Nth Carolina gets Bet365, ESPNbet and Fanduel for starters

**70'sMan** · 12-11-23, 11:30 AM

Looking forward to them starting.

**djefferis** · 12-11-23, 06:06 PM

All decent to good picks - I’d like to see DraftKings in the mix soon.

Gambling and NC are just a weird combination- like much of “the South”. You can buy lottery tickets online for example - but they make it a pain in the ass to buy in convenience stores…and don’t even think about gambling on Sundays in parts of rural NC.

Weirdest thing I encountered down there was at work - got a call for a “theft” from an “amusement operator” - go in and it’s 2 Asian guys - saying their “arcade” was broken into and a bunch of equipment broken and cash stolen - took me about 12 seconds to piece together it was an illegal back room “fish game” operation in back of a little convenience store/smoke shop.

Told my bosses and they had absolutely no clue what I was talking about when I clued them in as to what we were standing in the middle of - evidently like most things - law enforcement in rural NC remains stuck in 1953. If I was looking to start an illegal gambling ring - NC or Western VA would be the absolutely top the list. Amazing part to me was a literal shit ton of Asians gathering in a tiny little former gas station drew absolutely zero attention from locals - they evidently thought they were “holding church services” in the back or something every night !

**70'sMan** · 12-12-23, 09:13 AM

For awhile these sweepstakes stores were considered legal and they popped up everywhere. Once they were declared illegal most closed and then LEA cleaned up the stubborn ones. Except for this one little small town right down the road. There are 3 that I have seen operating out in the open. Who knows how many exist in back rooms. That city also has two transient motels and both strip clubs in the area. There used to be an AMP and a porn shop there as well. Not sure if cops just ignore it so the city can get tax revenue or if they get a cut.

In the south you run across these little areas or towns that are almost like "outlaw" areas. At one time I worked in an area referred to as the "dark corner" of SC. It was amazing.

**Optional** · 12-12-23, 12:08 PM

Reporting on the Alex Murdaugh trial made the SC low country sound like a real live Deliverance movie set.

**70'sMan** · 12-12-23, 03:15 PM

The thing about the low country is that there are no real jobs or opportunities there. Everyone with ambition or the means moved away. So what is left are the "old money" families that run everything and a lot of poverty. Along the coast, the urban areas and the I 85 corridor things are much more what we would consider to be normal. The dark corner above the Greenville Spartanburg area is where they shot some of the Moonshiners series.

**djefferis** · 12-12-23, 07:21 PM

Originally posted by Optional

Reporting on the Alex Murdaugh trial made the SC low country sound like a real live Deliverance movie set.

The volume of mobile homes, lack of dentist and a ratio of at least 3 cars per household resident positioned in the yard (which by law 2 must be on concrete blocks) doesn’t help either.

Also - it seems they have more banjos per capita by far than any state.

Seriously - I grew up next to West Virginia - worked in Kentucky and Mississippi amongst other places and there are parts of SC that left me speechless. It’s funny though - you drive through all this - but then you have Charleston which is an amazing city. On the other side you have Columbia which again is pretty cool.

NC is just as bad in parts / just gets a slightly better reputation.

I took an Amtrak through - only worse way to see them I can think of would be Greyhound (and not by much - sad that Amtrak is considered “luxury” travel there).

**70'sMan** · 12-13-23, 12:20 PM

I think NC gets better press because in general NC was always a bit more progressive. Maybe not so much now but in the 40's through the 70's NC invested quite a bit in infrastructure and higher education. What ended up was a nice corridor from Raleigh Durham to Greensboro to Charlotte with Research Triangle and a lot of good jobs. That is the area that gets most of the press. You also have a nice coast area and the areas toward and in the mountains (Boone, Asheville, Hickory etc) that are quite pleasant places to live.

