[ddollevoet]

This will be a multi-post thread as we have a lot to discuss and I'd prefer to not write a novel in one post.

Chapter 1 - The Arrival

Every year I go out to Vegas for work for a quarterly meeting. The other quarterly meetings are held in Atlanta (where I live). Everyone usually arrives on Sunday evening. We have meetings on Monday and Tuesday, a golf scramble on Wednedsay and everyone usually departs on Thursday. Being the degenerate that I am, I usually stay until the following Sunday.

A while back, I mentioned to my Team Heph adversary, SpaceMonkey, that I was going to be in Vegas and that he was more than join me if he wanted to. I didn't have to twist his arm too hard.

SpaceMonkey landed on the ground at about 11:00 pm on Wednesday night. By midnight, we were sitting at a $4 - $8 limit table at the Palms. The Palms is where my company had our meeting - i.e. free room on Wednesday. I really didn't care to play there or that game, but we decided to take it easy on Wednesday so that we could be well rested and geared up for the remainder of the trip.

I really don't know how to play limit, and quite frankly, I don't really like the game, so I don't care. I play NL, but don't have a big enough of a sack to sit at the $2/$5 at the Palms (not yet anyways) and the Palms does not spread $1/$2 NL. So limit hold 'em it was.

They should should have called this game "the Wednesday Night Palms Home Game." The game literally consisted of me, SpaceMonkey and 8 locals - all of which knew each other by name. The game wasn't that bad, but I couldn't get a hand to hold up. I lost with AA, KK, QQ, JJ, 10 10 and 99. SpaceMonkey called me a whiney ***** all weekend, so I would recount any hand histories at this time. There will be plenty of that later in this thread.

I finished down $175 for the session and was glad that I wasn't going to be playing limit for the rest of the weekend. Actually, I don't know if I'll ever play limit again. The game just doesn't suit me and my tastes. We cashed out around 4:00 am and headed up to the room.

[hachkc]

gl and have fun

As for limit, same basic rules except for betting but an almost entirely different game and set of strategies.

[machinelf]

Can't find the popcorn smiley

[jojobinks]

more please.

[ddollevoet]

Chapter 2 - Thursday - sub-titled - The 14 hour session at the Venetian and I can't fold AK.

We woke up around 9:00 on Thursday morning and checked out of the Palms. Usually, I stay at the Stratosphere when I am in Vegas on my dime. This time we stayed at the Imperial Palace. It was cheap and centrally located. I was pleasantly surprised with the room. It wasn't fancy, but it was clean, cheap and a block from the Venetian. I'd stay there again.

We had lunch at Jimmy Buffet's Margarittaville at about 11:00. The food was average, but we got to sit outside on the patio. After eating we went to the Venetian.

SpaceMonkey and I sat at the same $1/$2 NL table for what turned out to be a 14 hour session. The session, though long, was remarkably uneventful for me except the following hand:

I had in the big blind and had a bunch on limpers to me. I raise to $10 preflop. 3 people call, 4 to the flop.

Flop comes . I raise $25. Fold. Fold. Reraise to $75. The reraiser is new to the table and has only played a few hands. I have no real read on him, so I replayed the hand in my head. He limped on the button and then called my raise. Clearly, he has either flopped a set of threes or a set of fives or lucked out with a weak ace (A3 or A5). Clearly, I need to fold here.

I push. He insta-calls with . I had a brief glimmer of hope when the turn was another three, but the full house was not to come. It ended being about a $450 pot. Fortunately for me it was one of only two donkey calls that I made all week. Well, maybe three... This hand would be the butt of many jokes for the remainder of the weekend.

All poker players playing poker at 5:00 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays are treated to a complimentary Prime Rib dinner, so we didn't leave the poker room at all for dinner. The food was decent, though they were a little stingy on portion sizes. I went back for seconds and barely restrained myself from going back for thirds.

SpaceMonkey pointed out Scotty Nguyen walking through the poker room later that evening. I wouldn't have seen him myself as I was still in a coma-like state after making that horrible call.

We cashed out at around 2:00 am. Like I said, the day was really uneventful for me other than the my AK debacle. I finished this session down $200.

[ddollevoet]

Oh yeah, one more thing about the Palms....

The quality of their cocktail servers have really improved since they started requiring breast implants and tattoos on the small of the back as requirements for employment.

[BlondWidow]

mmmmmmmmm... Prime Rib dinner at Venetian.

I'm jealous that you were in Vegas. Tell us more!

[mizuchaud]

bookmarked for future installments!

