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DAILY FANTASY SPORTS GOD: Man Who Won $150k on DFS Gives His Tips on Winning Big in NFL Season
Updated: | First published:
Written by Jason Bevilacqua, Head of Content and Communities
Before legal online sports gambling was a thing, Daily Fantasy Sports contests were it. And while some people have moved on, using DFS as their gateway drug to sports betting, there is still a large number of Americans competing weekly during the NFL season for life changing amounts of money. With the 2021 NFL season a mere matter of weeks away, we spoke with Clifford Conners who turned $9 into $150,000 on one September night.
Cliff, as he is known to his friends, has been taking part in NFL fantasy leagues for over 20 years, but like many, he came across the world of DFS around eight years ago - a concept pioneered by FanDuel and DraftKings that took the nation by storm. While it wasn’t exactly gambling, fantasy players were able to create squads of players and enter contests that could pay out as much as $1 Million.
“My win was in 2019 for $150,000 in Week 3 on FanDuel,” said Conners, a resident of Plattsburgh in upstate New York who finished second in FanDuel’s weekly $1 Million Sunday fantasy contest. “It was a $9 buy in.”
Sickkk. I hit this week 3 last year in the milly. Two points from a W. Let me find rest of team. Lol pic.twitter.com/Dq0sRtlvlx
— Cliff (@CliffycLGM) October 26, 2020
For the 38-year-old, who usually committed a bankroll of around $100 per week on FanDuel’s main contest as well as several other smaller buy-in tournaments, the cultivation of the $150k winning squad started early that week.
“I had been looking at matchups all week that I liked, and I had found a core group of five players.
“The night prior I had plans with friends and it ended up being a late evening. When I left, I told my friend those five players as a piece of advice.
“I woke up the next morning and decided to fire two $9 entries and four $6 entries in a smaller tournament. I made a lineup to reserve my seat (FanDuel didn’t have a reserve option then), so I just multi-entered one line up and made my adjustments about 35 minutes prior to kick off,”
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Once Super Sunday was under way, Conners sat down to watch his beloved Buffalo Bills with one eye on his tablet where he had NFL Red Zone playing. “I noticed I was off to a good start when all of my core players were finding the end zone, but I still didn’t pay too much attention because following progress is tiring and stressful,” he said.
The relaxed nature of a day started to intensify later that night as the games were winding down when the former Sales employee looked at the leaderboards to discover he was in the money.
“I looked and I was making $5000. As the games continued I was just seeing my guys go off and I was jumping spots.
“I hit $30,000, then next thing I know I’m third for $75,000, with a legitimate shot at winning $1 Million with a Russell Wilson to Tyler Lockett combination in a game where they were down 10 to the Saints and were throwing every down,” he recalled.
End of the 1st quarter: #Seahawks 7, #Saints 7
— KOMO Sports (@KOMO4Sports) September 22, 2019
Russell Wilson: 6/7, 75 YDS, TD
Tyler Lockett: 3 REC, 43 YDS, TD pic.twitter.com/KnCMK8MaUI
With time expiring, the Seahawks were on the 2-yard line with an untimed down after a series of penalty flags. The NY man knew that another Wilson to Lockett combination could get him the first place milly.
“Well, he found Will Dissly” he said, with the move being enough to move him up one spot to second for $150,000, but not enough for first place.
With all of his players done, he had to hold out until the end of the final game of the contest, the Chargers vs. Texans, to hold off any challengers to his loot.
Recounting the moment, than fantasy oracle remembers sitting on the phone with two friends, praying for nothing crazy.
“Their feed was ahead of mine, so I had to enforce the ‘no spoilers rule’.
“It ended up holding (for second place). It was surreal, and I missed becoming a millionaire by like two points.
“I wasn’t complaining, though.”
The huge win literally changed Cliff’s life who was able to give up his day job in sales and become a full-time poker player, entering in low stakes tournaments around the east coast of the US, having cashed $22,750 only last month in Florida.
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When asked what was the secret behind the success, the poker pro says a lot of putting together his perfect team comes down to instinct, as well as something we’ve heard from other winning bettors in the past - game scripting.
“The biggest thing is to play these games out in your head before they go off.
“If things go as you see them prior, you’re going to have a chance to make money, and potentially a run in these big fields,” he said.
So, with the NFL season less than two weeks away and a whole new season of DFS ahead of us, what kind of advice does the big winner have for those who are looking to try their luck at landing a six, or possibly seven-figure payday?
“I would say just enjoy it,” the Bills fan said.
“Smart small, figure it out a bit. It took a long time to realize certain subtle things give you the best chance to make runs at these and make money.
“New players have to understand that teams are going to change things up from week to week, just based on their matchup. You HAVE to pay attention to that because it impacts that game scripting you have planned.
“Do not let a week or month of that deter you. Stick with what you feel is best and go with it.”
You can follow Cliff and keep up to date with him during the NFL season as well as his journey as a professional poker player on his Twitter @CliffycLGM
Jason Bevilacqua, an expert in MLB, NHL, NBA, MLS, and NFL, delivers game previews, best bets, and props. Since 2020, as Head of Social and Community at Dimers, he has contributed insightful articles utilizing data-driven models and simulations.
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