As I conclude this series I want to thank everyone who has been following each post. If you’re a veteran Streaker then you probably have already figured a lot of this out. I decided to join the crazy group of monthly pickers last month and occasionally read the message boards. It’s interesting to see a lot of the top monthly guys discussing the same decisions I’ve suggested you need to make in order to have success.
Here are my results from August. If you want to keep track of our entries, join our StreakEdge group.
Throughout this discussion of monthly wins, I mentioned the forfeit tool. This week I will provide some tips to help you learn how to take advantage of it. In August, I had 79 losses, 20 of which were forfeits.
Planned forfeit
Previously, I mentioned always having a pick made even if you plan to forfeit. There are a few reasons why I think this is a good idea. First, if the gap between your current pick and the one you are planning to make is large enough, then you might be able to sneak in an extra win. Delays happen, so why not take a risk? Furthermore, delays can turn into cancellations which throw off your daily strategy so this can help you adjust on the fly.
The second reason for trying to have a pick available is that life happens. You may plan on making a pick and get caught up in another activity or lose internet access. At least this way you have some sort of safety net set up.
Some examples of props you may want to utilize for planned forfeits are as follows:
- Tennis player wins 2-0 or 3-0: Pick “Any other result” and hope the first set is a loss
- Other props where multiple conditions have to be met: Pick the side that at least one of the conditions is not met and hope it ends early
- X goals, runs, points, hits, strikeouts, etc. in a half, inning, set, etc.: Pick the side where condition can be met early and hope that the goals, runs, points, etc. come quickly
Pretty much any prop that has potential to end early pick that side. Alternatively, you can pick the side you think is going to win and play the game of conditional forfeiting which I will discuss next.
Conditional forfeits
One advantage of having the forfeit button is you can evaluate your current pick throughout the match/game to determine whether you need to forfeit and make another pick. The point being that you don’t want to waste time just waiting for a loss. You can find live odds for many props from various sportsbooks or you can just use your best judgment if unable to find any information to determine the odds. In general, if you took a chance on a prop just to have a pick during a gap, then forfeit and make the pick you were targeting.
Forfeit during delays
One of the most frustrating parts of being a monthly picker is planning out your day and then having things thrown off because of weather delays. Be sure to pay attention to the weather and be aware if the venue is open or closed making rain potentially an issue. Most importantly do not be afraid to forfeit even if you’re on a winning streak. As a monthly picker your focus is not on streaks but on wins.
If you’ve been playing SFTC the last couple months, you’ll know we have had quite a few delays in tennis. One prop in August kept many pickers in limbo for 8 hours before ultimately being pushed. I ended up forfeiting a W8 rather than waiting on the prop to proceed. I think I got a few extra wins that day by forfeiting instead of waiting. But I also have been burned by not forfeiting at the right time as well.
Conclusion
And that concludes our series on the SFTC games. Moving forward, we hope to add more tools that can help you with some of the strategies for SFTC and other fantasy sports games.