Considering all responses, the average number of players that
compete in each pool is 28.9. However, that number is
definitely skewed because one entrant has an average of 200 players
each week!. (Seriously?) Another entrant averages 125
players. If you toss out these two responses, the average
drops down to 24.6. A few of the pools were simply
for a few close family members. For example, one pool had just
four members each year.
#2. What does it cost to enter?
Almost 50% of the pools cost just $5 or $6 each week to enter. About 25% of the pools cost $10 or $11 to enter. The maximum
weekly entry fee from all responses was $25 per week. A full 15%
of the pools are completely free. They compete for bragging rights only between
other family members or a small company.
#3. Does your pool use the NFL pointspread?
No surprise here.
Most office pools I've been involved in do not use the
NFL pointspread. The results of the survey bear this out. 91.9%
of the pools do not use it.
#4. Is your pool a Confidence Points pool?
No surprise here either and very similar results.
91.8% of the pools are not Confidence Point pools.
(With a Confidence Point pool, in addition to selecting a team, you
assign from 1 to 16 points for each game. Each game must
specify a different number within this range. If the team you
selected wins, you're awarded that many points. The player
with the most points, who is not necessarily the same player with the most
wins, is the winner.)
#5. If you use the total number of points scored on Monday
Night as a tiebreaker, do you invoke Price Is Right scoring?
(Closest to the total without going over.)
28.9%
of the pools do in fact use "Price is Right" tiebreaker scoring, and
that number is certainly higher than I might have guessed.
(Price Is Right scoring is the closest to the Monday Night total,
without going over.) Only two entrants answered "n/a"
indicating they don't use Monday night total points as a tie-breaker
at all. One user said they pick the total points of all
games as a tie-breaker, not just the Monday game!
#6. If you're the host of your pool, do you use the
calculator's input feature to input everyone's selections or do you
enter them by hand?
Yay!
Although the feature is relatively new, a full 31.7% of all
users are using this feature of the calculator to input everyone's
selections, so that they don't have to enter them by hand.
That's very, very good to hear.
#7. Do you use the Thursday game as part of the contest?
Believe it or not, the results of this
question is what surprised me the most.
87.3% of all pools DO use the Thursday Night game as part of
their pool. I didn't think it would be nearly that high of a
percentage. The reason, of course, is that by not using
that game, that gives the host and the players, at least one extra
day, minimum, to turn in their picks, collect the weekly fees, etc.
I really expected this question to be split about 50-50, or maybe 60-40.
And yet no, it's nearly 90-10. That surprised me.
