Thanks for all the solid info. I've been reading about First Class Monetization here on FT in the "definitive thread" however I'm still not 100% sure how it works or how one would find a comparable discount F fare. I still have plenty of reading to do but if anyone wants to point me in the right direction that would be great. In my experience, and again, I'm booking most of my travel far in advance, the differences between economy & FC are pretty major (the exception I've noticed is Caribbean tickets. We goto Jamaica a lot and have noticed FC is around 2x the price of Economy which is one of the lowest delta's I've noticed).

For me I still feel there is value in "chasing status" but it may be a year or two before I'd ever really see a benefit due to my limited flying. Time will tell.