Playing Real Money Daily Fantasy Sports
Have you ever read a guide to playing daily fantasy sports that left you with more questions than answers? Have you ever had the feeling that everyone’s an expert except you?
If you answered yes to either of those questions, you’re in the right place. This site was created for folks who are just beginning to get their feet wet with daily fantasy sports. The tutorials I’ve written will show you how to choose reputable sites, claim your bonuses, and pick contests. You’ll also learn how to draft winning teams, participate in private leagues, and ultimately how to have a great time and potentially win some cold, hard cash along the way.
Sound good so far?
What you’ll find on this page is a roadmap. It’s a bird’s-eye view of one of the hottest trends in online fantasy sports betting. You’ll get an introduction to the fundamentals and links to other pages that go into greater detail about them.
I recommend that you bookmark this page. You’ll want to come back to it so you can stay updated on the industry’s latest tips and trends. As you start having more and more success competing in daily fantasy sports contests, let me know about your wins!
Sports You’ll Find At The Top Daily Fantasy Sports Sites
The contests you’ll find at sites like FanDuel, DraftKings, and DraftStreet center around the sports that are consistently the most popular among fantasy sports fans. You won’t be surprised to hear that football has a huge presence. That’s where most of the action takes place with both NFL and college football being big draws.
However, all good things eventually come to an end, and so it is with the NFL football season. Super Bowl Sunday typically happens sometime in early February.
The following month, baseball gets underway. The MLB season usually starts in late March (or sometimes in early April) and goes through September. As you know, baseball is incredibly popular with sports fans. That being the case, you’ll see thousands of daily fantasy baseball contests – both pro and college games – at the top fantasy sites.
Click here to get more information on MLB before you jump into daily contests!
Shortly after the MLB season ends, two other major sports kick off: basketball and hockey. The NBA season usually starts at the end of October or early November. The NHL season gets underway a bit earlier, toward the beginning of October. Both sports wrap things up in mid-April. If you log into FanDuel or DraftKings between October and April, expect to see a long list of daily fantasy basketball and hockey contests.
NASCAR is also a big draw. Unfortunately, none of the daily fantasy sports sites offer one-day fantasy NASCAR contests. There are some issues with regard to how the individual races are organized. Those issues need to be resolved before the races show up at places like FanDuel and DraftKings.
Having said that, I’m mentioning the sport because it will eventually debut on the top sites. I’ll update this page with the news when it happens. It’s worth noting that the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series and Nationwide Series both kick off in February and last through November.
The last sport that should be on your radar is golf. The PGA Tour starts in October and lasts for the majority of the year. Both DraftKings and DraftStreet occasionally offer daily fantasy golf contests, but they’re nowhere near as popular as football, baseball, and basketball.
Beginner’s Quick-Start Guide To Playing Daily Fantasy Sports
Competing in your first daily fantasy sports league feels a little bit like venturing out into the deep end of the pool without a life jacket. But trust me, it’s a lot less daunting than it seems. After your first experience, you’ll realize the entire process is extremely simple.
Here’s a summary of the steps:
– Register at one of the daily fantasy sports sites on my recommended list.
– Make a deposit.
– Choose a contest.
– Draft your lineup.
– Confirm your entry.
– Watch your team perform.
That’s the whole kit and kaboodle. Looks pretty simple, doesn’t it? You can literally complete the steps above in less than 5 minutes, not counting actually watching your team perform.
If you don’t want to watch your team, you don’t have to. Go do something else. Then, come back in a few hours to check on how your team ranked.
How Salary Caps Work When Drafting Your Team
Drafting players is a lot of fun. You’re given a salary cap, which is essentially a budget. You can’t go over budget when putting together your roster.
Let’s briefly go over how salary caps work.
One of the great things about daily fantasy sports contests that impose a salary cap is that you get to draft any player you want as long as you have the funds. It doesn’t matter if your most coveted player gets drafted by someone else. You can draft him too if you’re able and willing to pony up the cash.
Every player has a salary that roughly reflects his past performance and reputation. As you would expect, the big stars, from Lebron and Tiger to Peyton and Trout, cost a lot of money. Conversely, the guys who can’t seem to perform are relatively cheap. The trick is to find undervalued players. You want to draft guys whose salaries fail to reflect their potential.
Frankly, it ain’t easy. But once you learn how to do it, your chances of winning real money in daily fantasy sports skyrockets.
A Few Tips On Selecting A Daily Fantasy Sports Site
One of the first things you’ll notice about this industry is that not all sites all created equal. Not by a long shot. That’s why I’ve put together a short list of the most reputable daily fantasy sports sites. If you want an effortless way to find a good site, just pick one from the list.
But let’s say you want go through the process of finding one on your own. Here are a few key things to look for:
- First, determine who’s the boss. Which sites are the biggest of the litter? Big doesn’t mean best, but you can bet that places like FanDuel and DraftKings, both of which boast thousands of happy customers, are trustworthy.
- Second, look at the bonuses and promotions. The bigger they are and the easier they are to earn out, the better. The important thing to keep in mind is that the bonuses and promos are offered to entice people to join and encourage them to participate. The big sites (FanDuel, DraftKings, etc.) don’t need to work as hard as the smaller sites, such as DraftDay. So their bonuses are often less generous. Bottom line: use this as one of many criteria for choosing a site. It shouldn’t be the deciding factor.
- Third, check out the list of contests. More is always better than less, especially if you see a lot of contests with guaranteed prize pools.
- Fourth, test the site’s responsiveness to support requests. No daily fantasy sports site is flawless. Problems can and do occur, just like in any business. The key is how the site responds to them. Ideally, you want to see a quick, professional response from the support reps, as well as a fast resolution for any problems that crop up.
Again, the simplest way to find a great daily fantasy sports site is to check out the ones on my recommended list.
Freerolls Vs. Entry Fees: Should You Play For Free?
In a word, absolutely. Take advantage of the freerolls, particularly if you’re new to daily fantasy sports. It’s a good opportunity to check out how things work without risking your money.
Keep in mind, you won’t get rich by sticking to the freerolls. They don’t actually pay out real money to the winners. Some will give you a chance to win entry into future paid contests for which you can grab a piece of the prize pool. Others offer the winners little more than bragging rights.
The point of the freerolls – at least from the perspective of someone just starting out – is to get some risk-free experience. Eventually, you’ll want to join contests that impose an entry fee. Those are the ones with real money prizes up for grabs.
Why You Should Play Daily Fantasy Sports Contests
Still need a good reason to start playing? I’ll give you 5 of them:
It’s fast.
It’s easy.
It’s simple.
It’s fun.
You can win real cash.
If you enjoy fantasy sports, but don’t want to commit to a season-long fantasy sports league, try the daily leagues. Create an account at FanDuel, DraftKings, or DraftStreet, and join a few contests. I’d be willing to bet that you’ll love the experience.
Other relevant articles to boost your ability in daily contests: