Same players, same projections, different contest, different best lineup. That is the core idea behind cash games vs GPP, and the lesson makes it concrete. Cash-style contests pay a big slice of the field, while large tournaments pay mostly the top finishers. You will compare two lineups with identical averages and see one win when the cutline is high and the other win when it is low. Then you compute expected contest value from the real payout table, net of entry cost and special rules. The field matters too, since your lineup competes with every other entry. Learn to read the payout structure before you decide how much variance you want.
Learning objectives
- Explain the method, its assumptions, and when it fails.
- Recreate all examples and interpret net outcomes.
- Complete a paper-only workflow using contest rules and data timestamped before lock.
