For those who remember WSEX from the late 90's and early 2000's....

A must read....

https://www.si.com/nfl/2024/02/07/how-nfl-took-down-pioneers-online-betting-world-sports-exchange

Great read.  Thanks for the info.  

What an cruel set of circumstances!

The original wild wild west days of yesteryear,,,

@vanzack

 Thanks for posting this! I used to love that site back in the early 2000's. Was such a great place to wager.

I thrived on that in the 90¡¯s , then PokerStars,,, the only problem was Tony in Costa Rica,,, but karma took care of him !!!

I remember at 5Dimes when I would get an IM from Tony....  My heart would skip a beat.  It was like being sent to the principals office.

I have a screenshot of one of them from like 15 years ago..

Tony:  "So whats up with the big wager on XXXX"?
Me:    "I just like them"
Tony:  "You sure?  I dont want to see any steam following this"
Me:    "Tony, look at my history.  No issues"
Tony:   "I am always looking"

@vanzack

WSEX IS REAL NAME FOR THEM.

WSEX.COM  .

@vanzack

WSEX IS REAL NAME FOR THEM.

WSEX.COM  .

@vanzack

WSEX IS REAL NAME FOR THEM.

WSEX.COM  .

He owed me $8000, I only wanted to cash out 4k,,, he cut me off , told me my name was going on a list and I would get my money later in the month,,, then would call me names and hang up on me!! I had to get a bank letter saying I had an account ( I copied and pasted the letterhead and wrote it myself) , then later he wanted a copy of my drivers license,,, I got my 4k around 4 months later and lost the remaining money on a Monday Night game when the Dolphins took a knee on the one yard line!! 

WSEX was one of my 1st online books before I found betjamaica, The Greek, Heritage and BOOKMAKER    Shout out to Herman and Scotty 

I Remember when gambling was taboo for the NFL................................  Now casinos are built next to Stadiums -Heinz in Pittsburgh  share a parking lot, let alone professional teams in Vegas. How the times have changed........................... and not for the better

@vanzack

 The originator of live betting and had the wherewithal to offer contracts (aka stock market) to buy AND sell out of your position with 4 cents between the bid-ask.  Unlike today where you place a bet and are stuck with it (sure, you can put in another bet now if the live line moves and you have 2, 3, 4 or more bets going at the same time), the line stayed stagnant on your contracts (you could buy up to 10 if I remember correctly) and the bid-ask moved, so you might have bought at 27 and could sell during the game say at 82.  When the game ended it was either worth a 100 or 0 if you held till the end.

A great book and it all came crashing down when 60 Minutes did a story on them and the FEDS came crashing down.  Long Live WSEX!!!!  If there's a book out there that still does this type of wagering, I'd love to hear of it!

@vanzack

 I always wanted to ask ... is that profile picture YOU? 

@vanzack

 Let me rephrase that ...  is your profile picture YOU?

I'm pretty sure it's not, but ... just had to ask ... just in case.  hehehe. 

Nice 

That's him but from over 20 years ago.

Don't think so but I always see one of the Beastie Boys holding a cat when I focus on it. 

60 minutes was the nail in their coffin! 

As a small time bookie back then, barely out of high school in a medium sized NJ/NY organization¡­.that was tough to watch.   Our sites were just starting to mirror WSEX and it went from 98% phone action to 2% internet to about 50/50% and then poof it was gone and the group did keep some of the good stuff, but things went backwards until about the mid 2000s.   

https://people.com/crime/american-bookie-found-dead-after-being-kidnapped-costa-rica/

Yup and 5 dimes is the reason why I quit after it closes.  

I'm so glad too because I was having a gambling problem.  I mean I was winning and their cashing out is only $3k per transaction and the check came from a Canadian bank but I was miserable.  I would not have a life because I was glued to my phone and betting 24/7 as there are games one after another.  Live betting and all that so I was glued to my phone for digital scoring updates and finding live bets values.  Even when I was at parties n banquets, I would exclude myself just to play with my phone.  It was not a good habit and all.  The nail in the coffin was when my cards were slowly  hacked and I knew it all came from 5dimes.  

I came from sbr forum by the way.  

I think we all know the story.

@vanzack

 Those were the crazy days.....My first offshore was EZ Bet,  Dennis from detroit ran the place.    I think they are gone, then thegreek - who turned over their customer base to heritage.   Never dealt with WSEX - great article thanks for sharing.

@vanzack

 RE:#6.....utterly "tremendo"....memories!!!!