Today, it can be hard to know just how much trust to put in these stories but there is a fair amount of evidence to suggest that Leung was heavily involved in the creation of Keno as he used the game to generate revenue for his dynasty. He was with dire need of funds with which to conquer his enemies, but unfortunately his subjects did not favour violence and therefore did want to contribute to his war fund.
The story goes that Leung created the game of Keno as a way to encourage his people to indirectly fund his expansion efforts – a ploy which turned out to be hugely successful.
The game was brought to the Americas by Chinese immigrants who came to work on the railroads around San Fransisco around the middle of the nineteenth century. With the size of the game being reduced from the original 90 numbers to 80, the game became hugely popular.
Unfortunately, the Americas had a strict anti-gambling law in place at the time which made wagering of any kind illegal. Keno was seen as a game of chance due to it being known as “Chinese Lottery” and so it became difficult for the public to play the game legally.
To get around this issue, it was decided that the name of the game had to be changed. What had been known as the “Chinese Lottery” became “Horse Race Keno” with the numbers supposedly representing horses in a particular race. Players would then chose which “horses” they believe would take top spots, even though they had no interest in horse racing at all.
This practice still goes on today, with each round of Keno generally being referred to as a “race” by those casinos or lounges who run Keno games.
When the anti-gambling law finally lifted, Keno games still found themselves being strictly regulated. In 1963 the highest payout for a Keno game was capped at $25,000 in Nevada. That limit was raised in 1979 to $50,000 payout and in 1989, the Nevada Gaming Commission finally lifted all limits on Keno prize payouts, which has paved the way for the huge multi-million dollar prizes that we see in Keno Casinos around the world an on the internet.
As the game spread across the country, the original Chinese symbols were gradually replaced with numbers to allow the new American players to pick up the game more easily.
Despite gambling not becoming legal until 1931, the game of Keno continued to thrive largely due to the fact that it was considered a lottery game and was therefore exempt from the tight gambling regulations.