The Daily Fantasy Code
Every sport has its own code of unwritten rules. Don’t bunt to break up a no-hitter. Don’t hit the QB after an INT. Don’t sacktap Channing Frye on a jumpshot (looking at you, Kevin Garnett). You know what I’m saying. Does daily fantasy sports have a code? It should. Here are my proposed unwritten rules for our game:
Freeroll Etiquette
Don’t chase freerolls. The freeroll is one of the daily fantasy industry’s primary recruiting techniques. If you are an established player, there is no need to pound the pavement in search of free rolls. Sure, everyone likes a free buck, but an established player winning a freeroll actually hurts him in the long run. You see, today’s newbie freeroll winner is tomorrow’s guy trying to parlay his $50 freeroll winnings into a hundo by taking your $50 game from the Fanduel lobby. You want his action more than you want a chance at beating out 200+ people for a slice of a $150 freeroll pool.
That said, there are plenty of freerolls for experienced players, such as DailyJoust’s Badge tournament series, Fanduel’s new Fanduel Points Freerolls, DraftStreet’s top 20 freeroll or the Grinders Incentives monthly freerolls. Play in those, but leave the others for new players. As you know, a little bit of success is all it takes to get hooked on our daily game. More players will lead to greater earning opportunities for everyone with larger guaranteed pools and a broader roster of potential opponents.
Know Your Role
What kind of player are you? High roller? Low-price? High volume (many low-priced games)? GPP Specialist? It’s important to know your role and play it well. If you are a high roller, there’s no need to drop to the low buy-in level and crush the little people. This is similar to the freeroll etiquette above. Most players start out at the lower levels and once a significant bankroll has been built they graduate to higher levels. Taking a mountain of five dollar games is counterproductive for high stakes players as it may eliminate future peers before they have a chance to grow. It’s encouraged that players challenge those higher on the buy-in chain as those at the higher levels have fewer opponents. Plus, no one is untouchable in this game. Some are better than others, sure, but anyone can be beat on any given day.
Multiple Games
When a player posts multiple games at a low buy-in level, they don’t want one person taking several of them. If they wanted that, they should have posted a single game at a higher buy-in. So, don’t take four $5 games from the same person. Take one, sure, but go find an opponent at your preferred buy-in. Personally, I tend to play several $5 and $11 games every night on DraftStreet. I have the opportunity to take on Notorious in half of those if I so desired, but usually he and I only square off in one game on any given night. The reason for this is twofold:
1) I can’t beat him. My record against Notorious is notoriously bad.
2) I probably only want $11 of action against him. If I want $22, I’ll find someone to do battle with at that level. People like to hedge their bets by playing several opponents. Don’t lock up all of their action on a night.
Scoreboard Posting
I’ve heard mixed feelings on posting of scoreboards, but I say it’s fair game. Sure, the elites may not want you broadcasting their roster for the day, but if you paid the entry fee, I say that gives you the right to either keep the info to yourself or share it with those that didn’t pay. Personally, if I get in a game with a hixvillehunk or Fredotz23 I’m using that data to try to learn their roster selection process. Maybe there’s something in there that I can learn from. Which popular BvP guys did they avoid? Is there a common thread as to why? One thing is for sure, I’m not letting my entry fee subsidize your research. Similarly, if I get in a game with a competitor that appears clueless, I’m not sharing that with you either. Knowing who the sucker is at the table is a valuable piece of data.
Those are my unwritten rules…well, I guess they are written now, but you know what I mean. What did I miss?
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RotoKevin is a Top 100 Ranked Grinder, who started climbing the rankings during MLB season of 2011. Rotokevin’s been playing fantasy sports long enough to have owned two generations of Griffeys, Barfields and Fielders. He’s captured seasonal league glory in all four major sports, though claims no particular knowledge of the NHL. He’s dabbled in non-mainstream fantasy sports such as soccer and golf and once attempted NASCAR with spectacular failure. He’s a man of the people and you’ll frequently find him in the $5 and $11-level games at your favorite daily sports site…you know, provided your favorite site is DraftStreet.