I tried. I got this great idea, a sort of journey, to bring you readers with me on. I was going to dip my toes into the world of sports gambling.
I had a plan that I would blog each step. Account setup, to my first bet, to my first loss (and probably a few more), to my first win (maybe)….but it was not meant to be.
Now I say this with a caveat of, I know nothing. There’s a chance that I was the one that screwed up, and I am worried about nothing. If this is the case, feel free to leave a comment saying I am dumb. This is what happened.
Having talked this idea over with a friend of mine at work, whom I trust, I decided I would dig into the logistics of setting up an online sports gambling account. I love sports, and I would love to use my knowledge to make a buck or two, so I had interest. I’m even good at cutting myself off when need be, so I wasn’t worried about getting hooked. Through my inter-web research, I concluded I would sign up with mybookie.ag for starters.
I created my account, filled in the necessary info, and made my initial deposit…which is where this took a turn. Whenever you finish inputting the info for the deposit, you are prompted to call the website’s customer service to confirm the deposit, so I did. The fellow on the other end seemed nice enough. While he put my info in to the system, he held a personal conversation with a coworker, talking about some chili he had and the negative effects on his stomach, using a few choice words. That didn’t totally bother me, and he even apologized when he realized his conversation was being broadcast through the phone. The problem came next.
He began by attempting to persuade me to deposit more, offering me a little incentive deal. I told him no thanks, I was just trying this out, and the amount I put is the amount I am willing to use, and no more. He then pushed, trying for a little less, and I gave him a firm no. Another second passed and he told me my deposit hadn’t come through and asked me if my card is set up for international transactions. This got my hair standing on end.
“Why’s this?” I asked, quite confused.
“Our servers that process the transaction are in China, so it will look to your card like you are making an international transaction,” was the answer.
Certainly, my bank does have an issue with me trying to make a purchase in China…because I am in Ohio. So Ithanked him for helping me and I’ll figure it out and call back.
Spoiler alert….I am not calling back. Here’s why…
In my attempt to search the webs and find out if this is normal, I found an intriguing thing. Banks are legally obligated to decline any transaction involving online gambling. It’s sad that I work for a bank and don’t know this, but I ain’t exactly a genius. Nevertheless, this is where my interest in pursuing this idea ended.
As mainstream as it is, sports gambling still requires some hoop-jumping-through. Maybe I am missing a big piece of the puzzle, here, but I am not going any further with the idea. Like I said, if you know more than I about this, drop me a line. Until I know more, though, this will go down as an idea I had for the blog…and nothing more.
Sportsinnati 