Meet WSEX, a sportsbook that used to be one of the most respected in the industry but has put their customer base through some very trying times in 2009. The sportsbook itself offers great amenities for bettors but the problem is that they are taking forever to pay out their customers.

If they can fix their financial situation, this sportsbook will again passing the review test with flying colors. Until then, they are on amber alert and you should tread carefully.

It’s too bad because when the payouts are flowing, this sportsbook has some cool betting features worth depositing for.

Lines 8/10
Security 7/10
Variety 8/10
Customer Service 7/10
Reputation 7/10

1. Who Bets Here

WSEX is a mixture between sharps and public players. Overall, the sportsbook does have pretty good lines with lower juice than your average -110 shop. But they aren’t the sharpest lines in the industry, which means they won’t attract the sharpest players in the industry.

They have some nice cool features that attract the public guys as well, such as a good live-betting variety.

Depositing
Credit Cards
Postal Money Order (fees are covered by WSEX)

Withdrawing
Cheques (One free cheque per calendar month)

2. Customer Service

WSEX customer service just isn’t to be trusted right now. In general, we’d like to give them higher marks for what they have done in the industry to date, but this isn’t high school. This is sports betting and in many ways, your sportsbook has to act like a reliable bank. They are supposed to deliver like clockwork and when they don’t, their reputation becomes tarnished for a long period of time.

WSEX’s financial troubles are a concern and it has put a lot of pressure on their customer service to give their clients the run around. Customers who have been attempting to withdraw funds have been waiting for months on end, which is always a nervous waiting period.

Until this is corrected, WSEX simply doesn’t deserve a good grade.

Methods of Contact
Phone
E-mail
Live Chat

3. Placing A Bet

Methods of Betting
Internet
Phone
Mobile

4. Variety

WSEX has a pretty good variety for betting. Not only do they offer the main course with all of the major sports, they have some pretty good appetizers as well.

One unique feature unique to WSEX is their exchange type of betting in their futures. You can buy and sell teams at any point in the season, sort of like a stock. The contracts are worth zero when they lose but grow to 100 if they win. For example, if you bet on the Denver Broncos at the beginning of the 2009-10 season to win the Super Bowl, their price would have been very low. As they developed their perfect record, their price tag would have gone up, meaning at that point you could stick with it and hope they actually win the Super Bowl, which is when you’d hit it big, or you could sell the Broncos and make a profit.

They also offer a similar live-betting product, where you buy and sell contracts.

Overall, the variety is pretty good and the futures betting is almost like exchange trading in the stock market. That’s a very cool, unique feature that’s worth depositing for.

Limits
NBA Game: $5000
NFL Game: $20000
NHL Game: $2500
MLB Game: $2500

5. VIP Program/Loyalty Program

WSEX sportsbook does not offer a VIP program at this time.

6. Bonus & Rebate Program

WSEX has a very simple, barebones bonus program. On any deposit – initial or subsequent – you get a 10% cash bonus with a maximum value of $250 dollars. The rollover attached with it is a five times rollover.

7. Website & Usability

WSEX has very clean and simple website, that has received decent reviews in the industry. On one hand, it is very plain but the sacrifice of fancy flash has made the site blazingly fast.

The layout for the site remains consistent throughout your entire visit. Your login is in the top left frame, your betting ticket is immediately to the right of it, the sports betting categories are down the left hand side of the screen and the lines display in the biggest section in the bottom right. The frames and the color schemes are far from the prettiest thing we’ve seen but it works and it works fast, which is all that most bettors will care about.

One annoying feature in the book is that when you click on a line to place a bet, it doesn’t originally allow you to just type in your exact amount. At first, you are presented with a drop-down box in your betting ticket, which annoying to say the least unless you only bet in denominations of $100. To get the box where you type your exact amount, you have to click on “other amount”. Ironically, while everything else on the site loads as fast as you click it, this one feature actually lags for a half-second before it loads.

The usability is pretty good and the fact that this site is ready for mobile betting, such as through an iPhone, is a great touch. It is barebones but it’s pretty clear that the people who bet here don’t need pictures of hot chics or sports betting articles. They just want the lines and that’s exactly what they are served.

8. Reputation

WSEX used to have one of the better reputations in the industry but right now it is being dragged through the mud. Clearly, the financial status of the sportsbook has changed and now there are consistent payout problems and delays. Rumor has it that the sportsbook made a bad financial investment, but that is just here say.

Nonetheless, trust is arguably the most important factor with a sportsbook and right now you have to overlook this place if you are planning to deposit into a sportsbook.