Both FanDuel and DraftKings will identify which contests are multi-entry, and which are single entry.īoth sites also identify the opponents who are waiting to play. Sharks can enter the 50/50s as well, but many of the contests come with entry limits. Kang describes being pitted against the very best contestants in fantasy sports.īut head-to-head is a terrible strategy for a newcomer.įar more sensible are what FanDuel and DraftKings both call “50/50s” - beat half the pool, and you win $1.80 for every $1 (the additional 20 cents is what a casino would call the rake, or a broker would call a commission.) A related contest is the Double Up - beat 56% of the pool, and you win $2 for every $1 entered. The first mistake the author, Jay Caspian Kang, made was choosing head-to-head games in the first place, and even then, there are safer ways to play.Ī head-to-head game is exactly that - you versus one other user. In fantasy sports parlance, the higher-pay games are referred to as guaranteed prize pool, or GPP, and the lower-pay games are called “cash” contests. It’s merely advice on how not to be easy prey.īefore going further, it’s important to explain the types of contests that are available, which can broadly be split into higher-pay games that are harder to win, and lower-pay games that are easier to win.
The following won’t, to be clear, tell you how to win money on these sites, which allow users to bet on the play of individual athletes. The article is worth reading, for its explanation of how many of the same people who dominated the now-illegal-online-poker scene are the ones at the still-legal-in-most-states fantasy sports environment, and other insights.īut there are ways to avoid being bait for the sharks that cost the New York Times author some $1,900 during the football season.