What Are Pennsylvania Lottery Monitor Games?
Pennsylvania Lottery monitor games are fast-draw lottery games available at participating Pennsylvania Lottery retailers. Those retailers include various local bars and restaurants where players can wager on the games and watch the outcome on monitors.
The games themselves include the lottery-style gambling game Keno and computer simulated sporting events and wagering dubbed virtual sports. Keno draws and simulated sporting events are held every four to five minutes, seven days a week in PA.
Gov. Tom Wolf approved Pennsylvania Lottery monitor games in November 2017. Wolf signed a comprehensive gambling expansion bill into law that included approval for online lottery sales and various forms of online gambling as well.
The Pennsylvania Lottery uses a central gaming system provided by Scientific Games to run monitor games and pump put a feed of the draws and virtual sports to retailers across the state.
The Pennsylvania Lottery launched Keno on its monitor games system on May 1 , 2018.
Virtual sports launched in PA in the summer of 2018. In May 2018, Inspired Entertainment announced two of its virtual sports products will be the first to launch on the PA central gaming system under the name Xpress Sports by the Pennsylvania Lottery. The state currently offers Stock Car Racing and 1st Down Virtual Football.
Keno
Keno is a lottery-style gambling game offered at many casinos and several state lotteries throughout the country. The Pennsylvania Lottery launched Keno in May 2018.
Players choose a specified set of numbers from 1 to 80. PA’s central gaming system draws 20 random numbers and a Keno Multiplier number of 2, 3, 4, 5, or 10. Payouts are based on how many of the numbers selected by a player are among those chosen, the amount wagered, and any multiplier, if the Keno Multiplier is selected by the player.
In Pennsylvania, the minimum bet is $1 and players can choose from one to 10 numbers for each draw. Essentially, the more numbers a player matches, the more they will win.
Pennsylvania Lottery Keno draws are held every four minutes, seven days a week. Players can win up to $100,000 on each draw.
Keno tickets are available at participating Pennsylvania Lottery retailers. This includes various bars and restaurants specifically authorized to sell monitor game products. Players can watch the drawings on big-screen monitors at these locations. Drawings can also be viewed on the Keno page on the Pennsylvania Lottery website. Plus, an animated depiction of the drawings is available through the Pennsylvania Lottery mobile app.
Players must be 18 or older to buy Keno tickets.
How to play Keno in PA
Keno play slips are available at all Pennsylvania Lottery retail locations.
Slips are filled in by first selecting how many numbers a player wants to play, from 1 to 10. The player then picks the selected amount of numbers from 1 to 80. Players can also tick the Quick Picks box and opt for computer-selected numbers.
Next, the size of the wager, from $1 to $20, is chosen.
Players then have the option of selecting multiple drawings. They can choose from 1 to 20 consecutive drawings on the slip.
Players can also select the Keno Multiplier option. The Keno Multiplier is a randomly drawn number that multiplies all prize amounts by 2, 3, 4, 5, or 10 times. Selecting the Keno Multiplier option triples the cost of the ticket.
With the play slip complete, players then hand the slip to the lottery retailer and pay the required amount. In return, they will receive Keno tickets with the draw number and their numbers on it. It’s then just a matter of sitting back, watching the draw, and seeing what they’ve won.
The results are all posted on the Pennsylvania Lottery website and mobile app.
Players can claim prizes up to $2,500 at the same place they purchased the ticket. Winners with tickets worth more than that will have to contact the Pennsylvania Lottery offices to collect.
Virtual sports
Virtual sports are computer-simulated sporting events. People can wager on the simulated games and then watch a livestream of the events at Pennsylvania Lottery retailers offering monitor games.
The Pennsylvania Lottery says Virtual Sports launched under the name Xpress Sports by the Pennsylvania Lottery in summer 2018.
Virtual Sports combine elements of video games, sports betting, and slot machines.
How virtual sports work
Virtual sports races and games are computer simulations. Random number generators determine the outcome. The outcome of online casino games and most modern slot machines are determined the same way.
However, the outcomes are not completely random, with historical data affecting the odds and the performance of each participant.
Players make wagers on the games at lottery retailers, then watch the simulations on monitors. Payouts depend on the outcome, the amount wagered and the specific type of wager selected.
Similar games are currently available at a number of New Jersey online casino sites.
How to play Virtual Sports in PA
Games are held every four to five minutes, seven days a week.
Betting works similarly to the way it does on real sports in a traditional sportsbook. There will be a number of betting options for each game or race. The game also offers point spreads and odds based on historical data.
The games look as realistic as computer graphics used in movies and video games.
The games do not use real-world athletes. Numbers and names are all generic. However, Inspired Entertainment says it sometimes bases participants on real-world athletes and teams, using their historical data to help determine the outcome.
PA Lottery players don’t recognize the name of any of these participants. However, if they can determine who the participant is based on, they can possibly base wagers on their real-life statistics.