Keno Terms
There are many keno terms to learn before you begin to play. It is not as complicated as it seems, so read on to have some basic terminology explained.
It is very important to understand the terminology used for a game before you begin to play it. Keno is an easy game to understand, but if you do not know the basic keno terms, you may feel a bit lost.
What is Keno?
You are probably familiar with lotteries. If you are, you will have some understanding of what keno is. Keno is a form of lottery game. You will mark off the numbers you choose on a 'keno ticket', and then the 'keno caller' will draw the keno balls to determine if anyone has won the game. There are a lot of keno terms to learn regarding the equipment used, and more importantly to the player, the keno tickets themselves.
Keno Number Selection Equipment
In land-based casinos, more often than not, random numbers are selected mechanically. One of the ways that this is done is by a 'blower'. A blower is a bubble made of Plexiglas which has a tube, through which the keno balls are blown. Each ball has a number on it. Another mechanical way to select the balls is by using a 'cage'. This is a rotating wire cage which holds the keno number balls. The balls fall out of the cage one at a time.
It is also possible to play video keno either online, or in casinos. Video keno is played without physical keno tickets, and without actual balls. The numbers are generated by a computer, using an RNG, a 'Random Number Generator'. The computer's mouse is used to select the numbers you have chosen for play. The 'payouts '(the money that you win) are calculated automatically by the computer.
Keno Tickets
The numbers on a 'keno card' or ticket are arranged in a square pattern of eight rows of ten numbers each. Getting to know the keno terms for the different tickets or cards available will help you to understand how to place your bets.
A keno ticket that has not yet been used in a game is called a 'blank'. It is possible to get a 'multi-game keno ticket', which is a keno ticket that can be used for multiple keno games, possibly over a long time period. Multi-game tickets could be used for hundreds of games.
An 'edge ticket' is a ticket where all the selected numbers are on the edge of the ticket. An 'exacta' ticket is used for two games. There are sometimes special bonuses when using exacta tickets.
A 'free play ticket' allows the player to decide whether they would like to play again, instead of receiving their winnings.
If you do not want to pick the numbers yourself, you can use a 'quick pick ticket'. The numbers on these tickets are chosen randomly by the casino's computer.
A 'spot' is any number that is chosen by a player on their ticket.
Bets can also be placed on a 'top-bottom ticket'. The player has to bet on either the top 40 numbers on the card, or the bottom 40 numbers. The payout will depend on how many numbers are hit on the chosen half of the card but is generally higher than payouts where the entire card is used.
A 'way ticket' is the most flexible ticket. You can place many different bets, in various combinations or groups of numbers. It is called a way ticket because of the many different ways in which a player can win.