Nurse Holiday's Long Overdue VEGAAS TRIP REPORT part 2
Day 2 began with a quick swim in the I.P. Pool (best not think about that one too long). Then off to the Aladdin for the morning tourney - advertised as a $35 + $5 freezeout with breakfast! Bad beat #2 - their idea of breakfast was one or two urns of coffee and about 2 dozen muffins and donuts and pastries. Certainly better than one would find on Fear Factor, but not exactly what I had envisioned. No matter - on to the poker.
This one drew 87 paid entries when all was said and done (but fewer than 87 players, as it wasn't exactly a freezeout - they accepted entries for 30 minutes after the opening bell, and they didn't care whether the new entrant had just straggled in off the strip or had beetled over from table 7 after having his Aces cracked - so in effect if you busted out within half an hour it was a rebuy, but you had to bust out to rebuy or re-enter). Weird, but not neccessarily bad. So, they announced that 9 would be paid and first prize would be in excess of $800. It was expected to take 3 - 3.5 hours to complete ( suspect it took less time, but sadly was not around to verify).
The rounds lasted 15 minutes and the blinds started at 25/50. Players began with 1500 in chips.
Again I have few hands of any interest to report. Got no cards to even consider playing so I just sat and tried to learn what I could about the players and made mental notes about the room and the dealers (which, IMHO were VERY GOOD on the personality meter and COMPETENT on the skill meter - no complaints no mistakes and I enjoyed their pleasant manner - to my pleasant surprise I saw a few of them deal with multi-all-ins and sidepots with ease). The room is okay - it is on it's own and has maybe 13 - 14 tables... not the best room ever but I wouldn't hesitate to play there.
So as the blinds are chewing me up I get KQ offsuit and try to steal the blinds from LP. I bet $400 and get reraised all-in by some bigstack. I muck it and put tail between legs. I think I did pick up the blinds once or twice, limped and folded a few times and arrived at: $700 in chips and the blinds are 200/400. It is minutes before the first break, after which the blinds will be 300/600. I get 55 and shove it all in. To my chagrin I get 3 callers - everyone is FEELING the PRESSURE of the BLINDS (it is going to be, if it isn't already, 34-player bingo). Don't know what my PF percentage was vs. 3 callers, but Junior SEAU held up and I hit the break with $1900 in chips.
First hand back after break at 300/600, and I get QJ suited in late MP. UTG calls 600, folded to me, I push again (I have UTG covered). It is folded to UTG who calls with AK offsuit. Flop comes KK x and I am down to 400. A few hands later I see A7 suited and push it - get 4 callers and I don't improve. Buh bye.
Offhand thoughts - the structure moves fast - 15 minutes flies by and it is IMPERATIVE that you get good cards early as you need to build a stack and you aren't winning many (if any) hands without a showdown. Must get good hands and they must hold up.
I would return to play another tourney here later in the week.
But for the rest of Day 2, it was off to the EXCALIBUR (against my better judgement, but I had always enjoyed spread limit games, wanted to beat up some fish, and 2 of my compadres had very limited live poker playing experience and figured the EX would be comfortable for them in the event they (my buddies) made any egregious breaches of rules or etiquette. And then on the very first hand, the very FIRST hand, buddy # 2 has no sooner looked at his pocket AK then the dealer has declared a mis-deal. She screwed up and buddy # 2 said "if she misdeals again, I'm F()cking leaving; F()cking leaving. I'm not F()cking kidding. That is F()cking pathetic." First hand. Not a good omen!
So how is the EX? I can't say anything you won't find on any of the review sites (allvegaspoker for example). It's what it is reputed to be - fishy and soft. And they have this big money wheel you get to spin if your aces get cracked (at the 2-6 game and there must be $30 in pot) or if you get a str8 flush.
This will sum up the players at the EX - guy to my left, MrGrumpyPants (MGP) keeps losing his money and moaning about it. I was regretting not bringing my MP3 player (I don't own one ...must rectify that). So after yet another series of frustrating hands and crappy cards, he says to me "I folded a hand that you wouldn't have folded there". Surprised, I respond that " what do you mean? I haven't played a hand in half an hour, what makes you thnk I would have played your cards if you didn't?" To which he says " I had AK. I hate AK. I never play it. I hardly ever play it even for $2. I would never play it for $8. NEVER. I HATE IT." To which I replied, " you are right, I would have played it." I turned away and smiled to myself - it was good to be here. I didn't feel the need to educate MGP, at least, not directly. And I doubt he picked up anything from my play - too busy moaning and whining. If only he would shut up......
Hand of note -I dragged a monster with KK - it was capped PF with 4 callers all the way home. Over $100 pot. Sweet. Didn't have the heart to ask MGP if he would've played my cowboys. Don't even know what anyone else had...was expecting to see a cheap set as there were no str8 or flush possibilities...nope. Kings were good. It was good to be here. And it occurred to me that the flaw with my itinerary was that playing in tourneys was potentially very costly on an opportunity cost basis. IF the tourneys were bingo, I might be better served playing ring games most of the time. Hmmmm.....something to think about, but I hadn't travelled all this way to play ring games I can play online anytime. Due to my schedule at home and work, I can't really ever commit to playing tourneys bigger than single table SNG's most of the time. SO I wanted to maximize my opportunity to play tourneys, even though it was probably a -EV thing for me to do so.
