Draft Kings/Fanduel Scandal

[HammerTime]

https://dfsreport.com/6840/fanduel-draftkings-mishaps/

 

We will start with the issue that happened at DraftKings last weekend. According to a Rotogrinders forum thread, RG member colinwdrew pointed out that an article was posted on the DraftKings playbook at 2:30 PM which showed player percentage owned for the DraftKings Millionaire Maker for week 3 NFL. This wouldn’t be a big deal on FanDuel or sites that are not late swap, but for DraftKings when that information is (supposedly) locked for everyone in case late swaps do occur. It is extremely unsettling and worrisome that not only can a mistake like this happen but that some people even have access to this information in the first place. If this sort of information is stored in advance like this who is to say that the data isn’t available to someone 5 minutes before kickoff of games or 10 minutes before the kickoff or even an hour before the initial kickoff. My point is if the data can be accessed in advance then it is not hard to see it could easily be accessed at other points in advance even before the tournament is live. Before the rotogrinders thread was locked we were given an explanation from Ethan himself.

 

DraftKings

 

If we take his response at face value we can safely assume Ethan was the only employee with access to this information. Should we rest easy knowing that he cannot play on DraftKings site? Hardly, especially if you played at FanDuel last weekend. Because Ethan does play DFS at FanDuel and actually had a pretty good week. In fact he took 2nd place in the biggest GPP on FanDuel for $350,000. That is a life changing score. I am not questioning Ethans skill at DFS, but if we argue that DFS is a game of skill then that skill really is about gathering the most relevant and useful data and information and using that to construct our lineups. If Ethan is the only one with access to this data at DraftKings how valuable is it for him to be able to use it on a site like FanDuel? It is extremely valuable in fact it could be the most valuable data available which is why it is kept so under wraps and why this is such a big deal. The edge that can be created by having access to this data is 2nd to none. No other data comes close to being as valuable as having a complete understanding of exactly what way the DFS crowd is leaning in any given week. That is why our FanDuel Thursday ownership piece is so popular. It is because it gives a small glimpse into the key ownership levels for that week.

[HammerTime]

https://dfsreport.com/6898/follow-up-to-draftkings-fanduel-mishaps/

 

Much has been said about the initial piece that I wrote discussing DraftKings and FanDuel mishaps from the past week. A lot of discussion has been focused on DFS employee’s playing on other sites. To be 100% transparent this was my entire goal with the piece written about DraftKings. For a long time I have stood on the sidelines and wondered what info and data was available and to whom behind closed doors. The situation with Ethan Haskell releasing data early and also winning big on FanDuel was the scenario to get the ball rolling with this discussion. I may have focused too much on Ethan’s win and not enough on the discussion of all site employees having access to valuable information. Off the top of my head I can list four pieces of data that would be extremely valuable to all DFS players that only site employees currently have access to:

 

 

 

-Understanding of Player pricing algorithms and all data points that go into determining salaries

 

 

 

– Win/Loss records and how individual DFS players are actually performing

 

 

 

– Info regarding what is really winning each type of contest and the lineup construction that goes into it

 

[HammerTime]

This could essentially be insider trading and/or fraud.

[Habib]

This could essentially be insider trading and/or fraud.

 

I heard a snippet yesterday that indicated Congress was considering investigating (:meh:).

 

Between this and the fact that average players aren't winning the big tournaments, I wonder how much longer this fad will go on.

[HammerTime]

I heard a snippet yesterday that indicated Congress was considering investigating (:meh:).

 

Between this and the fact that average players aren't winning the big tournaments, I wonder how much longer this fad will go on.

With the amount of money that is being pushed through each week it seems very likely Congress will be getting involved. I get that some are better than others but there is no way the "pros" are consistently placing in the top 10% of tournament that have 200,000 people each week in a game like this without having access to information the rest of the players don't have.

[BigVMan23]

Ok, I get the comparison so to speak of "insider tradinging" and these guys supposedly knowing stuff others don't/can't know. My question is, just from the info in the first post, in what way does that info help someone that has it? I don't play any of these online sites so I don't know how they work.

[Habib]

Ok, I get the comparison so to speak of "insider tradinging" and these guys supposedly knowing stuff others don't/can't know. My question is, just from the info in the first post, in what way does that info help someone that has it? I don't play any of these online sites so I don't know how they work.

 

At the most basic level, it's a competition between a huge number of people and if you have information on what your "opponents" are doing that no one else has then you have a big advantage.

 

For instance, some people were alleged to have looked at the lineups of people who consistently win and copy their lineups on other sites.

[HammerTime]

Ok, I get the comparison so to speak of "insider tradinging" and these guys supposedly knowing stuff others don't/can't know. My question is, just from the info in the first post, in what way does that info help someone that has it? I don't play any of these online sites so I don't know how they work.

 

At the most basic level, it's a competition between a huge number of people and if you have information on what your "opponents" are doing that no one else has then you have a big advantage.

 

For instance, some people were alleged to have looked at the lineups of people who consistently win and copy their lineups on other sites.

It's really all about the big tournaments. One of the main keys is getting production out of guys that aren't owned by a ton of people so you have a unique lineup. You don't want all your players to be owned by 50% of the other players. They were allegedly able to see the players % owned so it wouldn't be too hard for them to submit a few 100 lineups combinations that were extremely favorable to them. That is a MASSIVE advantage in the big tournaments.

[HammerTime]

MLB, NFL, and NBA all have a vested interest in getting this fixed the right way. It could potentially be a huge revenue loss for these sports if no one trusts the sites enough to play anymore and they are investors in these companies.

[Clyde]

NY AG is opening an investigation.

[Habib]

I don't know who this guy is, but this is pretty big.

 

Dustin Gouker @DustinGouker Wow. ESPN removing in-show integration of DraftKings.

[Habib]

DraftKings pulls advertising from ESPN amid questions of inside trading

[PurplePride92]

Damn. So we're better off using the site how we use it. Great, scammed out of winning one of those big checks and being in a commercial. It sounds super fishy and sketchy to me now. No way they can be trusted. Regulate it!!!!!!

[PurplePride92]

DraftKings pulls advertising from ESPN amid questions of inside trading

 

I'm watching the Lakers and Jazz on NBA TV. 5 seconds into a Draft Kings commercial and they cut it and went to another commercial.

[HammerTime]

FanDuel permanently bans employees from playing DFS for money amid inquiry

 

Two of the biggest daily fantasy sites, DraftKings and FanDuel, responded Wednesday morning to calls asking for greater transparency.

 

FanDuel announced, in a statement, that it had permanently banned its employees from playing on other fantasy sites, a day after the two sites temporarily imposed that ban. Both companies had always banned employees from playing on their own sites.

 

FanDuel spokesperson Justine Sacco told ESPN.com on Tuesday that the company's internal data showed that DraftKings employees won 0.3 percent of the money the company has awarded in its history. While Sacco wouldn't disclose the specific number, it is known the company has given out nearly $2 billion, which would put the DraftKings employees' winnings at around $6 million.

 

$6 Million is a lot of money if we are only talking about 50-100 employees.