Daily Fantasy Sports is one of the fastest growing pastimes in the country, offering sports fans a unique and engaging way to enjoy their favourite sports. Of course, in Australia, there’s no better place to play DFS than Draftstars.

If you're new to DFS and looking to dive into Draftstars for the first time, here’s some of the basic steps to get started and some extra help to navigate the Draftstars platform for beginners.

CREATE A DRAFTSTARS ACCOUNT

The first step on your DFS journey on Draftstars is to create an account. Click on the links or banners on our website and you’ll be taken to the Draftstars website. From there, you’ll fill out a sign-up form to complete your personal details such as name, email address and date of birth - these are all legally required as part of the “Know Your Customer” policies of all gambling websites. You’ll then create a unique username and password. Keep that safe as you’ll use them to login to your account. Make sure you read and understand the site’s terms and conditions regarding your account and personal data.

DEPOSIT FUNDS

Once you’ve registered, you'll want to deposit some funds into your Draftstars account to be able to pay the entry fees required for entering contests. The platform offers secure and convenient payment options, including credit/debit cards, BPAY, PayID and bank transfer. Choose the method that suits you best and follow the instructions to deposit funds. It's essential to set a budget and play responsibly, only depositing an amount you are comfortable with losing.

CHECK OUT THE AVAILABLE CONTESTS

Once your Draftstars account is set up, it's time to explore the wide range of contests offered. There’s daily tournaments, head-to-head matchups, six-player “cash games”, qualifiers and even custom private games that you can create to play against your mates.

For new players, you’ll want to look for the Casual Contest icon which looks like a little blue pyramid. These contests are designed for new and beginner players only. Pros and experienced players are unable to enter these contests, so it’s a perfect place to get started.

UNDERSTAND HOW THE CONTEST WORKS

When you open a contest, have a close look at the information in the headings at the top of the window. You’ll want to look at the entry fee, payout breakdown and how the scoring works - these will be different for each contest and sport.

You’ll also want to familiarise yourself with the labels that are used in the player lobby. Again, these can vary between sports, but some of them are very important to note.

The “N” icon next to a player means that they have been named to play, and this will change to a “C” once the final lineups are confirmed. This is important, as you’ll want to avoid players with the “O” icon - this means they are out of the lineup and won’t score you any points!

SELECTING YOUR LINEUP

The heart of daily fantasy sports is constructing a winning lineup within the constraints of the salary cap. Each player is assigned a price based on their perceived value and likely performance and your goal is to select an optimal lineup for maximum scoring without exceeding your salary cap!

In the Draftstars lobby you’ll see the full list of available players under the ALL tab, which can be sorted by name, average or salary. To make things a bit easier, you can also see the players for each position under the appropriate position tab. Most sports require you to select a predetermined number of players from each position.

For a more detailed breakdown of recent form and stats, you can click on a player’s name.

Once you’re happy with a selection, click on the Plus button to add them to your lineup.

You’ll only be able to Submit Lineup once you’ve filled each position within the salary cap or other restrictions.

SWEAT YOUR RESULTS

The fun part of daily fantasy sports is sweating the progress of your lineups during a sporting contest. The Draftstars platform updates the scores in real-time, which means you can see exactly how you are faring against other players during the live match! The thrill of sweating lineups that are a chance to win is one of the best things about DFS!

REVIEW, LEARN AND IMPROVE

Win, lose or draw, you should review your performance and learn from each contest you play. On Draftstars you can look at the lineups of other players, so try to figure out what they did differently to you and why it worked.

There are also a heap of different resources available online to help you understand and improve your DFS skill and performance.

Good luck on your DFS journey!

For more great DFS strategy and tips, head to Daily Fantasy Rankings

Original source: https://www.dailyfantasyrankings.com.au/article/dfs-strategy-the-basics-how-to-get-started-on-draftstars