Prime Rib, uh implants, AK, jeez what else you gonna tease us with?

[ddollevoet]

Chapter 3 - Friday - Part 1

We woke up at around 9:00 Friday morning. I had a few hours of work to do before I started my day. SpaceMonkey went back to the Venetian and took $300 off the tables before I was ready to go.

We met up and walked over to the Forum Shops at Caesar's Palace and had the Chicken Fajitas at Planet Hollywood before snooping around the mall for a while. We saw Pete Rose signing autographs at one of the memorabilia stores.

We eventually ended up in the Caesar's Palace Poker Room. After a little discussion, we decide not to play there. The room is a little difficult to find and it was likely that the room would only be full of people who sought it out. We head to the Venetian.

Can you tell that we like the Venetian? Can you blame us?

We sit at the same $1/$2 table again and I am on SpaceMonkey's left again. He makes a comment about sitting me sitting on the same side of him again. I tell him that I figure I am saving about $10 per hour doing so as he would likely raise any pot that I limp into. He threatens to start check raising me frequently and I tell him to bring it.

This was a good session for me. I don't know what time we sat down, but I think it was between 2:00 and 3:00 pm. I started getting decent cards right away. I only recall a few hands vaguely and one hand specifically. I'll get to that one in a moment.

I took one pot early when I flopped a set and turned a boat. My reraise on turn was a little too aggessive as my oppponent folded.

The were 2 guys sitting in the number 1 and number 2 seats. They obviously knew each other and both had about $400 stacks. #1 was very aggressive. He raised almost every pot and almost every street. Sounds like w16227, doesn't it? Well, that's how I played him.

I smooth called his $20 preflop raise with QQ. I smooth called his flop bet. I smooth called his turn bet. We both checked the river. My queens were good. It wasn't a monster pot, it was still decent sized though. #1 put on the brakes after that hand and I didn't get to tangle with him anymore.

A little while later, I got into a pot with #2. I don't remember if there was a pre-flop raise or not, but 4 of us saw the flop. I had in the big blind. Flop came . It checked to #2, who bet $15 - $20. I called and everyone else folded. The turn was . I checked. #2 bet $25-$30. I reraised to $70. He called. The river was . After mentally confirming that I still had the nuts, I bet $150 into him. He went into the tank and eventually called. I believe he got runner, runner 2 pair.

At around 7:30 or so, I have 2 racks of red in front of me and decide to take a break. I cash out +$700, get a bite to eat, and go to Sports book to watch the 2nd half of the Golden State / Utah game. What a wicked dunk.

SpaceMonkey plays the 8:00 PM $200 tourney. I sit out as I am not mentally prepared to play a tourney at this point. After the basketball game, I get back into a $1/$2 NL game.

SIde note: The 12:00 noon $540 tourney finishes at 10:00 pm. There were only 39 total players. There was obviously lots of play with 40 minute levels.

Some time later SpaceMonkey busts out of the tourney. I cash out of my $1 / $2 game as I am not crazy about the table I am sitting at. I was about even. SpaceMonkey gets a bite to eat at the Venetian and we decide to head to the MGM Grand....

[ddollevoet]

Friday - Part 2 - The MGM Grand

We get to the MGM Grand at about midnight. The $1 / $2 NL list was about 7-8 people deep, so we had to wait about 15-20 minutes to get a seat.

I've played at the MGM Grand before and I know that the play there is usually bad, but I have never played at a table this bad in my life. I never seemed to know where I stood in a hand. And I never got a hand good enough to know that I had a winner.

Eventually, my table broke and I ended up at SpaceMonkey's table. This table was much better. There was one guy at his table so drunk that he couldn't stay awake / upright. He and his buddy were giving away chips, but I didn't get any of them. I don't know if I won a hand all night. I cashed out -$130. I don't know if I'll ever play at the MGM again. Maybe I am a snob, but I've grown to love the Venetian.

Side note: Paul Magriel (AKA X-22) was playing $1/$2 NL the whole time we were there. I'm not really sure why he was playing $1/$2 NL or why we didn't try to sit at his table. Draw you own conclusions.

We left at around 5:30 AM. We decided to walk back to the IP. The weather was increadibly pleasant. The sun was coming up, so it was light, but not ungodly hot. It was a nice walk.

We saw an incredibly good looking hooker. Usually, the hookers I see are pretty scary. She was talking on her phone and we had passed her before she could reel us in. I'm not really sure why we didn't slow down. In retrospect, I think that this is the one regret I had for the weekend. It was probably for the best though.... although this trip report would probably be a little more exciting (but largely unpublished).