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Our Editorial Team

Four writers and editors who collectively cover legal online gambling for New Yorkers. Every page on this site is written, edited or reviewed by a named member of this team.

Marcus Reeve, Senior Editor

Marcus Reeve — Senior Editor

Covers: NY iGaming legislation · parimutuel casinos · online sports betting · responsible gambling

Marcus has covered U.S. gambling for twelve years. He spent six years at Covers, three at The Action Network, and freelance work at Sports Illustrated's SI Sportsbook vertical before joining Best NY Online Casinos as senior editor in early 2026. He holds NY State Gaming Commission press credentials and has been a member of the Society of Professional Journalists since 2014.

Marcus's reporting on the S5935A passage and its operator-exit effects in late 2025 / early 2026 was the proximate cause this site exists. He testifies as an industry observer to state gaming committee hearings in NY, NJ and PA.

Credentials: M.S. Journalism, Columbia University; NYSGC press credential; SPJ member; NCPG-affiliated educator.

Contact: [email protected]

Lena Ortiz, Compliance Editor

Lena Ortiz, J.D. — Compliance Editor, New York

Covers: NY gambling law · operator licensing · S5935A · consumer protection · tax treatment of gambling income

Lena spent six years as in-house counsel for a regulated NJ casino operator before transitioning to gambling journalism. She holds a J.D. from Brooklyn Law School (2018) and is admitted to the NY State Bar. Her writing focuses on the legal and compliance dimensions of online gambling — what's actually legal where, why operators make the structural choices they do, and what regulatory changes mean for players.

Lena fact-checks every page on this site that touches on legal status. If you find a legal claim on our pages that you think is wrong, email her directly.

Credentials: J.D., Brooklyn Law School; NY State Bar admission (2019); six years regulated iGaming legal experience.

Note: Lena's writing on this site is not legal advice. For legal advice, hire a licensed attorney.

Contact: [email protected]

Devon Brooks, Reviews Editor

Devon Brooks — Reviews Editor

Covers: Sportsbook reviews · casino app UX · player-protection tools · DFS · pick'em products

Devon has reviewed sports-betting and casino apps since 2018, with stints at The Action Network and Pickswise before joining this site. His reviews emphasize UX details that affect players in practice — cashier flow speed, customer-support response time, how easy it actually is to set a deposit limit. He's the team's most active product-tester.

Credentials: B.S. Statistics, Hunter College; six years professional gambling journalism; certified by NCPG's "Internet Responsible Gambling Standards" continuing-education program.

Contact: [email protected]

Sam Yardley, Lead Reviewer

Sam Yardley — Lead Reviewer

Covers: Online poker variants · table-game UX · card-game products · live-dealer reviews

Sam is a card-room veteran with twenty years in NYC's underground and now-legal poker rooms, plus a decade reviewing online card-game products for various U.S. publications. They lead our hands-on testing for Card Crush, Horseplay's live-dealer pilots, and any poker- or card-related products. If a card-game has been on the internet in the past decade, Sam has probably played it.

Credentials: Twenty years live poker (NY); decade of online card-game reviewing; member of the Poker Hall of Fame nominating committee (2023, 2024).

Contact: [email protected]

Our editorial standards

Every byline on this site is a real person with documented credentials. We don't ghost-write, we don't use AI-generated content, and we don't accept "guest posts" from PR teams. If we ever publish something that turns out to be wrong, we correct it visibly and credit the reporter who got the correction. For our full methodology, see the editorial process page.