The evening of Day 2 saw us off to the Orleans for a tourney...will post the details a little later.
This one drew 87 paid entries when all was said and done (but fewer than 87 players, as it wasn't exactly a freezeout - they accepted entries for 30 minutes after the opening bell, and they didn't care whether the new entrant had just straggled in off the strip or had beetled over from table 7 after having his Aces cracked - so in effect if you busted out within half an hour it was a rebuy, but you had to bust out to rebuy or re-enter). Weird, but not neccessarily bad. So, they announced that 9 would be paid and first prize would be in excess of $800. It was expected to take 3 - 3.5 hours to complete ( suspect it took less time, but sadly was not around to verify).
The rounds lasted 15 minutes and the blinds started at 25/50. Players began with 1500 in chips.
Again I have few hands of any interest to report. Got no cards to even consider playing so I just sat and tried to learn what I could about the players and made mental notes about the room and the dealers (which, IMHO were VERY GOOD on the personality meter and COMPETENT on the skill meter - no complaints no mistakes and I enjoyed their pleasant manner - to my pleasant surprise I saw a few of them deal with multi-all-ins and sidepots with ease). The room is okay - it is on it's own and has maybe 13 - 14 tables... not the best room ever but I wouldn't hesitate to play there.
So as the blinds are chewing me up I get KQ offsuit and try to steal the blinds from LP. I bet $400 and get reraised all-in by some bigstack. I muck it and put tail between legs. I think I did pick up the blinds once or twice, limped and folded a few times and arrived at: $700 in chips and the blinds are 200/400. It is minutes before the first break, after which the blinds will be 300/600. I get 55 and shove it all in. To my chagrin I get 3 callers - everyone is FEELING the PRESSURE of the BLINDS (it is going to be, if it isn't already, 34-player bingo). Don't know what my PF percentage was vs. 3 callers, but Junior SEAU held up and I hit the break with $1900 in chips.
First hand back after break at 300/600, and I get QJ suited in late MP. UTG calls 600, folded to me, I push again (I have UTG covered). It is folded to UTG who calls with AK offsuit. Flop comes KK x and I am down to 400. A few hands later I see A7 suited and push it - get 4 callers and I don't improve. Buh bye.
Offhand thoughts - the structure moves fast - 15 minutes flies by and it is IMPERATIVE that you get good cards early as you need to build a stack and you aren't winning many (if any) hands without a showdown. Must get good hands and they must hold up.
I would return to play another tourney here later in the week.
But for the rest of Day 2, it was off to the EXCALIBUR (against my better judgement, but I had always enjoyed spread limit games, wanted to beat up some fish, and 2 of my compadres had very limited live poker playing experience and figured the EX would be comfortable for them in the event they (my buddies) made any egregious breaches of rules or etiquette. And then on the very first hand, the very FIRST hand, buddy # 2 has no sooner looked at his pocket AK then the dealer has declared a mis-deal. She screwed up and buddy # 2 said "if she misdeals again, I'm F()cking leaving; F()cking leaving. I'm not F()cking kidding. That is F()cking pathetic." First hand. Not a good omen!
So how is the EX? I can't say anything you won't find on any of the review sites (allvegaspoker for example). It's what it is reputed to be - fishy and soft. And they have this big money wheel you get to spin if your aces get cracked (at the 2-6 game and there must be $30 in pot) or if you get a str8 flush.
This will sum up the players at the EX - guy to my left, MrGrumpyPants (MGP) keeps losing his money and moaning about it. I was regretting not bringing my MP3 player (I don't own one ...must rectify that). So after yet another series of frustrating hands and crappy cards, he says to me "I folded a hand that you wouldn't have folded there". Surprised, I respond that " what do you mean? I haven't played a hand in half an hour, what makes you thnk I would have played your cards if you didn't?" To which he says " I had AK. I hate AK. I never play it. I hardly ever play it even for $2. I would never play it for $8. NEVER. I HATE IT." To which I replied, " you are right, I would have played it." I turned away and smiled to myself - it was good to be here. I didn't feel the need to educate MGP, at least, not directly. And I doubt he picked up anything from my play - too busy moaning and whining. If only he would shut up......
Hand of note -I dragged a monster with KK - it was capped PF with 4 callers all the way home. Over $100 pot. Sweet. Didn't have the heart to ask MGP if he would've played my cowboys. Don't even know what anyone else had...was expecting to see a cheap set as there were no str8 or flush possibilities...nope. Kings were good. It was good to be here. And it occurred to me that the flaw with my itinerary was that playing in tourneys was potentially very costly on an opportunity cost basis. IF the tourneys were bingo, I might be better served playing ring games most of the time. Hmmmm.....something to think about, but I hadn't travelled all this way to play ring games I can play online anytime. Due to my schedule at home and work, I can't really ever commit to playing tourneys bigger than single table SNG's most of the time. SO I wanted to maximize my opportunity to play tourneys, even though it was probably a -EV thing for me to do so.
The evening of Day 2 saw us off to the Orleans for a tourney...will post the details a little later.
Comments
Keep them coming.
I'm in Vegas for November 13-16, so, anxious to here your tourney experiences.