Classic Betting Systems:
The Labouchere System
The Labouchere System also called the cancellation system in some texts, is another outside, even money betting system. It is thought to have originated from the Queen Victoria era, when her finance minister, named Labouchere, had a taste for gambling. To implement this system you must have pen and paper. Start with two or three numbers. Write them down. Your first bet is the sum of the first and last numbers of the series you wrote down. If you win, cross off the first and last numbers that you wrote down. If you lose, write the lost amount on the end of the series. Once all of the numbers are cancelled out, the series is over.
For example: Write down the numbers 1 - 2- -3
Your first bet will be the sum of the first and last numbers in the series.
Therefore your first bet is 4 units.
Now, you lost the first wager, so you add the 4 to the end of the series.
Now your number series looks like the following: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4
Your next bet will again be the sum of the first and last numbers, or 5 units.
This time you win. So, you cross off, or cancel, the 1 and 4.
This leaves the 2 and 3, so your next bet is the sum of the two numbers, or 5 again.
Unfortunately you lost again, so add the 5 to the end of the series.
It now looks like: 2 - 3 - 5, and your next wager is up to 7 units.
Luck comes your way and you win the 7 unit bet.
Now the series is down to one number, 3. So, you bet 3 and win.
Cross off the 3 and you have completed the Labouchere series.
How much did you win? Add your original numbers together and you have the number of units you won - 6.
That's how Labouchere is played. One word of caution: the bets can escalate if you lose several in a row, so be well funded. Second word of caution, don't be so aggressive that you start with a long series of numbers. A short series will be manageable, and hopefully the maximum wager will be within your range. My demonstration showed how a 1 - 2 - 3 series grew to a 7 unit bet with just a couple of losses.
Marten Jensen in Secrets of Winning Roulette, 2002, suggested you start with 1 - 1, 1 - 2, 1 - 1 - 1, or 1 - 2 - 2. More aggressive starting series could be 1 - 2 - 3, or 1 - 2 - 3 - 4.
The good thing about Labouchere is it will show a profit with more losses than wins as you cancel two numbers when you win, and only add one when you lose.
Reverse Labouchere is started just like Labouchere, with a starting series of numbers. This time, however, when you win you add the bet to the end of the series. When you lose, cross off the first and last numbers. This system is designed to escalate wins when a long series of wins occurs. Once all of the numbers are crossed off, the series is over and you will have lost the total of the series in units. You should be well capitalized as you will have more losses than wins and therefore be cancelling out your series quite often. If, however, you have a period of greater number of wins than losses, and your bets escalate, you will be riding a wave. You will have to decide when to get off and start a new series. Perhaps you could set a point at which you will stop the series and reset before you lose back to the house your good fortune.
You might try this on your computer first before you take it to the casino. Just for fun, I'm going to look at it here and see what happens to a series with an equal number of wins and losses.
I'll start with the 1 - 2 - 3 series I used above. If all goes well, I'll only lose 6 units.
My first bet is 4 units. I win, so I add 4 to the end.
Now my series is 1 - 2 - 3 - 4, so my next bet is 5 units.
I lose, so I cancel the 1 and 4, leaving the 2 - 3. My next bet is 5.
I won. I add this number to the 2 - 3, making my series 2 - 3 - 5.
I won again, so my bet (7) is added to the end of the line.
My series is 2 - 3 - 5 - 7, so my next bet is 9 units.
I lost the 9, so the 7 and 2 are cancelled out, leaving 3 - 5.
Next bet - 8. I am up 2 units right now. If I win the next bet, I'll be up ten units, but if I lose, I will be down 6 units as predicted. I lose, and am down 6 units as predicted. I should have quit while ahead. But if I had won the 8 units, that might have been a good place to restart. Even if I had lost the next series, 6 units, I would still be up by 2 units.
That's how Reverse Labouchere works. It requires more wins than losses, and that is a rare occurrence. I guess it all goes back to that old saying, "Quit while you are ahead."
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