Written by In this post we’ll take a break from the endless flow of information we usually send your way about the intricacies and arcane theories of various poker variants. There’s no roulette strategy here, no doubling up and absolutely no Fibonacci sequences.
So what are we going to write about in this article then? A quick glance at the title will of course provide you with the answer – we’re going to relate the background and rules of The Wheel of Fortune, also known as the Big Six Wheel. There are a couple of variations of The Wheel of Fortune, the first is the money wheel and is probably the most commonly spotted specimen. A wheel, similar to the one on the right, is segmented into a number of equally sized segments marked by a cash amount. The recurrence of the numbers is proportional to the value of the segment – for example the $1 prize will occur most often, providing odds of just less the 2:1 for a wager of $1. Segments with higher values will appear less often, the odds and the prize increasing proportionately. Usually a dealer will spin the wheel and a pointer will slow the rotation down by touching the edge of each segment. The segment the pointer stops on is the winner.
The second variation is based on the roll of three dice. There are 216 possible outcomes of rolling three dice and the wheel is marked into 216 segments – each featuring a picture of each outcome. Players pick one number and the win is based on the amount of times that number appears in the chosen segment. If the number appears once in the segment you win at 1:1, if it appears twice you win at 2:1 and three times – yes, you guessed it – 3:1.
There are also international variations but the differences are minor. The United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and the United States are all keen players.
Lastly it’s worth noting that, for the player, the house odds are some of the worst you can find in any casino. If you find a better edge than between 7% and 8% you’ll be doing well.
