Club Keno, the Michigan Lottery's first video game, sold more tickets than expected in its first week.
Playing nearly around the clock in 752 bars and restaurants, customers bought $2,113,344 in Club Keno tickets through early Tuesday, Lottery Commissioner Gary Peters said.
"We're very pleased with the launch," he said.
The Michigan Bureau of State Lottery had projected sales per terminal would average $2,000 in the first week starting Oct. 27. The actual figure: $2,810.
Club Keno and a new paper-ticket game called Pull Tabs are expected to add $50 million to state coffers. Last year, the lottery's $613.5 million profits supported K-12 public education.
About 20 more Club Keno video terminals are being installed in the state each day.
Some spots were in operation only a day or two of the first week.
"So in reality, we're doing much higher business than our forecast," Peters said.
Club Keno players have a chance to win up to $100,000 on a $1 bet every five minutes.
Winning numbers are displayed on a closed-circuit monitor.
Pull Tabs are similar to instant lottery tickets, but players tear off a tab instead of scratching the tickets to reveal symbols.
Lottery officials projected $300,000 in Pull Tabs sales last week but actually sold $832,080 worth.
"People are very interested in Club Keno," said Derek Campbell, bar manager at Bonnie's Place, where one of the three bar customers Tuesday afternoon was playing the video game.
"Even employees sit down after a shift and play a couple games," he said. "Nobody's profited."
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