En Prison rule in roulette
This article will explains how the En Prison rule works and impacts a game of roulette.
Since the En Prison rule first gained popularity on the French Riviera in the late 18th century, roulette has provided fast action with lots of bet types which all have different odds associated with them.
Over the years roulette has evolved, and today there are two forms of roulette that are common at most casinos. One is the common American form of the game that you’ll find in any North American casino, and the other is the older European version.
The common European roulette game often won’t include the en prison rule any more, with it usually only found at French roulette tables, although we have seen it in recent years in live venues in Barcelona.
The two games vary in a couple of ways, and in this article we’ll look at one rule that increases the odds for you to win money playing roulette.
How does the en prison rule work?
The European version has a rule that’s called en prison. This rule allows the player to recover some of their losses when the ball lands in the green zero space on the spinning wheel.
Players can opt to recover half their outside/even-odds bets if the zero hits. This rule does not apply to any other inside bet, regardless of the odds offered.
The outside bets do not offer a way to win for the player, only an inside bet on the green zero can pay if the ball lands on the zero. Since these outside bets cannot pay on the zero, the European version of roulette offers this as a way to lower the house edge, something North American roulette players don’t get.
Although it’s only the European version of the game that offers the en prison rule, it doesn’t mean that every European version will use the same rules or even include the en prison rule.
Some games offer a return of half, or their original bet to be held until the next spin. If the en prison bet is a winner the second time, all of it will be returned to the player. If it’s a loser the entire bet goes to the house.
Difference between la partage and en prison bets
The en prison rule is a variant of the la partage rule which re-pays the player one half of their outside bet if the ball lands in the zero space.
The difference between the two is the option to let the bet ride for another spin to decide the fate of the entire wager, instead of just an automatic return.
How to play en prison and la partage rules online?
La partage and en prison rules are rarely found at online casinos, and you will be struggling to find these roulette rule variants at all in live dealer format.
This is largely because both the en prison and la partage rules rules in roulette lower the house edge, giving the players a prop up, which means gambling sites, already with low profit margins, avoid games like this.
It’s not beyond the realms of possibility online casinos will eventually introduce a version of French Roulette, which will include the en prison rule, as a type of gimmick to attract new players, but we’re yet to see it.
What online roulette sites you can sign up at will largely be determined by your location and the laws you are living under. For instance, Australians are unable to play online roulette legally, while the entirety of the United Kingdom boasts regulated casino gambling.