PickChamps Review
PickChamps is a new daily fantasy sports website launched in September 2015. But does PickChamps have what it takes to compete with the industry’s biggest players? Here’s our review.
What is PickChamps?
Launched in September 2015, PickChamps is a New York-based daily fantasy sports website that offers a few twists from its rivals.
Like most fantasy sports websites, you pay to enter a daily or weekly contest, then get paid based on how well your players perform.
PickChamps is different from its competitors in one major way: users make predictions (i.e. bets) on how well a certain player will perform. There’s no salary cap system.
By getting rid of the salary cap system, PickChamps claims to offer daily fantasy sports without limits. You can pick as many of the league’s biggest players as you want – as long as your predictions are correct, you can win points.
How Does PickChamps Work?
This PickChamps article on BizJournals explains the concept better than I ever could. Here’s what the company’s chief executive had to say about the website’s “twist” on DFS:
“What we do is allow users to make predictions on how an athlete will perform. Then, we generate through our algorithms the probability of that happening. If I start out with 100 points, my goal is to increase that number of points. So, I allocate points against predictions, or picks, that I make. For example, I could place 10 points against the prediction that Tom Brady will pass over 200 yards. Say the offer is two to one. If I’m right, I’m going to get two points for every point I want to allocate. And for every pick the user makes, we generate an offer. If I’m wrong, I lose a point.”
Basically, your goal is to predict the statistical performance of players. The more accurate your predictions, the more money you make. When your low-percentage predictions come true, you’re going to win more money.
The PickChamps website gives a few different examples of how PickChamps’ predictions work:
Sample NFL Pick #1: Brady will throw for a minimum of 300 yards against the Giants.
Sample NFL Pick #2: Murray and Lacy combined will have a minimum of 3 rushing touchdowns in week 12.
Sample NBA Pick: LeBron James will score a maximum of 30 points against the Bulls.
The statistical picks are separated into three categories:
-Single Player Statistical Picks: Choose whether or not a certain player will have more or less than a key stat – like more or less than 80 rushing yards for Adrian Peterson, for example.
-Combined Player Statistical Picks: Predict the combined performance of two players for a certain period of time. You can say that Andrew Luck and Peyton Manning will combine for 5 or more touchdowns in their respective games, for example.
-Head to Head Picks: Match two players up against each other in a specific category. You can predict that Eddie Lacy will have fewer rushing yards than DeMarco Murray in their respective games, for example (the players do not necessarily need to be playing in the same game).
After you’ve made your prediction, PickChamps uses an algorithm to assess the likelihood of that prediction coming true. Then, the site assigns you odds called an “Offer”.
For every point a user allocates to the prediction (called a “Pick”), you’ll receive the Offer number in return. For example, if you allocate 10 points to a Pick with an Offer of 5, then you’ll receive 50 points if that Offer is successful.
An offer of 2.00 points means that the PickChamps algorithm has assigned a probability of 50% to your pick.
There’s also another twist: you can create your picks right up until the last game in a contest. So unlike other DFS sites, your picks aren’t immediately locked in 10 minutes before the first game of the day starts. This gives you a little more freedom and flexibility.
You can play fantasy sports through PickChamps online using your web browser or through their Android or iOS apps. The iOS app is available from the iTunes store although you’ll need to download the Android app as an .apk file (it’s not currently available on the Google Play Store). The apk file can be directly downloaded here.
Which Sports Are Available?
PickChamps is available for all of the following sports and leagues:
-NFL
-MLB
-NHL
-NBA
-EPL
-MLS
How to Join PickChamps
You can play PickChamps for free without ever entering our credit card information.
After you sign up for the site, you can mess around with a few free entry games to get the feel for the system.
Once you’re ready to start competing for real prizes, you can start to join pools. Entry fees are typically $2, $5, or $10, although some of the higher-stakes pools will have $50+ payouts.
Like other DFS sites, pools can last daily or weekly. However, PickChamps also has the added advantage of offering monthly contests.
In any case, browsing through all of these contests is as straightforward as browsing any other fantasy sports website.
PickChamps VIP Program
PickChamps also aims to differentiate itself from its competition with its VIP program. Although that program is not available at launch, the creators of PickChamps claim that it’s “coming soon”.
The VIP program will cost extra (VIP members will pay a monthly fee). In return, VIPs enjoy benefits like:
-Discounted entries to select contests
-Special access to VIP-only contests
-Free VIP-only challenges to win cash
Withdrawals
At the time of launch, PickChamps only offered withdrawals through PayPal. All withdrawals are processed within 24 hours.
Withdrawals above $600 require you to provide proof of identification. There’s also a $10 withdrawal minimum.
Any bonus dollars you earn through PickChamps cannot be withdrawn. They can only be used to pay PickChamps entry fees. However, the money you earn from winning those contests can then be withdrawn.
About PickChamps
PickChamps was launched in September 2015 and is headquartered in New York City.
The fantasy sports company claims to be the world’s first “daily fantasy sports without limits”.
You can contact PickChamps by emailing info@pickchamps.com
You can compare them to our Fanduel and DraftKings review as well.
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