Can we vent for a minute about Daily Fantasy Sports? (1 Viewer)

[manamongkids]

I, as many as you previously did, played an abundance of online poker. (probably most of us from 2004-2009ish)

Nothing beat coming home from work or school, sitting down at your computer, playing 2-4 tables of cash games, playing the PStars $20 180man tourneys, huge sunday events, etc.

During this time, Online poker OWNED Sports advertising, every game you watched, every night, every channel, Poker Stars commercials, Full Tilt...come play with the pros, etc.

Then the ban hammer came down to shut down online poker...from my small understanding of the law and online gambling, it looked as though this was all about the government having an unregulated entity operating within its borders without a way to tax them. Sure, totally understandable, tax away...all these companies had enough money to still make money while being taxed.

Fucking ass hats at Full Tilt put a wrinkle in things by being a full-on Ponzi scheme, well that looks suspicious, people waiting on cashouts, CEOs, COOs servicing jail time for embezzling money. Yada yada yada



During the introduction of the UIGEA, Fantasy sports were not even close to what they are today, almost everyone I know plays in multiple fantasy leagues, submits DFS lineups during football season and some play even more regularly with baseball, basketball, ufc, etc. Today almost everyone has a smart phone with access to the internet, giving you the ability to gamble right from the palm of your hand.

How the fuck is this going on and poker is not back yet?

I love DFS as much as the next guy, but to tell me (based on the way the law is written) that Draft Kings and FanDuel is a skill game and Poker is not, is MIND BLOWING.





So please, use this thread to share your thoughts on the matter, provide me knowledge, clear up any gaps in judgement I may have, vent, steam, anything you would like to do.

And for those wondering, I did see the Wash Post article in which Draft Kings and FanDuel are seeing some opposition from the Federal Gov't. Seen here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...ficant-legal-challenge-after-hearing-request/

 

[DrStrange]

Congress carved out a loop-hole based on requests from professional sports. Perhaps they failed to consider the implications and the amounts of money that could come into play. I'd guess we have not seen the worst of it on an advertising front - we are early in the life cycle of this product.

You know it is only a matter of time before scandals begin to emerge - both from crooked players/gamblers and from people who lose life changing amounts of money. It will take a host of things like this to get Congress to revisit the issue (unless the sports leagues turn sour on the gambling). So long as legislators get private plane rides to watch games from owners suites, I seriously doubt Congress will act.

The skill edge in these games is reputed to be much higher than in a poker game, so the suckers are going to be slaughtered faster and harder playing fantasy sports than in poker games. Maybe that will lead to a faster decline? Seeing how much time and effort people I know put into sports betting, I doubt it. I guess that the combined sports knowledge around my poker table is higher than on any other subject, perhaps by an order of magnitude. Thank God they don't put 1% of the effort spent on sports into being better poker players.

Wish for poker back? Good luck with that. Between the hostility of the sports leagues and religious zealots & the polarized disfunction of Washington, I can't even imagine a path to legalization.

Good thing we live in a free country -=- DrStrange

 

[Forty4]

What I love is the tiny print disclaimer that "this is not a gambling site" then they say something to the effect that you can play for free therefore the advertising is not for gambling, yet everything is about winning. Much like what they use to do for online poker with the Play For Free footnote. If you're putting money in and getting money out (hopefully) how is it not gambling? I guess it must be a OTC trading board that I have yet to hear of.

 

[Forty4]

You know it is only a matter of time before scandals begin to emerge - both from crooked players/gamblers and from people who lose life changing amounts of money. It will take a host of things like this to get Congress to revisit the issue (unless the sports leagues turn sour on the gambling). So long as legislators get private plane rides to watch games from owners suites, I seriously doubt Congress will act.

The skill edge in these games is reputed to be much higher than in a poker game, so the suckers are going to be slaughtered faster and harder playing fantasy sports than in poker games. Maybe that will lead to a faster decline? Seeing how much time and effort people I know put into sports betting, I doubt it. I guess that the combined sports knowledge around my poker table is higher than on any other subject, perhaps by an order of magnitude. Thank God they don't put 1% of the effort spent on sports into being better poker players.

I thought that people had basically run scripts to predict the best line-up or more commonly the line-ups with their multiple entries to almost certainly guarantee the win even if it's just slight, still profitable and the newbs who play one team hoping for the victory are basically lotto players that will at best chop. Maybe I'm wrong.

