Thursday the 3rd...
...was a cash game day. My supposed plan was to start at the Mirage and then migrate over to the Venetian as the day wore on. At 8am in the Mirage card room ther was not a soul in sight so I ambled across the road to where at least I knew there would be SOME action going on!
Sitting in on a $1/$2 game I became a card rack for the next 2 and a bit hours and stood up from the table at 10.30am some $1000 up! My flushes came in, my straights came in, my top pairs stood up against the inevitable flush & straight draws and all in all it was the best 2 hours of the entire trip.
I headed back to the Mirage for the 11am $65 tournament and ploughed through two 're-entrys' before deciding that the 'Wizard Of Oz' slot machines were the place to be and ploughed $300 into those before giving up on them and ploughing another $300 into other 'various' slotties!
Back at the card tables I managed another $100 win in the cash games before shooting off to see Rod Stewart in concert at Ceasers! All in all a good day :)
Friday the 4th...
...was my last Venetian tournament and despite the fact it was a $550 buy-in and despite the fact that the main Ceasers Palace event was also taking place today ($1000 buy-in - $250k guaranteed) there was a decent size field assembled.
I doubled up early when my Kd-Jd made a flush on the river (so it does happen) against a set of 9's but I couldn't capitalise on that and drifted into obscurity. The tournaments I had entered, to this point, had been disappinting to say the least. In total I'd spent over $2500 in tournament fees and won bugger all.
Cash games on the other hand were the exact opposite and if it wasn't for the fact that the slot machines kept calling my name I'd have actually MADE money this past week. Anyway more of that in a mo!
Back to the Mirage where I sat down in in a $1/$2 game while waiting for my 'alternate' seat in the card rooms 7pm tournament. I'm dealt Ah-9c in LP and my name is called for the tournament. Last hand then!!
Four of us see a flop of 9h-7c-5d. First player makes it $10. Second player raises to $25. Third player folds. I shovel my $200 buy-in all-in. First player folds. Second player calls for $175 more and is disgusted to see an Ace fall on the turn making me 2 pairs! Ta very much! (I love Vegas!!)
I go on to finish 8th in the evening tournament for $228 and I go to bed a happy man!
Sat 5th Nov...
I'm up at 4am and into the Mirage card room for a 6 hour final session winning $250 in the process.
So....
Bank roll for trip is $4000
Tournament entry fees & rebuys = $2600 approx
Food = $300 approx
Shows, shopping and car hire for a day = $800
Total outgoings I can quantify = $3700
Coming home with $1000
Total 'spend & remainder' = $4700
Cash games here in Vegas are soft. If you pick your spots and have a modicum of luck you can score $300 a day easy. Just remember to stay away from the bloody slot machines!
Saturday 5 November 2011
Wednesday 2 November 2011
Days 4,5 & 6 - Oct 31st, Nov 1st & 2nd
Ok. Lets firstly get the bad news out of the way.,,
On Monday I played in the next $340 NL Hold'Em event at the Venetian. Out of 189 entries I finished 34th, within 16 of the money, but my 'out' hand was a bit of a pisser to say the least!
Having played for almost 7 hours and half way through level 10 I'd chipped up nicely to 55k. Average chips, at the time, was circa 40k and I was looking forward to the dinner break (at the end of this level). Play had tightened up to the point where that any opening raise was usually met with a 4-bet and there was barely a flop to be seen. Blinds were 600-1200 and I was on the button with Ah-8h. Player UTG raised to to 3600 and it was passed to me. I flatted and the BB also stuck in the extra 2400.
Flop was 6h-9h-10c. Just as I was thinking how best to play the hand once it had been checked to me the BB opened up with a 3k bet. The original raiser folded and it was over to me. I re-raised to 13k and fully expected that that would be the end of that...only it wasn't!
The BB hummed and arred and then, in his juvenile wisdom (he was about 22-23) went all-in for just shy of 50k. Of course I had to call and he looked duly fed-up once I'd announced my intentions. He flipped Q-9 offsuit and I looked to draw to some sort of winning hand.
The turn was the 4s and the Kd fell on the river. I'd missed a boat load of outs and was down to circa 5k which went in a few hands later with A-8 only to be out kicked in the end by A-K!
If I'd have won that pot it would have been an easy ride to the money but alas it wasn't to be!!
Tuesday was a day off from cards as the missus wanted to go shopping. Well I had to give her ONE day :)
Onto Wed now and I was hopeful of a better showing in the $340 event. It wasn't to be.
