"What a scumbag."
That's what I thought of the first guy who hit me up to put my picks online. He was an obese troll with a New York accent who ran a phone room operation.
I'm only 28-years old (as of 2010), but I've been around the block and in this business long enough to know guys like him were dinosaurs whose predatory ways and unscrupulous business tactics were something that I wanted no part of now or forever.
I got my own start in this business while in college. I had been gambling since I was in high school; even longer if you consider I started playing parlay cards regularly in 8th grade. My father gambled, his two brothers gambled, their father gambled; the apple didn't fall far from the tree.
I went to college, got my business degree with a minor in marketing, and gambled my way throughout. But in my sophomore year I decided to start selling my picks to friends and associates, first through a tipsheet I published and then via a subscription-based, voice-mail phone network.
I graduated in 2004, started working for a major retailer in their financial center, but never gave up my side business, continuing to grow my customer base annually through hard work and winning.
In 2008, I decided to leave the corporate world where I worked for others and venture out on my own. Friends and family thought I was crazy, but I had nearly 300 full-time customers and I wanted to make handicapping my full-time business.
Is it a performance-based business where you are judged on winning and losing? Absolutely, but I viewed no differently than any athlete should coming out of school. If I make it to the "pros," I would strike it rich and hit the big time. If I failed, I could always cash in my chips and return to the corporate world and put my business degree back to use.
Needless to say, I've never looked back. By the start of the 2009-10 football season I had over 550 full-time players, but I knew that I had to make my move online in order to service them more effectively and expand my following even further.
I had been researching a number of possible online destinations, and had been solicited by many, but I had certain criteria:
First, they could NOT have anything to do with offshore gambling sites; no links, no advertisements. I did not want to be associated with something like that where it would appear I was getting paid for winners AND losers. Plus, so many of those sites are in business not for selling picks, but for advertising the offshore sportbooks they throw clients too. Many of them get kickbacks, working on half-sheets. And when they're offering service in exchange for free money on deposits or for opening new accounts...well that's downright chilling.
Second, I wanted nothing to do with a site whose operators also ran a phone room operated by a bunch of scumbag salesmen whose sole purpose was to rape customers for every dime they had, often double-siding games for the benefit of always maintaining a 50% win ratio.
Third, I wanted an Internet home where I could sell my plays at an affordable price, providing substantial discounts for customers that make long-term commitments.
On all three counts, this site passed and it's why I chose it for my home.
I like two things more than anything else in this world: I work hard to make money via gambling, and I love enjoying the fruits of my hard labor. And that philosophy is why I posted the picture that you see of me at the top of this page. It was taken by friends at the penthouse suite I had in Vegas for my Super Bowl party after the Cardinals got me the easy cover against Pittsburgh two years ago. The blonde on my right is Megan, who I've been dating on and off for the past two years. The brunette on the left is her best friend, Janine. If ever there was a reward for having a great season and scoring a huge win it was cashing a winning ticket on Arizona and partying all night in Vegas with those two.
Work Hard, Play Hard. The athletes we gamble on do it. Why shouldn't we when we're winning?