Dykstra: Dow Chemical Home Run

The past two weeks have been good ones for my Nails on the Numbers subscribers. Last week, my deep-in-the-money options trading system won four times. The four options positions that crossed the finish line added $11,150 to my win column.

Then Wednesday, my position in Dow Chemical(DOW Quote), my Jan. 12 pick, won a whopping $15,750 on 160 contracts. It's the biggest single win on my scorecard to date. I had two $13,000-plus wins last summer. Quicker wins of $1,000 to $2,000 are more typical.

Last week, my quadruple win opened with a $1,000 payout on Alcoa(AA Quote) on its third trading day in play. Then on April 14, I closed out an extended position in Intel(INTC Quote), a Sept. 8 pick, into which I'd put $123,000 over time in an effort to bring down its average cost. Intel's big drop since the market crash had put the position in jeopardy. But I managed it carefully, bringing my average costs within reach until the market gave me my win.

Also on April 14, Halliburton(HAL Quote) paid off $2,000 after 27 calendar days in play. My position in Honeywell International(HON Quote) closed out April 16, putting another $1,000 into my win column on its ninth trading day. ...