April 20, 2024
Keno Terminology List

Keno Terms

In this Article we Present to You an Extensive list of the Most Commonly Used Terminology in Keno!

Today, you can play keno both offline as well as online. If you are new to Keno, you would do well to know the different terms used in the game. What is an ‘all or nothing’? Or a ‘ball game’? What does someone mean when he uses the term ‘buy-in tournament’? This article provides a glossary of these and some other terms used in Keno.

The Most Important Keno Terms to Know

Keno: This is today’s version of an ancient Chinese lottery. You get to draw 20 numbers out of a total of 80 (nowadays the total is 120), and you win if you are able to correctly guess the numbers drawn.

All or Nothing: This is a term used in Keno to represent a ticket that pays only if you draw all the numbers picked, or if you draw none of the numbers picked.

Ball Game: This is the most common form of Keno nowadays. In this form of the game, plastic balls represent the numbers.

Blank: This is a term used to represent an unused Keno ticket.

Blower: The blower is part of the machine that is used to dispense the plastic balls used in Keno. With the blower, the game operator can force the balls into a tube, using air.

Buy-in Tournament: This is a type of Keno tournament where you have to pay a pre-determined fee upfront. Once you pay the fee, you are eligible to play in a specific number of games or play a set number of tickets. In a buy-in tournament, you get to keep any money you win.

Cage: The cage is no longer used in Keno games today. Basically, it was a wire cage used in the earlier days to hold Keno balls. Today, you mostly find plastic hoppers. The term ‘cage’ also denotes a specific area in a casino where only employees are allowed, and where you can find Keno workers.

Catch: This is a term used to denote a number that you have called in a Keno game.

Catch-all: This is a type of Keno game where you have to get all the numbers marked on your ticket. Another game is Catch-zero, where you must ensure you do not get any of the numbers that you have marked on your ticket.

Close: This is a term used to identify that period in time when the casino stops writing any more Keno tickets. The time period usually stretches from just prior to the draw till immediately after the draw.

Fractional Rate Ticket: This term is used to represent a ticket that you can play for a fraction of the standard rate.

High End Ticket: This term is used to refer to a Keno ticket that pays you more if you catch a high number of spots. However, if you catch a lower number of spots compared to the standard ticket, you win less or even no money.

High Roller Ticket: This is a Keno ticket whose minimum pricing is high.

House Edge: This term is used to represent the percentage of bets that the house, i.e. the casino, can hope to win over time. The standard house edge is 30%, though this number is not necessarily the same for all casinos.

Keno Glossary –  Summing Up

The above are some of the terms that you will encounter when you start playing Keno. You would do well to read up more about the large number of terms related to Keno before going ahead and trying your luck at the game. We have further glossary lists on our site so check them out!

Keno Winning Odds

Understanding Keno Odds

Before you start playing Keno, it is wise to know something about your chances – or odds – of winning.

Keno is pretty much a game of chance. And whilst you may win big, you should know how likely this is. So what are the odds of winning at keno?

Expected Keno Odds

The table on this page shows the percentage chances of any given keno result – that is the number of times each result is expected in every hundred keno games.

For example:

  • If you pick a 3 spot, the chances of catching all 3 numbers are 1% or 1 in 100…
  • If you pick a 4 spot, the chances of catching 3 of your keno numbers are 4%, or 4 in 100…
  • If you pick 15 numbers, the odds of getting all 15 are infinitesimal!

Of course, if you look at the schedule of any Keno game, you will soon see that the results that have a high chance of occurring have a low or zero payment attached. And those with a low probability of occurring attract the highest payouts and keno Jackpots.

The schedules for the best online Keno games are designed so that if you played long enough you should theoretically get back around 85-95% of your total stakes.

NUMBER OF SPOTS SELECTED
& CAUGHT
KENO ODDS
(% CHANCE OF THIS RESULT)

