Keno was created in two hundred BC by the Chinese army commander, Cheung Leung who utilized this game as a finance resource for his declining forces. The city of Cheung was at war, and after awhile of war time seemed to be facing country wide famine with the dramatic decrease in supplies. Cheung Leung had to come up with a fast response for the financial calamity and to acquire revenue for his forces. He therefore created the game we now know as keno and it was a wonderful success.
Keno used to be known as the White Pigeon Game, since the winning numbers were broadcast by pigeons from larger municipalities to the lesser towns. The lotto ‘Keno’ was brought to America in the 1800s by Chinese immigrants who headed to the US to work. In those times, Keno used one hundred and twenty numbers.
Today, Keno is generally wagered on with 80 numbers in almost all of the US land based casinos as well as net casinos. Keno is commonly played today as a result of the laid back nature of wagering the game and the basic reality that there are little expertise needed to enjoy Keno. Despite the reality that the odds of getting a win are terrible, there is always the hope that you might win quite big with very little gaming investment.
Keno is enjoyed with eighty numbers with twenty numbers picked each game. Enthusiasts of Keno can select from 2 to 10 numbers and wager on them, as much or as little as they are able to. The pay out of Keno is dependent on the bets made and the matching of numbers.
Keno grew in popularity in the United States near the end of the 1800’s when the Chinese letters were replaced with , American numbers. Lotteries weren’t covered under the legalization of gaming in the state of Nevada in 1931. 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 swiftly adjusted the name to ‘Keno’.