Last updated: 12-22-2011
Bovada.LV : The new kid on the block gets taken for a ride.
I've been toying with the new kid in the online sportsbook neighborhood, Bovada.lv, and I have to say I'm impressed. I thought I'd really be able to muscle these guys, but they're no spring chickens. It's plain that they've been doing this for quite some time.
Why I think they're pros: the website is amazing. In terms of the look and feel of the whole sports betting experience I have to say that Bovada's is really tough to beat. The interface is extremely slick, and the betting software is flawless, as far as my limited testing can tell. One place they really stand out is in their deposit/withdrawal options. It's tough to fund a sportsbook account these days, but Bovada's got a few really solid payment methods.
I've only had one week to really give these kids a workout, but in that short time I'd say I've come to be a bit of a believer. I'll definitely be continuing to place bets at Bovada sportsbook and casino, and if they continue to please like they've begun to, I'll be betting there for a long time to come.
A novel sports betting site is kinda like a new girlfriend to watch football with, right? As long as she's pretty and nice and she doesn't take your money it's a ton of fun to laze about and watch the games all weekend. Until it's not. :)
That's a perfect analogy for me and my accounts with online sportsbooks. I open an account at a new book, I bet a few games for a few weeks, I win some, I lose some, I have a good time, and then I get bored. Maybe I'm a bit of a commitment-phobe, sure, I'll be the second to admit it, but I'm not beating myself up about it.
This is a video of my hero Billy Walters, the Best Sports Bettor Alive.
All this means I'm constantly on the lookout for good new betting sites. The problem with my addiction to novelty however is that I'm constantly exposing myself to new sites without any track record or history. This makes it quite a bit harder to trust that this new place is legit or run by the mob as a way to jilt me out of my scratch.
It goes without saying I've been scorched a few times. I figured after a while that I ought to find something useful to do with experiences, so that my losses aren't a complete waste. I'm not trying to be a chump as a public service, but I may as well put this info out there so that I can at least let anybody else who does even a morsel of homework before they sink some dough into a new book might at least read my posts and get an idea of what kind of water they're jumping into.
So this site is where I'll be posting the results of my cherry-popping runs at various virgin sports betting sites. If you've got experiences you'd like to share I'd love to hear from you. This is all about getting the word out and nipping the ripoffs in the bud so let's put some voices together to make 'em loud.