My Worst and Best picks of stocks

My best and worst recommendations over the past year are worth reflection on my part. So let me start with the worst pick.

Worst pick:
It was the ETF Ultra Short of the Russell 2000, symbol TZA in about January of 2009. My initial purchase price was around $36/share and the stock went to $51/share but I held on and didn't take the profit as I should. It played out that the shares have fallen down to $5.91 at the close for a whopping 83.6% drop. I still own this ETF. How's that for a bad play.

Best picks:
So in dollar terms my recommended purchase of Apple's stock, symbol was spectacular at $79/share. Yesterday that stock hit a high of $260/share. That's a remarkable 229% gain.

But that isn't my best pick, interestingly, as it turns out during the Auto bailout, when GM was headed for bankruptcy in December of 2008, I had recommended and purchased Ford Motor stock, symbol F. The price was an amazing $1.49/share. That stock has increased to a whopping $14.54/share for an 876% gain! Unfortunately I sold those shares and bought them back twice over the period so my gains are much, much less. But those that have held the stock did quite well indeed. Wish all my pics were that good, but it is truly a rigged game and we all know it. The real question is this. Knowing it is rigged, can you still make money? Because my friends so isn't Vegas and we still go there too, now don;t we! :)