Keno was introduced in 200 BC by the Chinese army leader, Cheung Leung who used keno as a monetary resource for his failing forces. The city of Cheung was waging a war, and after some time seemed to be facing national shortage of food with the dramatic drop in supplies. Cheung Leung had to come up with a quick response for the financial disaster and to acquire revenue for his army. He therefore designed the game we now know as keno and it was a fantastic success.
Keno once was well-known as the White Pigeon Game, due to the fact that the winning numbers were sent out by pigeons from larger cities to the lesser towns. The lottery ‘Keno’ was brought to the USA in the 1800s by Chinese immigrants who migrated to the United States for jobs. In those times, Keno used one hundred and twenty numbers.
Today, Keno is typically played with eighty numbers in most of American brick and mortar casinos as well as net casinos. Keno is mainly loved today as a result of the laid back nature of playing the game and the basic reality that there are no skills needed to enjoy Keno. Despite the fact that the chances of getting a win are appalling, there is constantly the possibility that you will win quite big with very little gaming investment.
Keno is played with eighty numbers with twenty numbers drawn each round. Gamblers of Keno can choose from 2 to ten numbers and bet on them, whatever amount they want to. The payout of Keno is dependent on the wagers made and the matching of numbers.
Keno has grown in popularity in the United States since the close of the 19th century when the Chinese characters were replaced with more familiar, American numbers. Lotteries were not covered under the laws of gambling in the state of Nevada in Nineteen Thirty One. The casinos altered the name of the ‘Chinese lottery’ to ‘horse race keno’ employing the concept that the numbers are horses and you are looking for your horses to come in. When a law passed that taxed off track betting, casinos quickly changed the name to ‘Keno’.