In level 2 I'd flatted in late position with 5s-6s and on a flop of Q-2-3 rainbow there didn't seem much to worry about when I guy opposite the table from me bet out to 250 (Blinds were 50-100)!
I decided to take the turn card so called and when a luverly looking 4 came off the desk I was ready to pee myself. The original better again bet out to 750 but I was more than surprised to put me all-in once I'd raised HIM to 3000! Of course I called!
It was on their backs and the sneaky fecker had Q-Q for a set on the flop. I was winning though right?
Another ducky landed on the river and I'd been squished rather quickly. Hmmm!!!
So one more event to go on Friday.
Although the tournaments have been poor the $1/$2 game both here at the Mirage, where I'm staying, and across at the Venetian have been good with me only having 2 losing sessions over the days I've played.
The rake is $3 max at the Venetian and also here at the Mirage so I've no complaints there!
General play in both casinos is very nitty and even though I've won on 4 of the 6 days I've played so far I think the most I've won is the $600 I made on the first morning. I'm not adequately banrolled for a shot at the $2/$5 where $1000 pots are fairly common and the stacks sit between $500-$2500.
On Monday I played in the next $340 NL Hold'Em event at the Venetian. Out of 189 entries I finished 34th, within 16 of the money, but my 'out' hand was a bit of a pisser to say the least!
Having played for almost 7 hours and half way through level 10 I'd chipped up nicely to 55k. Average chips, at the time, was circa 40k and I was looking forward to the dinner break (at the end of this level). Play had tightened up to the point where that any opening raise was usually met with a 4-bet and there was barely a flop to be seen. Blinds were 600-1200 and I was on the button with Ah-8h. Player UTG raised to to 3600 and it was passed to me. I flatted and the BB also stuck in the extra 2400.
Flop was 6h-9h-10c. Just as I was thinking how best to play the hand once it had been checked to me the BB opened up with a 3k bet. The original raiser folded and it was over to me. I re-raised to 13k and fully expected that that would be the end of that...only it wasn't!
The BB hummed and arred and then, in his juvenile wisdom (he was about 22-23) went all-in for just shy of 50k. Of course I had to call and he looked duly fed-up once I'd announced my intentions. He flipped Q-9 offsuit and I looked to draw to some sort of winning hand.
The turn was the 4s and the Kd fell on the river. I'd missed a boat load of outs and was down to circa 5k which went in a few hands later with A-8 only to be out kicked in the end by A-K!
If I'd have won that pot it would have been an easy ride to the money but alas it wasn't to be!!
Tuesday was a day off from cards as the missus wanted to go shopping. Well I had to give her ONE day :)
Onto Wed now and I was hopeful of a better showing in the $340 event. It wasn't to be.
In level 2 I'd flatted in late position with 5s-6s and on a flop of Q-2-3 rainbow there didn't seem much to worry about when I guy opposite the table from me bet out to 250 (Blinds were 50-100)!
I decided to take the turn card so called and when a luverly looking 4 came off the desk I was ready to pee myself. The original better again bet out to 750 but I was more than surprised to put me all-in once I'd raised HIM to 3000! Of course I called!
It was on their backs and the sneaky fecker had Q-Q for a set on the flop. I was winning though right?
Another ducky landed on the river and I'd been squished rather quickly. Hmmm!!!
So one more event to go on Friday.
Although the tournaments have been poor the $1/$2 game both here at the Mirage, where I'm staying, and across at the Venetian have been good with me only having 2 losing sessions over the days I've played.
The rake is $3 max at the Venetian and also here at the Mirage so I've no complaints there!
General play in both casinos is very nitty and even though I've won on 4 of the 6 days I've played so far I think the most I've won is the $600 I made on the first morning. I'm not adequately banrolled for a shot at the $2/$5 where $1000 pots are fairly common and the stacks sit between $500-$2500.
Monday 31 October 2011
Days 3 & 4 - Oct 29th & 30th
You've got to hand it to the Americans...they've now come up with another way in which to 'gouge' as much rake as possible to the ever present poker afficianados when it comes to playing tournaments!
The latest wheeze to hit these card rooms and no doubt soon to appear in our own European backyard is the tournament 're-entry'. The days of rebuys are over....you now have to 're-enter' which may not seem like a big deal...after all its only a change of word right...until you realise that the 're-entry' actually means you have to pay the reg fee again AND another few $$$ to get any bonus chips going!