1-Spot
catch 0
catch 1

1-Spot
75%
25%
2-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
2-Spot
56%
38%
6%
3-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
3-Spot
42%
43%
14%
1%
4-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
4-Spot
31%
43%
21%
4%
0.3%
5-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
catch 5
5-Spot
23%
41%
27%
8%
1%
0.06%
6-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
catch 5
catch 6
6-Spot
17%
36%
31%
13%
3%
0.30%
0.01%
7-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
catch 5
catch 6
catch 7
7-Spot
12%
32%
33%
18%
5%
1%
0.07%
0.002%
8-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
catch 5
catch 6
catch 7
catch 8
8-Spot
9%
27%
33%
21%
8%
2%
0.2%
0.02%
0.0004%
9-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
catch 5
catch 6
catch 7
catch 8
catch 9
9-Spot
6%
22%
32%
25%
11%
3%
1%
0.06%
0.003%
0.0000007%
10-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
catch 5
catch 6
catch 7
catch 8
catch 9
catch 10
10-Spot
5%
18%
30%
27%
15%
5%
1%
0.2%
0.01%
0.0006%
0.0000001%
11-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
catch 5
catch 6
catch 7
catch 8
catch 9
catch 10
catch 11
11-Spot
3%
14%
27%
28%
18%
7%
2%
0.4%
0.04%
0.003%
0.0001%
0.00000002%
12-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
catch 5
catch 6
catch 7
catch 8
catch 9
catch 10
catch 11
catch 12
12-Spot
2%
11%
24%
28%
21%
10%
3%
0.7%
0.1%
0.01%
0.001%
0.0000002%
0.000000002%
13-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
catch 5
catch 6
catch 7
catch 8
catch 9
catch 10
catch 11
catch 12
catch 13
13-Spot
2%
9%
21%
27%
23%
13%
5%
1%
0.20%
0.03%
0.002%
0.0000009%
0.00000002%
0.0000000002%
14-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
catch 5
catch 6
catch 7
catch 8
catch 9
catch 10
catch 11
catch 12
catch 13
catch 14
14-Spot
1%
7%
18%
26%
24%
15%
7%
2%
0.40%
0.06%
0.006%
0.0004%
0.0000001%
0.000000003%
0.00000000003%
15-Spot
catch 0
catch 1
catch 2
catch 3
catch 4
catch 5
catch 6
catch 7
catch 8
catch 9
catch 10
catch 11
catch 12
catch 13
catch 14
catch 15
15-Spot
0.80%
5%
15%
24%
25%
18%
9%
3%
0.70%
0.10%
0.02%
0.001%
0.0000006%
0.00000002%
0.0000000004%
0.000000000002%

The best way to appreciate these odds, and how they are reflected in the payout schedules is to try a free game at one of our recommended keno sites or the free keno game on our site.

Keno Betting Odds

Keno Betting Odds

Keno is one game that is definitely fun to play, especially when one wins it big. It is also a very addicting game to get into. But in order to really be able to cash in on the game, you must know how to bet properly on the game. Here are some tips and tricks that you can use in filling your keno game cards.

One thing to remember when using these suggestions is that these are only meant to increase your chances in the game and should not be used as a long term strategy. Considering the probabilities associated with the game, no strategy can be really devised that can beat the game and give a long term winning streak to the player.

Use many betting combinations

Instead of trying to win big by going for the major combinations, you can play the smaller combinations. This way you can ensure that your bets will not be depleted immediately while slowly increasing your winnings.

You can further increase your chances on the small bets by playing many combinations. These combinations offer a wider variety of play that you can find useful in as many different ways. The different combinations that you can play are already shown in the side of the ticket, or in case of online keno, can be easily clicked on screen.

One combination that you can play is the “2/3 1/6” game, also called the way ticket. In here, you mark the appropriate box on then mark six numbers on the card. You the encircle an additional two groups of three numbers each. The bet on these combinations is $3 and you divide it evenly on the three combinations, a dollar for each one. This way you can increase your chance in the draw.

Another way that you can use to boost your odds is by using a king. A king is basically any number that is encircled alone in a card. This number can then be used on all the combinations that are then played on the card. This way, you can be assured of winning many combinations as long as these have the king.

How much to bet in Keno

As have been said before, it would be very unlikely to get the jackpot in one shot. So rather than trying to win it by placing several large bets, you can play smaller bets on the game. One easy way that you can increase your winnings is by playing progressive jackpot. In this play, the jackpot is increased after each draw as more people play.

One thing good about playing in progressive jackpots in keno is that the house edge actually decreases over time. This means that for the succeeding draws, you can gen higher and higher chances of winning. In some cases, the jackpots in some casinos have gotten so big that players can expect a hundred percent return on their bets.

For those who want to get even more cash from the game, it would be better to go casino hopping instead of sticking to one joint. Casinos offer differing pays on the game, so players can compare their tables and chose the ones with the highest returns. This way, you can be sure to get a good deal even with the same starting bet.

