Root was born in the Bronx, N.Y., where his father worked as a butcher. While he was growing up, Root said everyone he knew bet on sports.  "I cleaned out every kid," he said. Root said he gained popularity at age 16 when a reporter from a New York newspaper wrote an article calling him the next Jimmy "the Greek" Snyder. Snyder, who died in 1996, was an American sports commentator and Las Vegas bookie. Years later, Root became Snyder's co-host on television.

Root said he gambled his way through Columbia University and became nationally recognized as a handicapper. In 2000, GWIN Inc. became a publicly traded company.

Root lived in Malibu, Calif., for 15 years and flew back and forth between California and Las Vegas. After Sept. 11, traveling became too time-consuming, he said, and he decided to relocate to Las Vegas. Root said the move was one of the best things he has ever done. It inspired him to write "Millionaire Republican," in which he describes how he was able to save money by not having to pay an income tax and owning his own business.

"If you were afraid to risk, you wouldn't be in America," he said. "Our relatives had gambling in their blood. They took a great risk coming here. Gambling is in our blood."

This real-life "King of Vegas" has been profiled by CNBC, Fortune, and the Wall Street Journal. Fox News called WAR's success "mind-blowing" and described him as "a one man empire." The Las Vegas Sun said of WAR, "he has built a TV sports prognostication empire."

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