Building a Repeatable Process – Your Daily DFS Routine
“Success loves consistency.” This mantra, echoed by the DFS Hero team, highlights that the best players rely on a repeatable process. In this chapter, we focus on how to develop and stick to a routine that covers all the bases of DFS preparation. A well-crafted process ensures you don’t miss important research steps and helps you make decisions calmly and methodically rather than in a last-minute rush.
Why a routine matters: Having a checklist or routine for each slate eliminates guesswork and prevents mistakes. It also makes your DFS prep more efficient. Instead of feeling overwhelmed by everything you could analyze, you’ll have a set list of steps to follow. Over time, this routine becomes a habit – one of the key habits of consistently successful (and disciplined) DFS players.
Let’s break down a sample DFS Hero routine that you can adapt to your needs:
1. Start with the News and Projections: Begin by updating yourself on the day’s news for the sport (injuries, lineup changes, weather conditions, etc.). On DFS Hero, check our real-time projections that are updated around the clock. Early in the day, identify key news and make note of which players’ statuses or matchups could significantly impact the slate.
2. Identify Value and Opportunities: Using DFS Hero’s data, pinpoint the players and teams that stand out. Look at metrics like projected points per salary (value), and for GPPs, consider ownership projections (who will be popular). DFS Hero’s metrics like simROI (simulated ROI for players) or ranks can highlight which players might be underpriced or overlooked. For instance, if a mid-priced running back has a high simROIand moderate ownership projection, that’s a potential opportunity to exploit. Jot down a list of core plays and value picks for your lineups, noting potential pivots (alternative choices) if news breaks later.
3. Use the Lineup Optimizer (with Your Rules): Next, head into the Hero Lineup Optimizer to start crafting lineups. This isn’t about blindly taking whatever lineup pops out – it’s about using the optimizer as a powerful assistant to implement your strategy. Before generating lineups, set your preferences:
o Stacks: If you’re playing a sport like NFL or MLB where stacking is crucial, use the stack rules feature. For example, you can tell the optimizer to always pair your QB with at least one WR or to stack a baseball team’s hitters. This automates your correlation strategy.
o Exposure Limits: Decide how much exposure you want to each player if you’re building multiple lineups. The optimizer’s exposure control lets you cap a player at say 50% of your lineups, ensuring diversity. Discipline here means not going “all-in” on a single player in every lineup – spreading risk is key.
o Hero AI Randomness: Choose a randomness level for the lineup generation. A conservative setting will stick closer to projections, while a higher randomness will introduce more variety (useful for volatile sports or large GPPs). Start with a moderate setting; you can adjust and run again to see different outcomes. This randomness feature helps mimic the unpredictability of real games, giving you a wider range of viable lineups to consider.
o Filters and Player Pool Edits: If you have strong convictions (say you want to fade a high-risk player or lock in a sleeper pick), apply those filters or locks in the optimizer. The DFS Hero interface allows you to sort, filter, and include/exclude players easily. Just remember to use these tools to fine-tune your strategy, not to force suboptimal choices due to personal bias.
Once your settings are in place, generate as many lineups as your plan allows. DFS Hero’s optimizer can quickly produce thousands of lineups, giving you plenty of opportunities to run simulations, analyze outcomes, and continually sharpen your approach.
4. Leverage the Contest Simulator: Now that you have potential lineups, put them to the test with the Hero Contest Simulator. This tool is a game-changer for a process-oriented player: it runs thousands of simulations on an entire contest field to see how your lineups are likely to perform. Import or select the lineups you built, choose the contest settings (field size, payout structure, etc.), and run the sim. Pay attention to the results, especially:
o Projected ROI for each lineup (is this lineup +EV in this contest?).
o Placement distribution (how often does it finish in top 1%, cash, min-cash, etc.).
o Key drivers of success (maybe you notice the lineups doing best in simulations all include a certain stack or player – that can validate your choices or prompt a re-think).
Using the contest simulator as part of your routine instills discipline by grounding your expectations in data. Instead of guessing your chances, you’ll have a realistic preview. If a lineup shows a negative expected ROI in simulations, a process-driven player will either tweak it or reconsider entering it at all. This step helps you avoid throwing entries at contests without a calculated plan.
5. Finalize Lineups and Enter Contests: After refining your lineups through optimization and simulation, select your final lineup(s) for each contest. DFS Hero’s Entries Hub can simplify the next part – it provides a unified interface to manage and export your lineups to DFS sites (like DraftKings or FanDuel) seamlessly. Double-check that each lineup is entered into the intended contest (discipline means avoiding unforced errors like entering a single-entry lineup into a multi-entry contest by mistake, or vice versa). If you’re a single-entry or hand-building specialist, DFS Hero’s Hand-Build Mode is available to manually construct a lineup while still giving you access to all the data (projections, ownership, etc.) in one screen. However you finalize lineups, be confident that you followed your process. Now it’s time to click enter and let the games play out!
6. Post-Contest Review Preparation: Your routine doesn’t end when lineups are submitted. Mentally prepare to review the results later, regardless of outcome. A true DFS Hero looks back at each slate to learn (we’ll cover this in depth in a later chapter). For now, a simple step: plan a time after contests to reflect and possibly import results into the Bankroll Tracker. Setting this expectation beforehand helps you treat each slate as part of a continuous process, not isolated events.
This sample routine can be completed in less than an hour, or spread out over the day if you prefer to research early and finalize lineups closer to lock. Customize it based on how much time you have and the contests you play. The key is that you have some consistent process to lean on. It brings order to the chaos of DFS.
“Establishing a routine was a turning point for me. I used to scramble 10 minutes before lock, and my results were all over the place. Now I follow a checklist every time – news, projections, build, simulate, then enter. My lineups are more thought-out, and I’ve seen my cash rates improve significantly because I’m no longer missing crucial steps.”
— DFS Hero User
By building a repeatable process, you ensure that even on days when luck isn’t on your side, you still made the best decisions you could. Consistency in preparation will lead to more consistent performance over the long run. In the next chapter, we’ll delve into one of the hardest but most important aspects of DFS: the discipline to manage your bankroll and contest selection wisely as part of this process.
