It mostly depends on your luck. Even if a project seems legit and you have researched it well, it can still turn out to be a scam, even after several months of work. I haven't mentioned any bounty campaign in 2019 that can compete with earnings in 2017.
of course not. but I think its time for all of us to forget about 2017 and start working now. I think that in 2021 everyone will say that in 2021, earnings from bounty campaigns are not as good as they were in 2019