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How Pantherpitt Won December’s Title: Best and Worst Picks

Pantherpitt took home the title in December and won a plane ticket to NCAAs. We asked him to break down his best and worst picks of the month:

Worst Picks:

• Greg Kerkvliet 275, Penn State vs. Pennsylvania (3 December), Scratched–0 points

• Bernie Truax 184, Cal Poly @ Cliff Keen Invitational (3-4 December), Scratched–0 points

• P.J. Ogunsanya 149, Army vs. Rutgers (10 December), Scratched–0 points

I’m starting with the worst picks because, in this game, you can hurt yourself with a bad pick far more than you can help yourself with a great one. The most important piece of strategy advice I can give: avoid taking zeros! It is important to remember that the only way a wrestler does not earn points in this game is if he/she does not take the mat. Spencer Lee and Gable Steveson are obviously great picks anytime they compete, but if they happen not to wrestle, they earn you a zero. I learned this lesson the hard way when I first started playing FFL, and I now make a concerted effort to pick wrestlers I’m confident will compete. Even so, I still managed to make multiple picks that earned zero points this month. I try to monitor all available news leading up to a match/tournament, but sometimes that news doesn’t come until it is too late (or at all) and you end up picking a wrestler who scratches. This will inevitably happen to everyone–just try your best to avoid picking scratches when the news IS available. FFL made a recent upgrade that allows players to change their selections until games lock. This will be a huge help.

Best Picks:

• Jordan Wood 275, Lehigh vs. Penn State (5 December), WBFFT–23 points

• Jonathan Millner 149, Appalachian State vs. Matt Fields, NC State (12 December), WBMD–18 points

• Vito Arujau 125, Cornell vs. Jake Campbell, Penn State (20 December), WBF–20 points

• Gavin Hoffman 197, Ohio State vs. Nino Bonaccorsi, Pitt (12 December), LBD–10 points

I’m starting with the worst picks because, in this game, you can hurt yourself with a bad pick far more than you can help yourself with a great one. The most important piece of strategy advice I can give: avoid taking zeros! It is important to remember that the only way a wrestler does not earn points in this game is if he/she does not take the mat. Spencer Lee and Gable Steveson are obviously great picks anytime they compete, but if they happen not to wrestle, they earn you a zero. I learned this lesson the hard way when I first started playing FFL, and I now make a concerted effort to pick wrestlers I’m confident will compete. Even so, I still managed to make multiple picks that earned zero points this month. I try to monitor all available news leading up to a match/tournament, but sometimes that news doesn’t come until it is too late (or at all) and you end up picking a wrestler who scratches. This will inevitably happen to everyone–just try your best to avoid picking scratches when the news IS available. FFL made a recent upgrade that allows players to change their selections until games lock. This will be a huge help.