Having marked your ticket you now bring it to a dealer (also called a writer) at the front of the keno lounge. It's a bit like standing in line at a bank since the dealer positions look much like teller windows. Hand your ticket and money to the dealer.

He or she will make a copy of your ticket and give you the copy, retaining the original. Dealers don't use crayons to make copies: some keno lounges use brushes and india ink while others use computers to generate copies.

You are supposed to verify your copy before leaving the window because in case of a big win the house will verify that you actually marked those numbers on the original ticket you gave the dealer. They index and save the original tickets and will hunt through them if you catch a big winner. This is an anti-counterfeiting measure.

If you have a losing ticket for a game and you want to play the same ticket for the next game, you don't need to mark up another blank ticket. Just hand the losing ticket to the dealer along with the money and they will make you another copy. Actually this works for winning tickets, too. If you cash in a ticket that pays off, the dealer will probably ask "Want to play it again?" If you answer yes you'll get back a new ticket and your winnings, less the cost of the ticket for the next game.