Tom Sosnoff’s LEAST Favorite Strategies
Last week, our members watched a full live breakdown of the strategies Tom Sosnoff loves. This week we flip it: the six he avoids, and the one reason that connects almost all of them.
Knowing a pro’s favorite trades is useful. Knowing what he refuses to put on — and being able to explain why — is where the real education is. Here are the six trades a 44-year veteran won’t touch:
1. Calendar Spreads — two bets stapled into one: a bet on time and a bet on where volatility goes across expirations.
2. Butterflies — a beautiful-looking risk/reward that almost never pays the maximum, because you have to pin the exact strike.
3. Long Straddles & Strangles — here you’re buying volatility and paying theta every single day. The house’s side of the bet, flipped to the customer.
4. Back-Spreads — net long options that bleed in the middle of the range and need a genuinely big move to pay off.
5. Long OTM Options — cheap for a reason. Lottery tickets that mostly expire worthless.
6. Iron Flys — the odd one out: it’s actually a short-premium trade. So why doesn’t he like it?
Have you been quietly running any of these? Five of the six share a single flaw, and the sixth breaks the rule in a different way. We’ll pull up live option chains, walk each payoff, and show the one principle that ties them all together — plus the trades Tom would put on instead.
This is a members-only live Office Hours session with Tony Battista and Tony Rihan. The date, the live link, and the full breakdown are below — for members.
Not a member yet? This is exactly the kind of session our members join for. Come learn to trade like the pros → growyourpile.com
🔒 Members — here’s your invite
New to the series? Last week’s session on Tom’s favorite strategies is in the members portal — a good warm-up for tomorrow, since we’ll be contrasting the two.
📅 Tomorrow — Thursday, August 20, 2026
5:00 PM ET · 4:00 PM CT · 3:00 PM MT · 2:00 PM PT
Tom Sosnoff’s 6 Least Favorite Strategies
With Tony Battista & Tony Rihan · Live, with option chains on screen
