I had so much better red picks from monthlies because I finished Elite and got 15-20, cards. It just sucked that you couldn't miss a WL or you had to play all your games or it would mess up your monthly rank.

The player picks favour the guys who finish gold because 1. They get more than before 2. Elite is only 1 extra card.

It just added more randomness and luck to picks because the better players don't get rewarded with better picks.