The Five-Number Bet

The Five-Number Bet differs from the other "inside" bets you're going to make in that it pays off at worse odds than the others, and thus, the house edge is going to be greater with this particular bet. In the five-number bet, the chip is placed at the intersection of the zero (0), double zero (00), and the first 12 (or "first dozen") numbers on the roulette layout.

There is only one way to place the five-number bet and only one possible combination of numbers the five-number bet can cover - that is the zero (0), double zero (00), 1, 2 and 3. If any of those numbers come up, you are going to win. The chances of winning the five number bet are, naturally, 5 in 38, which translates to 13.16%. The payout the player receives on the five number bet is 6 to 1.

Let's take a look at the player's expectation for this wager, and pay attention, because this one's a little different:

Expectation (E) = [(% chance of winning) X (amount won)] + [(% chance of losing) X (-amount lost)]

E = [(5/38) X (6)] + [(33/38) X (-1)] = 30/38 + (-33/38) = -3/38 = -..0789 = -7.89%

As you can see, what makes this a particularly unattractive proposition is that the payout is less, relative to the probability of it happening. The odds are 6.6 to 1 against the player winning, but it pays only 6 to 1.

A lot of people will advise you to stay away from the Five-Number Bet because of that, but look - you are playing roulette not necessarily to get the best percentage bet every time, but because you want to enjoy yourself. If part of your enjoyment is having five numbers riding at any one time, then go for it.