Choosing the Right Lineup for Daily Fantasy LCS Contests
If you haven’t tried any daily fantasy LCS sites yet, you can learn more about AlphaDraft, Vulcun and FantasyGG in my article about Getting Started at Daily Fantasy LCS.
When planning your daily fantasy LCS lineup, it’s important to consider the type of contest you’ll be entering. The right lineup will vary depending on whether it’s a head to head contest, a 50 person tournament, or a 1,000 person tournament.
Head to Head Contests and Contests with ‘Flat’ Prize Structures
If you’re entering head to head contests or other contests with ‘flat’ prize structures (such as 50/50s, double ups and triple ups), your goal is to create a lineup that will (on average) score the most points. To achieve this, look for players who are undervalued and have the potential to score more points than their price suggests. Value can come from various sources, like subs filling in for regular players, players returning from an absence, or mispriced players. Once you have a few good value picks, complete your lineup with the best players that fit your budget. If you found enough value, you can even choose star players with favorable match-ups.
Larger contests with Top-Heavy Prize Structures
In larger contests with top-heavy prize structures, you’re not just looking for an above average score. You’re aiming for an extremely high score. For example, in a 50 person tournament, the first prize may get 20% or more of the prize pool and only the top 20% of finishers (or less) will get paid. In this case, it’s important to take some risks to have a chance at finishing near the top. Look for players whose scores will be highly correlated with each other. Picking multiple players from the same team is a great way to increase your chances as scores of players on the same team are highly correlated. This is not a recommended strategy for head to head contests, but it works well for tournaments.
Extremely Large Tournaments
In extremely large tournaments, simply ‘stacking’ the most heavily favored team may not maximize your profit expectations. The top few spots, especially the top spot, in the standings typically receive a disproportionate amount of the prize money. To increase your chances of winning, you need to differentiate your lineup. You can do this by stacking unpopular teams and hoping for an upset. Another way to differentiate is by stacking a popular team, but filling out the rest of your lineup with unpopular picks. Keep in mind that some sites might have rules against stacking, so be aware of these rules before finalizing your lineup. AlphaDraft and FantasyGG do not have any anti-stacking rules in place.
Conclusion
Choosing the right lineup for daily fantasy LCS contests requires careful consideration of the contest type and prize structure. Whether it’s a head to head contest, a smaller tournament, or a larger tournament, adjusting your strategy accordingly will give you a better chance at success.
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