Reason #5 why the Wizard likes Bovada:

Intelligent Bonuses

Many online casinos offer huge signup bonuses, but there’s a catch. Buried in the fine print is that play on the most popular games doesn’t count towards earning the bonus. It’s common for play on blackjack, baccarat, roulette, craps, and video poker to be excluded. In many cases, only slots count.

And that’s if you can even find the terms and conditions. Many casinos put their 100% bonus in big flaming letters but make you hunt all over their site to find the rules.

Bovada allows play on all games to count towards the wagering requirement. It’s that simple. Just no opposite betting. All casinos ought to be as easy as Bovada about this. The bonus offer itself is simple too: on your first deposit, they’ll give you an extra 10%. If you deposit $100, you’ll wind up with $110 in chips or tokens.

Finally, in the unlikely event that Bovada feels you’ve been abusing their bonuses they won’t seize your winnings like most other casinos will. In the worst case scenario they will politely tell you that they will not be offering you any future bonuses, but you are welcome to keep playing and keep everything you have made already.

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Keno

Last Update: Jan 27, 2012

Play this realistic version of Keno at Bovada for free.
No registration is required, just one click and you’re in the game.

Introduction

Keno is a simple game of luck involving picking numbers, like the lottery. In keno the player usually picks 1 to 15 numbers from 1 to 80. Then 20 numbers will be drawn from the same range. The more numbers the player picked that match the drawn numbers, the more the player wins.

There are two formats for playing keno: live and video. In live keno the player uses a crayon and paper to indicate his picks. Every few minutes numbers will be drawn live from a hopper filled with numbered ping pong balls. In video keno the player uses a wand to pick numbers on a screen and the machine picks the draw randomly. Live keno plays much slower, but the house edge is much higher than video keno.

Calculator

Click the image below for my keno calculator. Then choose your number of picks, put in the pay table, and you'll have all the odds instantly.

9-Spot Survey

In 2001 I did a comparitive study of pick-9 keno games in Las Vegas. The following table presents my results in order or return, from highest to lowest. Since I did this survey, keno has been on the decline, and many of these casinos took out their live keno games.

Las Vegas Live Keno Survey
CasinoReturn
Silverton 79.85%
Arizona Charlie's 75.13%
Frontier 74.83%
Jerry's Nugget 74.78%
Nevada Palace 74.62%
Orleans 74.39%
Gold Coast 74.39%
Sam's Town 74.28%
Las Vegas Club 72.82%
Rio 72.76%
Mirage 71.87%
Bellagio 71.87%
Eldorado (Henderson) 71.38%
Golden Nugget 71.38%
MGM Grand 71.13%
New York New York 71.13%
Primm Valley Resorts 70.86%
Hilton 70.80%
Fitzgeralds 70.80%
Western 70.80%
Sahara 70.80%
Western 70.35%
Luxor 70.23%
Circus Circus 70.23%
Main Street Station 70.12%
California 70.12%
Riviera 69.66%
Stardust 69.44%
Plaza 69.18%
San Remo 69.08%
Aladdin 68.52%
Fremont 68.52%
Four Queens 68.52%
Bally's 68.17%
Treasure Island 67.54%
Caesars Palace 67.54%
Station Casinos 66.54%
Palms 66.24%
Monte Carlo 65.26%

San Diego Video Keno Survey

Between November 30 and December 1, 2008, I sampled the pay table for 25-cent and $1 video keno pay tables at 11 casinos in San Diego County. Following are the results, sorted first from highest to lowest, and second by alphabetical order.

San Diego Video Keno Survey
25-Cents
Barona 94.90%
La Posta 94.90%
Golden Acorn 92.62%
Santa Ysabel 92.62%
Viejas 92.62%
Pechanga 92.31%
Pauma 92.31%
Sycuan 92.31%
Valley View 92.31%
Harrah's 84.17%
Pala 84.17%

San Diego Video Keno Survey — $1
Casino Return
Barona 94.90%
Viejas 94.90%
Sycuan 94.90%
Golden Acorn 92.62%
Pechanga 92.62%
Pauma 92.62%
Harrah's 88.29%
Pala 84.17%

The La Posta, Santa Ysabel, and Valley View are omitted from the $1 survey, because I couldn't find ordinary keno in that denomination.

Disclaimer: The Barona Casino hired me to perform surveys of San Diego casinos for blackjack, roulette, and craps. Research on other games, including video keno, I did at my own initiative.

Other Games Surveyed in San Diego

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