Yeah, everything is a loser, except those outright weekly calls you keep buying, and buying ... and buying. I have made money with greater confidence trading verticals.
And what's the purpose of these outright purchases if you don't let them make you a maximum profit. That missed opportunity would have hurt me much more than any other loses I could have made. I have been there so I know how it feels. But on paper... there is no regrets
What about setting price target, short that strike price and buy ITM option, that way you can be delta biased, and short vega for the subsequent IV fall.
which strikes ?
I consider buying some IC today or Monday, with middle strike prices at 190 and 200 and expiry 12/31/2014. In case I don't get good fill on the call side first I will just sell far otm put premium, maybe the 185/180 vertical