I have been running a football pool of around 30 people for 15 yrs or so. We started with a 'winner take all' payout model. After the first five years, we switched to a top-5 payout model, and after about five more years, we switched to a top-7 or so payout model. Winner gets the biggest chunk, next person gets about half of the 1st, next gets a little less, etc. down to the last person getting their money back to break even.
The idea being that, since nobody is going to get rich, we might as well have more winners so it's more exciting for more people as the end nears. Otherwise, by the end, it's a usually 2 horse race and nobody else cares. Why not have a third of the people still in the mix?
Next year, maybe we consider adopting the 'top-4 get hardware' that the NCAA uses? Just a thought. Doesn't really apply to this year - too late to switch it now.