The area from about a half hour in from the coast over past I95 is about as bad as any place in the US. There are a few lovely little towns there but it is mostly dirt poor. I grew up in Fayetteville and I counted the days until I could move. Sadly I hung out at the bowling alley close to my house and fell under the influence of noted bookmakers at an early age. lol

**PharaohUB** · 12-13-23, 01:49 PM

You guys sound like me before I moved to south. There are places like you describe in upstate NY too. It’s not a “southern” thing it’s a rural thing. I love the superiority complex the north has over the south when it’s literally the same shit just warmer.

**70'sMan** · 12-13-23, 02:35 PM

I have lived in the south my whole life. Having worked for northern based companies, I do understand what you are saying about the superiority complex. Yes there are crappy areas everywhere.

I would say though that if you visit a rural area in NC west of I40 and one east of I95 you will see a huge difference in the lifestyle. Aside from some of the slum areas in the big cities I have not seen that level of widespread poverty up north. However to your point we don't have anything down here that looks like Kensington either.

**djefferis** · 12-13-23, 07:10 PM

Lived in several areas - the “south” isn’t just rural living.

You have rednecks in just about every state - especially in the Northeast in the non population centers.

There are things though unique to the South - especially religion as a way of life…mind you it’s do as I say - not as I do for many. It’s weird - you have Charlotte (major city) you have Raleigh/Durham (big city - higher end feel) and you have the “beaches” (Uber pricey - tourist and then dead between Late October till Early April) - then you have a bunch of rural nothing between (ok - well Greensboro is ok - Boone and the Mountains are a nice mix of small town/tourist and college town) - but NC is just different.

**stevenash** · 12-13-23, 07:31 PM

No DK?

**70'sMan** · 12-13-23, 09:54 PM

Originally posted by stevenash

No DK?

Hopefully more coming. The initial bill allowed for up to 12 sportsbooks. The more the merrier.

**Seattle Slew** · 01-14-24, 12:23 PM

Latest update this week says their goal is to be up and running before March Madness. Once they couldn't hit the NFL playoffs, that was likely the target date range, so maybe March 1.

**Housemoney** · 02-05-24, 08:29 PM

Late to the party because I just saw the ad on Facebook. I’m right across the border so hopefully can hit some of their good bonuses. I’ll still probably play with my local.

**beefcake** · 02-18-24, 04:44 PM

Three weeks to go!! Woo hoo!

**Optional** · 02-18-24, 07:22 PM

March 1st pre-registration starts.

**2Sweeet** · 02-18-24, 11:13 PM

Lol how did NC get Bet365 b4 PA? BET365 PA has had a license for awhile if I'm not mistaken? Makes no sense

**2Sweeet** · 02-18-24, 11:15 PM

Originally posted by stevenash

No DK?

DK doesn't deal with Hillbilly's. I can't wait for all that HillBilly North Carolina Money coming in on FD b4 the Conference Tourney's!!! Gonna be 2sweet!! ACC LOL. Atlanta Braves even funnier in the Playoffs

**blackbart** · 02-20-24, 07:20 PM

dk advertising here in nc

**70'sMan** · 03-13-24, 08:11 AM

A couple of things that are really funny.

#1 I am having more trouble funding the legal sportsbooks than I do the offshores. Paypal is blocking the transactions with some type of an international law violation message and none of my cc's (truist citibank) will go through. They don't have a btc option. Anyway I will eventually work through this but I thought it was really funny.

#2 B365 closed my account before I placed my first wager. CS said management decision and their was no option to reopen. I did manage to complain enough to get it reopened.

**Seattle Slew** · 03-15-24, 02:11 PM

Originally posted by 70'sMan

A couple of things that are really funny.

#1 I am having more trouble funding the legal sportsbooks than I do the offshores. Paypal is blocking the transactions with some type of an international law violation message and none of my cc's (truist citibank) will go through. They don't have a btc option. Anyway I will eventually work through this but I thought it was really funny.

#2 B365 closed my account before I placed my first wager. CS said management decision and their was no option to reopen. I did manage to complain enough to get it reopened.

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. I don't think you want to use CCs, it'll go down as a cash advance and you get hit with interest starting on the transaction day I think.

Debit card linked to checking might be fastest option.