere system is generally more patient than the martingale system. It takes longer to cover your losses using labouchere lines. While this is a disadvantage compared to the Martingale, where a single win tends to cover all previous losses, the labouchere system is less volatile. This tends to give the labouchere system a much longer survival rate and why it is the preferred system of serious roulette players. Experienced labouchere players are able to play marathon roulette sessions without fear but martingale players tend to get knocked out on the first serious streak. So if your prefer shorter hit and run style gambling sessions, the martingale will deliver quick profits and is much better suited to shorter sessions. If you want to play longer sessions, then you are better off mastering the labouchere system.
This leads to the third consideration, the labouchere system is more difficult to master than the martingale. There is no strictness to the labouchere system and a lot is left to personalize one’s own labouchere line and there is more subtlety to the system. With expert labouchere play involving, splitting of lines and blowing up numbers. Whereas, the martingale system is more like riding a raging bull, you just need to have the nerve to hold on. The martingale system is very simple and there is little to master.
Remember that there are endless variations to both the martingale and the labouchere system. Strategies to get around low betting caps and ways to adjust the volatility of each system. The most important point is that, you should find a system that makes your roulette sessions more fun and make sense to your own gambling style! You are more likely to have winning sessions when your having fun!
By: Lucky8
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