Dear Mark, I have a system in roulette where I play all the odd black numbers and if I lose I follow it by playing all the red even numbers. The dealer took note of how I was betting so he knew my style of play. While betting my odd black numbers, I placed $2 on 17 black as the ball was about to drop. Suddenly the dealer reached for my money and handed it back to me. As you probably guessed, it came up 17 black. To say the very least I was extremely upset and demanded to be paid. The dealer said he couldn't pay me because he had already called "no more betting" before I put my bet on 17 black. The pit boss came over and agreed with the dealer's decision. Even though the ball did not land in a slot yet, and the dealer probably knew my style of play, shouldn't I still have been paid? Tom D.

Your question reminds me of the roulette player who sent home this telegram: "System working well-send more money."

As a rule, Tom, the casino wants the dealer to wait to the final "reasonable" moment before he barks "no more bets." The house wants to get as many wagers per decision as possible because they hold a hefty 5.26% advantage over the player on roulette. The long and short of it, Tom, is that every casino has its own set of guidelines it wants its dealers to follow. Additionally, every experienced roulette dealer has his own sense of timing on when to halt wagering. In this case, Tom, I side with the dealer (casino). The simple solution is to get your bets in early. Better yet, how about finding a new game that does not have such a precipitous house edge? All you need now is a new system.

Dear Mark, My friend believes that all roulette tables operate on streaks and you should only wager on numbers that have recently appeared. I believe, and I am sure you will concur, that he is full of it. I could use some help convincing my friend. Steve B.

A streak is nothing more than a backward glimpse at probability and should not be taken into consideration in most, if not all, gaming situations. Roulette wheels, Steve, do not operate with artificial intelligence nor do they have any way of remembering which past numbers have hit. Each spin is an independent event that is not controlled by past spins. Your friend's theory has zero merit.

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Dear Mark, If black appeared six times in a row on a roulette table, which way should I wager on the seventh spin, black or red? Jim D.

Many self-proclaimed experts believe they can find trends in roulette by watching the wheel. For that reason, over the years I've facetiously asked them the following question: Black has appeared on a non-biased roulette wheel 30 straight times. Which way should you place your next bet? Would you a) bet black because of the established streak, B) bet red because it's way overdue or C) not wager.

Well, Jim, the first two answers are right as well as wrong. No amount of past history on a random non-biased wheel guarantees the outcome of the next spin. Each spin is an independent event, and the law of averages does not apply to any one desultory spin. But Deal Me In readers know the answer I'm looking for is C. They know that over the long run their losses will be 5.26%. This casino edge is a tad bit too high for the readership of this column.

Dear Mark, My friend believes that all roulette tables operate on streaks and you should only wager on numbers that have recently appeared. I believe, and I am sure you will concur, that he is full of it. I could use some help convincing my friend. Steve B.

A streak is nothing more than a backward glimpse at probability and should not be taken into consideration in most, if not all, gaming situations. Roulette wheels, Steve, do not operate with artificial intelligence nor do they have any way of remembering which past numbers have hit. Each spin is an independent event that is not controlled by past spins. Your friend's theory has zero merit.