Keno was first played in two hundred BC by the Chinese military commander, Cheung Leung who used keno as a financial resource for his failing forces. The metropolis of Cheung was at war, and after awhile of war time appeared to be looking at a national shortage of food with the dramatic decrease in supplies. Cheung Leung needed to develop a fast response for the financial adversity and to acquire revenue for his military. He, as it follows invented the game we now know as keno and it was a great success.
Keno used to be well-known as the White Pigeon Game, due to the fact that the winning numbers were delivered by pigeons from larger cities to the smaller towns. The lottery ‘Keno’ was brought to the United States in the 1800s by Chinese expatriates who came to the States to work. In those times, Keno was played with one hundred and twenty numbers.
Today, Keno is most often enjoyed with 80 numbers in just about all of American land based casinos as well as internet casinos. Keno is commonly played today as a result of the relaxed nature of wagering the game and the basic reality that there are little skills required to enjoy Keno. Despite the reality that the chances of winning are horrible, there is always the possibility that you will win quite large with very little gaming investment.
Keno is played with eighty numbers and 20 numbers are drawn each game. Enthusiasts of Keno can select from two to 10 numbers and gamble on them, as much or as little as they are able to. The pay out of Keno is according to the bets made and the roll out of matching numbers.
Keno grew in acceptance in the US near the end of the 1800’s when the Chinese letters were changed with more familiar, American numbers. Lottos weren’t covered under the laws of gaming in Nevada State in 1931. The casinos renamed the ‘Chinese lotto’ to ‘horse race keno’ utilizing the concept that the numbers are horses and you are wanting your horses to place. When the Nevada government passed a law that levied a tax on off track betting, Nevada casinos quickly adjusted the name to ‘Keno’.