Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Dec 15, 2008 | More

DISCLAIMER: I just want to make it clear that I am not affiliated with the Fantasy Football Open Championship nor am I any way being compensated for the article written below. This is an attempt to bring the readers of Fantasy Sharks an objective opinion of a new fantasy game.

Something is about to happen that is going to make fantasy football even better. You're probably asking yourself if that’s possible? Well, you tell me. The FFOC, Fantasy Football Open Championship, is about to give away $1,000,000 next Monday night. Can you imagine taking home a cool $1 million for playing fantasy football? How sweet would that be!?

First you get the money, then you get the power, then you get the women?

I'm writing about this contest now because I didn't want to jinx myself on my way to becoming the first fantasy millionaire. But, as of last week, I am out. I was able to make it to the final 144, but couldn't quite pick the right lineup to get into the final 57. But this column isn't about me; it's about the fact that someone IS going to become a millionaire simply by playing fantasy football.

The FFOC was supposed to have 50,000 teams, 5,000 leagues with 10 teams each.  Instead, this, the inaugural year of the contest, had only 6,660 teams. Talk about a golden opportunity. Depending on when you drafted, the cost per team was either $125 to $150, but even less if you bought a three- or 10-pack.

Before I bore you with too many details, let me tell you what makes this contest head and shoulders above the other high-stakes games. It's the playoff format. The regular season consists of a nine-week head-to-head format in which you get a win or loss based on each head-to-head matchup. Each team also accumulates an additional win or loss each week based on whether it finishes in the top half or bottom half of its league in points scored for the week. The top two teams in each league with the best 18-game records play head-to-head in Week 10 to determine which team advances to the Las Vegas Bracket and that's when the fun begins.

Do you think Hef would still have chicks like this hanging on him if all he had was a social security check and a room at the YMCA?

Unlike other high-stakes games that use your regular season scoring average to determine your standing throughout the playoffs, the FFOC takes your scoring average for Weeks 1-9 and puts it aside until Week 16. So, Week 11 started with 666 teams eligible for the $1 million. At the end of Week 11, only the top 468 teams advance to Week 12 based solely on the scores from Week 11. What this means is that you don't have to have a fantastic regular season to win the grand prize, you just need to win your league. This continues until the end of Week 15, when only 15 teams are left standing.

The FFOC provides live scoring which allows you to watch the cut line move up with every touchdown, field goal and extra point scored. Talk about intense! 

This is a high-stakes game that you don't have to be an expert to win. All you have to do is win a 10-team league and then get hot. This format has leveled the playing field and next year it just may be a Fantasy Sharks reader making chum out of the experts.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to e-mail me at thecornerofknowledge@yahoo.com.