Dykstra: 2009 a Field of Dreams

The year just ended was memorable for more than just the worldwide market crash. It was also the year that my former team, the Philadelphia Phillies, took the World Series and David Tyree caught Eli Manning's 32-yard heave, setting up the New York Giants to win the Super Bowl. And then there's my own 92-0 options-picking winning streak.

On Wall Street, a savage year ended on an up note Wednesday, with a two-day rally that added 3.4% to the Dow Jones Industrial Avearge. Markets were lifted by details about the Federal Reserve's plans to buy mortgage-backed securities and news that General Motors(GM Quote) dealerships will begin making car loans again -- after the Treasury Department agreed to provide GMAC Financial Services with $5 billion.

While economists debate whether housing and financial markets have hit bottom yet, I view 2009 as a year of outsized opportunity. Some stocks may still fall farther, but many have almost nowhere to go but up. And I'll be anticipating those moves with my deep-in-the-money (DITM) picks through my Nails on the Numbers newsletter.

Now, let's recap my three biggest payoffs of 2008. My top play was a May 14 pick of 10 contracts of the January 2010 $30 call options on Morgan Stanley(MS Quote), which stayed open 64 days before ringing up $13,800 for my win column. As in all my picks, I placed a good-till-cancel order $1 above my average purchase price on the option.

My second-biggest payoff was a May 21 buy of the $20 calls on Wachovia(WB Quote) that remained open for 72 days before netting me $13,200.