My family moved to Vegas when I was seven. I grew up about 1/2 mile from where the Mandalay Bay now stands. You don't grow up in Sin City without knowing everything there is about gambling. Believe me, I was playing poker and rolling dice long before any casino was going to let me through their doors legally, and I was betting football and college hoops through a neighborhood bookie many years prior to stepping foot in my first sportsbook.

My humble opinion: Being immersed in the gambling culture here in Las Vegas is crucial if you want to make a living betting on sports. The minute I turned 21, I started hanging out at the old Stardust sportsbook and that's where I got my greatest education from the seasoned gamblers and bookmakers, guys who were 25 to 50 years older than me. I listened and learned as they talked about spotting bad lines and how to handicap various factors into determining whether a number in football or basketball was distorted by public perception.

I took those lessons, learned them well, and then added another layer of knowledge thanks to something that totally escaped those old-school guys: the Internet. The world wide web allowed me to have eyes and ears at every football stadium and basketball courtside in the country. Beat-writers covering every scrimmage, every practice, every game, suddenly became my advance scouts.

I'm telling you straight-up: the Internet has revolutionized the sports handicapping industry. I spend at least 6-8 solid hours a day scouring teams' web sites and local newspapers for reports. It's the difference between winning and losing.

I understand you don't have time to spend 6-8 hours a day doing nothing but research in order to come up with a couple of money-making Best Bets, but that's okay because that's my job; that's what I'm here to do for you.

How did I come to be a charter member of this site? I was introduced to Al DeMarco in 2008 by the operator of a line service here in Vegas. I had been selling my picks online already for $9.95 daily; Al enthusiastically told me all about this site and it's industry-setting $4.99 starting point. I asked if there would be room for me and he asked in turn to monitor my picks for six months. Obviously Al liked what he saw - just like my clients had the previous six years - and with my arrival here I've closed my personal sports service to make this my exclusive Internet home going forward.