According to the Fantasy Sports Trade Association (FSTA), an organization that represents the fantasy sports industry, as many as 41.5 million people played fantasy sports in Canada and the US in 2014. However, only 2.5 million of them played daily fantasy sports (DFS), the rest sticking to traditional, season-long contests that do not involve real money.
Realizing the simple fact that a lot of money can be won playing daily fantasy sports, more people are beginning to sign up at fantasy sports websites such as DraftKings and FanDuel.com and taking part in real money DFS contests.
Having realized the potential of DFS, Yahoo! launched its DFS product recently. As the player fields gets larger, the prize pools also get larger.
DFS players are least bothered about legality for two major reasons. First, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), which was passed in the US in 2006, clearly exempts fantasy sports from its list of gambling games. This technically means that fantasy sports are not gambling games and therefore legal. Second, although a number of experts refuse to accept this interpretation and argue that DFS is gambling, professional DFS players are not worried because fantasy websites has signed powerful deals with major professional sports leagues such as National Hockey League (NHL), National Basketball Association (NBA), and Major League Baseball (MLB). These deals are sure to save fantasy sports from being classified as gambling games.
It is quite possible to make a living out of fantasy sports, and several players are doing it. Many have become highly successful professional DFS players.
If you are one of those people aspiring to become professional DFS players, here are some great tips for you.
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Stick to a Routine
If you really want to make money playing fantasy sports, you must invest a lot of time in research. You need to soak in information from multiple sources, and you will save a lot of time if you bookmark these resources. You should be able to access your resources instantly, at any time you wish.
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Find a Mentor
If you are a beginner, learn from an experienced player. It could be your friend, family member, or someone you met at a fantasy sports website. Listen to the voice of the experts. Read interviews and articles of seasoned fantasy players who have made tons of money playing fantasy sports. Check out the lineups drafted by professional fantasy players and try to figure out how they did it. Listening to the experts always helps you become a better fantasy player.
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Avoid DFS Contests with Large Buy-ins
Most of these large buy-in contests are shark infested, which is why you should avoid them if you are a beginner. If you are a seasoned fantasy player, you will feel quite at home with the sharks. But a beginner will be overwhelmed in no time.
Stick to the freerolls or play for free or play the low buy-in contests till you gain the required experience. There will come a time when you will feel quite confident about plunging into the shark-infested waters.
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Bankroll Management is Important
You need to manage your bankroll well while playing daily fantasy sports; otherwise, you will end up losing it quickly and end up with nothing. As far as possible, spend only 10% of your bankroll on buy-ins to various contests. Keep track of how much you win and lose and maintain notes of each and every contest you take part in. Use any formula of your choice to determine how much of your bankroll you can spend on paid contests depending on your results.
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Read the Injury Reports
Many players make the mistake of forgetting to check out injury reports before drafting their lineups. As a result, they draft players who end up missing their games because of an injury. If your fantasy sports site lists a player’s status as “Doubtful” or “Probable,” it means that he may miss the next game or few games because of an injury.
- Keep an Eye on Vegas Odds
Keep an eye on odds is something most fantasy players fail to do. In fact, odds at various bookmakers can actually help fantasy players make wise lineup decisions.
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Modify Your Strategies According to Game Format
You cannot use the same strategies for cash games as well as tournaments and expect to win. You should alter your gaming strategies according to game format, player field, payout structure, and several other factors.
For example, if you are taking part in a tournament with a large player field, the prize money will be distributed among the top 10 in the field. In this case, you need to play aggressively and take more risks. On the other hand, half the player field of a 50/50 contest will get paid and each winner will receive the same amount. In this case, you don’t have to take that many risks because you don’t have to be one of the top 10, just one of the top 50 percent.
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Draft Several Lineups
In cases where you cannot spend much of your bankroll on weekly and daily contests, you can reduce risk by drafting many lineups.
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Drafting Sleepers is Risky
All fantasy players dream of drafting a sleeper who will end up performing extraordinarily well. Unfortunately, the sleeper continues to sleep and the fantasy player who drafted the sleeper ends up in trouble. This does not always happen though, and fantasy players can make a fortune if they know exactly what they are doing when they are drafting a sleeper. It is important to remember that all sleepers do not have hidden talent.
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Remember to Have Fun Playing DFS Contests
If you get obsessed with winning, you will not be able to have fun. After all, playing fantasy sports is all about having fun, socializing, and enhancing your experience of watching the games.
