Mathematician beats casino

Gonzalo Garcia-Pelayo is a Spanish mathematician who has had a huge interest in gambling since childhood. In the man’s opinion, the key to unlocking roulette algorithms lies precisely in the plane of mathematical calculations. For many years Gonzalo was an inconspicuous employee of a recording studio and at the same time dreamed of conquering roulette. It has to be said – he succeeded. After numerous wins casino representatives declared cheeky mathematician cheater and filed a lawsuit. Litigation in the courts lasted as long as 10 years and ended in 2004. Who emerged victorious from this struggle? Read on in our article.

Gonzalo García-Pelayo studied science as a student. The student graduated in mathematics, but the man’s passion for science did not arise at all because of a passion for numbers. Gonzalo was quite a gambler, which explains his genuine interest in mathematics. For 20 years, the man had been planning a competition with a casino and believed he would win. After completing his studies at university, the future roulette conqueror took a job as a producer and director. For many years Gonzalo worked in this position, but the dream of fighting the casino does not leave. It was only after he was 40 that he decided to turn his dream into a reality and chose roulette for his mathematical studies.

A roulette win may at first glance look like a series of fortunate coincidences, as the winning ball lands in the correct cell of the spinning reel. The game is devoid of any human factor, but Gonzalo managed to find out that all the roulette games have their own algorithm. However, to do this mathematician had a long time to observe the work of a croupier in a casino in Madrid. During this period of observation Gonzalo kept a diary, in which he wrote down shots. He managed to record a total of 5,000 throws. His mathematical calculations suggested that the average number on the roulette wheel would roll around 135 times. However, Gonzalo found discrepancies between his observations and the mathematical calculations he had made. Some numbers fell out more often on the roulette wheel, while others fell out very rarely.

Interestingly, the first time, Gonzalo watched the roulette wheel on his own. However, casino security quickly discovered a strange man who was not betting, but only watching the game. The mathematician realised he was under suspicion from casino security, so he enlisted his own children in the observation… And Gonzalo had five of them! The five sons would help their father, taking shifts at the casino and tracking the roulette wheel as the ball moved. The boys would write down all the values in a notebook and then bring them to their father. Gonzalo meticulously put all the information into a computer. The roulette observations lasted for several months and from these results the mathematician formulated a unique statistic. He managed to figure out that there really are “lucky” and “unlucky” numbers in Madrid roulette. Thanks to this Gonzalo Garcia-Pelayo was able to develop his own strategy for the game.  And then – went to try his luck.

The accountant’s first win was a small one – just 600 euros. The next day the mathematician visited the casino again, and this time he managed to snatch a larger sum – several thousand euros. Confident Spaniard began to win consistently, but casino security did not immediately realize what the secret was. Soon Gonzalo was no longer allowed on the casino’s doorstep. But up to that point the cunning mathematician had managed to win hundreds of thousands of euros. However, the man was not at all upset that he became persona non grata in the gaming establishment of Madrid. He already had a scheme in place to conquer new horizons. The audacious gambler’s target was new gaming venues – in Las Vegas and Europe.

Spaniard Gonzalo’s unique casino winning strategy

Excellent mathematical ability combined with excellent observation allowed Gonzalo Garcia-Pelayo discover the main secret of Madrid roulette. In particular, he noticed that the roulette wheel reflected light irregularly as it spun. The glare helped the Spanish mathematician calculate the approximate inclination of the roulette wheel. Gonzalo counted the revolutions of the drum to detect unstable rotation. For example, a defect in the drum was indicated by a different number of revolutions to the right or left side. After obtaining the statistical data, the mathematician was able to identify the “lucky” and winning numbers.

It was not Gonzalo’s idea to beat the casino big time. There had been players before him. The first successful attempt to cheat the roulette was made by the grandfather of the famous musician Mick Jagger, Josef Jagger.  He, as an engineer in the cotton industry, guessed that the design of roulette installed in casinos simply can’t be perfect. Joseph was helped to test this theory by five friends who watched the working roulette machines in the casino. Yes, he did the wiser thing, unlike Gonzalo Garcia-Pelayo. In the end, Jagger managed to find as many as nine winning numbers.

However, casino management still noticed the manipulation of the cunning Josef. The roulette reels were moved from one place to another. Thanks to a phenomenal memory Jagger remembered the location of notches on the reel, and quickly figured out a trick casino staff. After that, management reversed the balance of the roulette wheel altogether, taking it apart completely and reassembling it. However, up to that point, Jagger had managed to snag a large windfall of $3 million. This money was spent on the purchase of real estate.

Winning at the casino and keeping your freedom

Spanish mathematician Gonzalo Garcia-Pelayo was probably inspired by the successful experience of American Jagger and decided to try his luck. Defrauded casinos uncovered the lucky gambler’s winning scheme and sued Gonzalo for $1.5 million in winnings. The lawsuit against Gonzalo lasted more than 10 years. Only in 2004 did the mathematician come out of the battle victorious. The Spanish court handed down a final verdict without right of appeal. The former sound engineer was not recognised as a fraud and all the money he had won remained with him. Together with his children, he set up an agency and became involved in gambling analytics and expert evaluation of virtual gambling establishments.

Modern roulettes are impossible to calculate and cheat. The reels, jumpers, balls and deflectors are of high quality, so the risk of defects in them is minimal.