 

[bergs]

I thought that people had basically run scripts to predict the best line-up or more commonly the line-ups with their multiple entries to almost certainly guarantee there win even if it's just slight, still profitable and the newbs who play one team hoping for the victory are basically lotto players that will at best chop. Maybe I'm wrong.

Pretty much right on based on what I'm seeing. I put $25 ion DraftKings to fart around with and it's very easy to tell the sharps from everyone else.

 

[detroitdad]

I love poker. I only "like" sports betting. Maybe they have this option, but I doubt it. I really enjoy betting on parlays Otherwise I'm not interested in Fanduel, ect....

Hell, I barely like fantasy football. I only play in one $20.00 league.

 

[Poker Zombie]

Not a fan of fantasy sports. Give me actual sports betting where I'm cheering maniacally for a team like I'm in the stands at the game, and I'm drawing up spreadsheets to undercut the odds-makers. Better yet, give me poker, where I'm making my own decisions for winning and losing.

Fantasy football creates things like the NY Giants/Dallas Cowboys game. Why would Eli manning throw a clock stopping pass, when a run for zero yards would have run down the clock? Because somebody had Eli for a cool million? The perfect way to throw a game (without actually trying to blow it) and nobody would be the wiser...

 

[12thMan]

Fantasy football creates things like the NY Giants/Dallas Cowboys game. Why would Eli manning throw a clock stopping pass, when a run for zero yards would have run down the clock? Because somebody had Eli for a cool million? The perfect way to throw a game (without actually trying to blow it) and nobody would be the wiser...

I'm pretty sure John boys moon landing post had more merit to it than this one.

 

[tigon]

I don't understand what kind of arrangement is in place for Paypal letting DraftKings use its services. I remember someone having a personal payment on Paypal blocked just because it MIGHT be payment for poker site money. DraftKings not only does this, but they pay cashouts first with a Paypal refund of your initial deposit allowing them to recoup the fees on that deposit. I'd be really interested to know how that went down.

 

[Ronoh]

I thought that people had basically run scripts to predict the best line-up or more commonly the line-ups with their multiple entries to almost certainly guarantee the win even if it's just slight, still profitable and the newbs who play one team hoping for the victory are basically lotto players that will at best chop. Maybe I'm wrong.

DraftKings Millionaire Maker for week one of the NFL season... $20 buyin with over half-a-million entries. First place ($2,000,000) had two entries, second place ($1,000,000) had five. 3rd and 4th (500K and 250K) had one each. 8 of the top 12 were single entries.

Stories like the one recently on baseball where one guy went nuts get people believing the multi-users are ruining the game and taking all the cash. In reality all that cash is there BECAUSE of the multi-users.

Play and enjoy. Much like poker it's entertainment to me... when I come out ahead it's a bonus.

 

[Poker Zombie]

I'm pretty sure John boys moon landing post had more merit to it than this one.

I'm not saying it happened... I'm just putting it up there...

That said, fans of fantasy games can play away. It's just not my cup of tea because I don't get the same entertainment value as I do with a straight up bet. I don't even like point spreads (unless you're giving me the free points) because teams play to win, not to beat spreads.

Because I don't see the entertainment value, I think of fantasy sports on the same level as counting cards at blackjack. If you're good, the payout can be there. I've done well counting cards at the blackjack table (low dollar, wasn't caught, made a couple hundred), but it simply was not fun (aside from doing well - that part is always fun).

Fantasy sports just grind me a little since they're legal, proving that our country isn't about keeping us safe or free. It's about making the wealthy ones even more wealthy.

 

[Forty4]

DraftKings Millionaire Maker for week one of the NFL season... $20 buyin with over half-a-million entries. First place ($2,000,000) had two entries, second place ($1,000,000) had five. 3rd and 4th (500K and 250K) had one each. 8 of the top 12 were single entries.

Stories like the one recently on baseball where one guy went nuts get people believing the multi-users are ruining the game and taking all the cash. In reality all that cash is there BECAUSE of the multi-users.

Play and enjoy. Much like poker it's entertainment to me... when I come out ahead it's a bonus.

Good info, thanks!

 

[nitzilla]

I was just listening to the 2+2 podcast and they said that Michigan is barring DFS in the state:
http://www.legalsportsreport.com/3517/daily-fantasy-sports-illegal-in-michigan/

I don't understand DFS at all, but after this past weekend of non-stop DFS ads all over the TV, I was really getting pissed at not having online poker in my state.
I also feel the same way when I hear ads for online stock trading sites, and the state lotteries, do I need to go on....!?

nitzilla, missing partypoker.com........

 

[DarPodo]

I hate money so I play a bunch of DFS now.