Keno Bets Guide

Special Bets in Keno

A Guide to the Most Common Special Keno Bets

Keno is a game of eighty numbers drawn at random from a lottery like tumbler machine. Almost every live casino offers Keno gambling to its patrons. The game is played via keno boards throughout the casino. A player marks a Keno ticket with a crayon and turns it in with his bet. The player gets back a similar ticket from the Keno runner or from the house teller that shows the numbers the player picked and the amount of the bet. This is proof of the bet and when it wins is used to collect on the ticket. That is the basic rules for the simple Keno bet.

The combination bet

There are many combinations of Keno bets that a player can play on one ticket. For example, a player could play an eight spot ticket and 4 two spot tickets on the same ticket. They could also play the four corners, which is simply the four numbers found in the corners of the printed ticket. Another combination could be the eight spot and each number played individually. The combinations are limited only by the imagination of the players.

Auto-betting in Keno

Many players when they go to dinner play a ticket, which repeats for the next five to eight games. In this way they do not miss a play while eating. Nothing would make a dinner lose its flavor faster than watch your eight spot come up while eating and not have a wager on the game.

Poker bet

The Keno runners can be found throughout the casino to take wagers from players who are gambling at another game like poker or craps or roulette. Poker room’s players seem to have a real fondness for Keno. They make their bet out of their stack and if they are winning at poker it seems like a free bet.

Horseracing Keno

The race book is another area of the casino that the Keno runners seem to get a lot of play. Serious horseplayers consider handicapping a skill rather than gambling and they take a small flyer playing a dollar Keno ticket for fun.

Fad tickets in Keno

One of the other popular plays is a five spot ticket with all of the three number combinations played along with the five spot total. Fad tickets come and go in Keno. Some have a decent rational behind their play and some just come up with a name the players like. Four corners is an example of a play with a name.

Top 10 Keno Tips to Win

Top 10 Keno Tips to Win More

10 Essential Keno Tips For Players Of Every Level

If you’re looking for Keno tips that will increase your chances for winning money at this popular casino game, I’m afraid you’re out of luck already. There are no strategies that can help you improve your odds of winning at Keno because all of the numbers are selected randomly so no number is ever more likely to come up than another number.

Tips for Keno should, therefore, be limited to such issues as money management. For those interested in the game, however, some of the more popular keno tips may be of interest.

  1. The number one rule for gambling, and the most important of all Keno tips is to never gamble with “dear” money; only gamble with “excess” money. In other words, never gamble with money that you will need now, or may need in the near future, to pay for your financial commitments and everyday living expenses.
  2. If you want good odds to win more than you wager, the best tip anyone can give you is to play almost any other casino game than Keno. The Keno game offers some of the worst odds in any casino, to the point that the game is virtually guaranteed to be, at best, a slow way to lose all of your money.
  3. If you want a better chance to win at Keno spend your time with an online game rather than a live casino game. Payouts at live casinos range from about 60% to 70%; probably the worst payout percentage in the house. Payout percentages at most online Keno games are significantly higher.
  4. If you’re a serious Keno player you should always compare various Keno sites before settling down to play. While most payouts and selection choices are similar, if not identical, it is possible to locate sites, including online sites, that offer better payouts or more play options in an effort to attract more players.
  5. One of the most popular Keno tips is to pick consecutive numbers, such as 28 and 29 or 33, 34 and 35. There is no rational justification for this strategy although a casual observance of actual drawn numbers may seem to somehow justify the logic.
  6. Another strategy frequently found among regular Keno players is to decide on a list of numbers and then play those same numbers continuously over a number of games. For some addicted players playing the same numbers may continue not just for hours but sometimes for days and weeks on end.
  7. Some players believe that one of the best Keno tips is to start playing numbers that haven’t come up recently in previous games. The theory here is that those numbers must soon start hitting in order to bring their occurrence up to expected levels over the long run.
  8. Other players choose numbers that have come up recently, apparently believing there may be something irregular about the selection process that actually favors those numbers.
  9. If you’re interested in playing Keno for a longer period of time select a large number of spots on the card. This way you’re more likely to win at least something on each card, even though you’ll still be losing money in the long run.
  10. If you’re looking for Keno tips that will help you try to win that once in a lifetime fortune you should also play more spots on each card. If you hit all of those many numbers the payoff can be astounding. But the odds of it happening are astronomical. For example, playing 14 spots your odds of hitting all 14 numbers are about 1 in 389 million.

So there you go, a comprehensive guide on how to win money in keno. Remember that the game is based on luck and the outcome of the game can not be predicted nor mathematically calculated. Play for fun!