It's said that Cheung Leung's city was besieged, and supplies and money had run out. Imposing taxes on the population would have caused a revolt, so the ruler decided to create a lottery instead.
The game was similar to the one we play today, but it also had considerable differences. It was based on a famous Chinese poem that was used to teach children to and remember the one thousand Chinese characters needed for reading and writing.
The poem was written by Zhou Xingsi and none of its one thousand symbols is repeating itself. For the game, the emperor selected 250 symbols which were then cut down to 120. These were then divided into subdivisions consisting of 8 characters, and in order to win the game someone had to correctly guess a whole subdivision.
Whether or not this story is true is a much debated subject. Some say it's just a legend, others believe it's authentic, considering the fact that keno is indeed originating from China. The game was a popular pastime activity in the 18th and 19th century China where it was played under the name "Game of the White Pigeon", due to the fact that pigeons were used to send the keno game results to each Chinese Town.
Modern Keno
Keno was brought from China into the United States in the late 18th century. At first, it was only played by the Chinese sailors who immigrated into California due to the Gold Rush, but the easiness of the game made it quickly popular among US residents, as well.
Due to the strict gambling regulations in the state, it was mainly played underground where it went over considerable changes. The Chinese symbols were changed, and numbers were put in their place to make it easier to American citizens to understand it. It was also simplified and cut down to only 80 numbers.
The first modern rules were also established during this period. In a common game of keno, players had the chance to choose between 4 and 10 numbers (most common, but could be different) out of 80, and the person who organized the game had to draw out 20 random numbers.
Later keno became so famous it was introduced to the casinos of Nevada, but since lottery games were forbidden it ran under the name "Horse Race Keno". This was because casino operators disguised the game as a horse race (fictional, of course) and each number was represented by a fictional horse.
Online Keno
It was obvious that after the introduction of the internet and online casinos keno would also make its way to the web. Nowadays many online casinos offer this joyous lottery game and a large number of people like it, because it's fast, entertaining and offers enormous winnings.
Playing keno online is extremely easy and works under the same rules as a real keno game. Prices, on the other hand, are considerably lower, but the winnings can usually be several times higher than in a land based casino. This is why the game is hugely popular online.
Keno isn't a game with the best odds, but if you'd like to play for fun, then it will certainly entertain you. But even though the odds aren't the greatest you can still manage to win an enormous amount of money and maybe even a keno jackpot. All this is possible if you manage your bankroll well. Read out additional articles for guidance.