Ask anyone who enjoys playing casino games whether poker or roulette is a better game and they most likely will give you a quick and definitive answer. However, personal preferences alone don’t make one game superior to another, so I decided to look into the issue a bit further, defining specific categories and staging a 3-round roulette vs. poker showdown to determine which is truly superior.
Round 1: Odds in the Short Run
Let’s examine a scenario in which you are attempting to double your winnings.
The odds of roulette are pretty straightforward based on the type of roulette game you are playing. So, for example, in European roulette the house advantage is 2.7% and you have a 48.65% chance of doubling your money per bet.
Calculating the exact odds of doubling your money in poker is a bit more complicated because every hand is different. For the sake of this example, we can assume that since we are trying to double our money, we will be going all-in before the flop. The odds of you blindly winning an all-in (and doubling up) against a single opponent in Texas Hold’em poker with any 2 random cards is 20%–25%, obviously far lower than the roulette odds.
Round 1 winner – Roulette
Round 2: Odds in the Long Run
In our first example, we were trying to double our money as quickly as possible, so we went all-in before seeing the flop. In this example, however, let’s assume we are talking about a skilled player, with a far better knowledge of the game of poker. The odds of doubling your money at roulette remain static – so still 47.3%. In poker, however, skilled players usually tend to win over the long run and are thus far more likely to eventually double their money. As a matter of fact, the odds of them doing this shoot up to well over 60%.
Round 2 winner – Poker
Round 3: Ease of Overall Gameplay
Playing roulette involves choosing a winning number, color, or sequence on the roulette board and having the wheel spin and land on the corresponding number/color you have chosen. It is incredibly easy to begin playing roulette.
In order to make the most money from your bets, however, you need to increase your skill by learning about all the different playing options available to you, such as reverse martingale betting.
Playing poker involves a complex set of rules in order to participate in the game on the most basic level. Becoming a skilled poker player often takes many years of hard work. Many people enjoy increasing their skill in the game and claim that it’s one of poker’s advantages over other casino games. However, in terms of ease of overall gameplay, roulette is definitely the winner, hands-down.
Round 3 winner – Roulette
Conclusion
After three rounds of showdown we’ve got poker with 1 win and roulette with 2. Undoubtedly, some people will disagree with our methodology and the specific barometers that we used to measure game superiority. Feel free to express your criticism or support below in the comment section.
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