It sounds like you are going long options; yeah if you have a very low delta, you will have less sensitivity to the move of the underlying, so being ATM or ITM will definitely help. Also, the farther out in time you are, the lower the rate of time decay. My guess is you're day trading the options, so instead of trading the ES futures options, I suggest you try SPX or SPY options, there's better liquidity there. But most importantly, if you're not comfortable with the trade, don't do it.
Ay Alpha, Yea I'm kinda understanding now.... I've been thinking about it and it sounds like the best time to buy the calls are after the market has been going up a bit / lot so the calls are already high in Vol so if the market spins then the calls will hold their value quite well. Thing is when I traded options here in Auz I always used the chains to work out my trades (going on the theory that if the market moved 2 ticks of the option chain then so would the price of the option.) We'll get there... eventually. XD.
Hey Botpro, After a lot of digging around it turns out you were completely correct. I couldn't believe it. I know there are a lot of fishy things going on with the bucket shops. I never though with the exchange ones tho. I read on forex factory that that Gain (FCM) didn't pass its government audit. Once of the reasons was false data. Plus some people on here have been posting on ET that they were recieving false quotes. I thought if I was trading on the exchange everything would b fine. Just wanted to say thanks and I changed my FCM. Cya.
Sorry to have been confirmed again. Yes, I too have been a victim of such unethical practices of a broker trading against his own clients; I had the strong feeling that something was really fishy with the quotes I received from them, fantasy Level-II data to force me to early close (ie. panic-close) my pos, they buying (ie. overtaking) my pos in-house and continuing it, and making a big profit of that action. They are in an advanced position by delaying and manipulating the quotes they show their select clients (ie. where it would guaranteed be profitable for them, then they do such fraud...). Market quotes data, and all online games, incl. roulette, poker etc. can easily be manipulated by the operating shops.