I think some of your confusion might be around the "preference point" option when you apply. The preference point option just means that if you do not draw your first choice, you want a preference point. If you do not choose this option, you will not get a preference point. A friend of mine found this out the hard way.
So if you apply for a tag with 1 point, you are put in the 1 point pool. If you do not draw that tag and you choose the preference point option when applying, the following year you would have 2 points, and so on until you draw your 1st choice. if you don't choose the preference point option you will be at 1 point for the next year also, unless you purchase a point when they make them available to purchase in the late summer/early fall.
Points do not have anything to do with second choice. So if you draw your second choice, and chose the preference point option when applying, you will get your second choice tag and be at 2 points for the following year. Just make sure the second choice is drawable on second, and make sure its somewhere you want to hunt. Most of the time if the unit is easy to draw on second choice, there is a reason such as poor quality, lack up public land, or maybe lots of public land but limited access, or a combination of reasons.
BTW, if you choose the preference point option when you apply and you end up drawing your first choice, they will refund you the cost of the preference point option because you would then have used your one point and because you drew, you would not be eligible to gain a point that year.
