It's Thursday afternoon. You are sitting at 2.8% profit. The leaderboard shows that the 10th place winner is currently at 2.6%. You are in. You are a winner.
But there are still 24 hours of trading left. The 11th and 12th place traders are active. You see a setup. It's not perfect, but "if I just make another 0.5%, I'll be safe."
The Statistics of Chasing
Our data shows that traders who are in "winning positions" on Thursday and choose to trade on Friday have a 42% higher chance of breaching their daily drawdown than those who stop. The psychological pressure of "protecting" a lead often leads to wider stops and emotional exits.
The Art of Staying Still
In the ZFC competition, sometimes the most profitable thing you can do is close your terminal. If you are in the top 10 and the gap to 11th is significant, the risk/reward of taking another trade is heavily skewed toward risk. You are risking a $5,000 funded account and a cash payout just to gain a few extra decimal points on a leaderboard.
"Traders are paid for their decisions, and 'No Trade' is a valid decision."
For trading rules and limits — always refer to the official rules page, not blog content, as rules may be updated: