FantasyAces Basketball Championship Winner Reveals $40,000 Strategy
North Carolina physician Thad Houston tops field of 13 top daily fantasy basketball players in prestigious Southern California live event final, takes home $40,000 first place check.
ALISO VIEJO, Calif., May 6, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The $100,000 FantasyAces.com Basketball Championship live final in Newport Beach, Calif., featured a field of 13 elite daily fantasy basketball players from throughout the United States. When the dust settled, a radiologist from Huntersville, North Carolina, emerged as the champion.
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Thad "RadThad954" Houston posted a score of 294.75 fantasy points, nearly 19 points ahead of runner-up Max "Madness" Albert, who put up a score of 276. Fantasy stalwarts Tyreke Evans (48.25) and Tobias Harris (44.50) set the pace for the doctor, while some of his lower-priced players delivered big dividends, such as Ish Smith (32.75) and Jonas Valanciunas (33.50).
Along with the FABC title, RadThad954 claimed the $40,000 tourney grand prize, while Madness (276 fantasy points) earned $20,000 for his second-place effort. Stevie "Stevietpfl" Young finished with 269.25 fantasy points, good enough for third place and a $10,000 check.
The once-in-a-lifetime FABC finals experience included accommodations at the waterfront Balboa Bay Resort in Newport Beach, a private harbor cruise aboard a 100-foot private motor yacht, gourmet meals, plentiful beverages and the action-packed live final at the famed American Junkie sports bar.
FantasyAces.com is based in Aliso Viejo, Calif., and was founded by Tom Frisina and sons Bryan and Trent. It is one of only three daily fantasy sports providers to offer big-ticket live event championships in basketball, baseball and football.
Up next is the $250,000 FantasyAces World Baseball Championship at Angel Stadium on August 14-15. It will be the first live event final at a professional sports stadium in daily fantasy sports history and will include a Home Run Derby on the field, a behind-the-scenes VIP ballpark tour, a three-day luxury vacation to Southern California and a $100,000 grand prize. Qualifying for the 20-seat field began in April and will continue through July.
FantasyAces Basketball Championship Grand Prize Winner RadThad954
FABC titlist Thad Houston recently took time to discuss his championship experience and provide insight for other daily fantasy enthusiasts.
What was your roster strategy for the FABC final?
With 13 teams competing, I didn't feel as though it was necessary to get too contrarian when rostering players. I figured that there would be a number of players who were "low owned" by default. My goal was to find a few players that might fall into the low owned category, while also having the potential for significant upside. I was also willing to go with the players who were highly owned, as long as I was confident that they would perform well.
How confident were you that you could win the tournament? Which competitors were you most wary of?
When it comes to live finals, my ultimate goal is to be the champ. However, I'm usually just happy to be there. In my opinion, the live finals experience is the main prize, while the monetary prizes are gravy. The level of competition was very high, as expected. I considered Gneiffer07 the favorite to win it all. In addition to having two entries, he's an excellent player. Naapstermaan, Stevietpfl, KaiBang and BringerofRain were also high on my list as potential 1st place finishers.
Describe your feelings at the point you realized you had the contest locked up. How did you feel about the champagne shower? Was the aftermath sticky and disgusting?
By the time the player minutes remaining for each team read 0 I was still in disbelief. Truth be told, I'm still not convinced that the whole weekend wasn't one long fantastic dream! The champagne shower was absolutely, positively AWESOME!!! Definitely my first, but hopefully not my last!
The aftermath was definitely sticky, but I was so excited and tipsy that I didn't mind one bit. Given that the trip was going to be a quick 48 hour escape from our regular life, my wife and I packed very light. Ok, I packed very light, which translated into a few t-shirts, underwear, socks—and one pair of pants, which were the jeans I was wearing during the champagne shower.
When I woke up the next morning, I quickly realized that I couldn't wear my jeans on the flight home. The end result was me flying home in my pajamas. This can be confirmed by Stevietpfl, who was on my outgoing flight. For some reason, I didn't mind at all.
What were your most memorable moments of the weekend?
I had a number of memorable moments. However, the best moments all revolved around getting to hang out with a bunch of the DFS players that I've come to know over the years. Whenever I see Naapstermaan, Stevietpfl and PrimeTime420 it's like hooking up with buddies that I've known forever. To win the championship and to be able to share that experience with them really meant a lot to me. Oh yeah, actually getting to steer the yacht at the yacht party was a close 2nd.
Rate the event on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the best. Please describe the experience for those who have yet to take part in FantasyAces live championship.
I would certainly rate the overall event as a 10. However, giving the FABC live final a numerical rating of any type doesn't do the event justice. The Frisinas really outdid themselves. The hotel accommodations, yacht party and championship venue were beyond top notch. For those who have yet to take part in a FantasyAces live final, I highly recommend that you make every effort to get to one. They are only going to be "raising the bar" from here on out, as evident by the recent announcement of the $250,000 FAWBC at Angel Stadium. I'll be doing whatever I have to in order to make it out there. If I have to stowaway in Madness' luggage, then so be it!
About FantasyAces
Founded in 2012, FantasyAces.com is a leading daily fantasy sports Web site located in Aliso Viejo, Calif., offering one-day salary cap-based contests for football, baseball, basketball and hockey. Players compete in a range of game formats for real cash prizes, free of the long-term commitment associated with seasonal fantasy sports. A member of the Fantasy Sports Trade Association, FantasyAces is one of the fastest-growing sites in the DFS industry and expects to pay out more than $30 million in cash prizes in 2015. Daily fantasy sports contests are legal in most U.S. states and FantasyAces operates in compliance of all related federal and state regulations.
For more information:
FantasyAces.com
Aaron Crecy, Chief Marketing Officer
[email protected]
(949) 540-6754 x 5754
SOURCE FantasyAces.com
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