This wonder was explained to me at a $95+$5+$30 ($130) tournament at Ceasars Palace on Friday night where I'd done my initial stack playing As-3s and missing my nut flush. The sign said it was a 're-entry tournament' so when I shouted chips and took out another Benjamin I fully expected the floor man to appear with another load of chips and a cheery smile. Instead I was told I had to physically go back to the cashiers desk and 're-enter'!
'That'll be $130 please', said the cashier, as I redrew a different table.
Commies....the lot of them!!
On Saturday, now having understood the rules of a re-buy tournament, I played in the DEEP stack (50k) event at the Mirage. Blinds stared at 500-500 so you still only got 100 BB's to start with. I ploughed through those like a tourist and 're-entered' with some winnings I'd won earlier with the Mirages 'bad beat' where if you get two 'same colour A-A' beat you 'win' $150.
After a quick moan about how I'd done 50 bucks with my A-A the kind dealer had shouted 'Jackpot' and a nice lady appeared with $150 giving me a $100 profit...anyway I digress...
Another $50k later and I was done with tournaments with the day and spent the next 4 hours playing the 'Sex & The City' slot machine and losing a grand total of $80 playing $2 a spin!
Sunday brought an event I'd been looking forward to and that was the Omahi Hi-Lo - $350 game! I'd not realised though, until I bought in, that the game was LIMIT! Feck me you couldn't lose a single player in ANY pot until the river card had made someones high hand, low hand or they missed entirely. While that may have been fun for the first hour or two once the blinds had reached 300-500-1000 (yes they have this level in Las Vegas) then my chip stack, which had reached a nice looking 18k (from a starting stack of 10k) suddenly didn't seem so high.
The following hand defined my day...
In BB I held K-K-Q-2. Five players called the 500. I raised to 1000. The next 3 players called. Player 4 raised to 1500. We ALL called. 7500 in the pot.
Flop was Kd-Qd-7h. Having made top set I bet out 500. There was an IMMEDIATE raise to my left to 1000 and two callers. I raised to 1500. The immediate player to my left made it 2500. One player dropped. One called. I made it 3k...capped...and both of the remaining players called. Over 12k in the pot already! Four of us in the pot at this time.
Turn card was the 8s. Nice card for me. I bet out 1000. Player to my immediate left calls. Player to HIS immediate left raises !!!!!! Player 4 drops out. I make it 3k. Player to my left calls. Player to HIS left raises!!! I cap it at 5k. Both players call.
They're now almost 30k in the pot. I myself have put in almost 8k and the one card I DON'T want to see on the river is a DIAMOND. What happens....the 3 of bloody DIAMONDS drops! I check. Player to my immediate left bets out. Player to HIS left just calls???? and I, of course, plop in another 1k chip to see that the player to my left has the Ad-4d while the player to HIS left holds the 10d-Jd!!!
What a fecker!! The 33k plus pot drifts to my left and the 8k I have left gives me one shot left which, needless to say doesn't last long. My time at the tournament table was over 5 hours and I got peed on from a great height!
Poker ehe...don't you just love it!!
The latest wheeze to hit these card rooms and no doubt soon to appear in our own European backyard is the tournament 're-entry'. The days of rebuys are over....you now have to 're-enter' which may not seem like a big deal...after all its only a change of word right...until you realise that the 're-entry' actually means you have to pay the reg fee again AND another few $$$ to get any bonus chips going!
This wonder was explained to me at a $95+$5+$30 ($130) tournament at Ceasars Palace on Friday night where I'd done my initial stack playing As-3s and missing my nut flush. The sign said it was a 're-entry tournament' so when I shouted chips and took out another Benjamin I fully expected the floor man to appear with another load of chips and a cheery smile. Instead I was told I had to physically go back to the cashiers desk and 're-enter'!
'That'll be $130 please', said the cashier, as I redrew a different table.
Commies....the lot of them!!
On Saturday, now having understood the rules of a re-buy tournament, I played in the DEEP stack (50k) event at the Mirage. Blinds stared at 500-500 so you still only got 100 BB's to start with. I ploughed through those like a tourist and 're-entered' with some winnings I'd won earlier with the Mirages 'bad beat' where if you get two 'same colour A-A' beat you 'win' $150.
After a quick moan about how I'd done 50 bucks with my A-A the kind dealer had shouted 'Jackpot' and a nice lady appeared with $150 giving me a $100 profit...anyway I digress...
Another $50k later and I was done with tournaments with the day and spent the next 4 hours playing the 'Sex & The City' slot machine and losing a grand total of $80 playing $2 a spin!
Sunday brought an event I'd been looking forward to and that was the Omahi Hi-Lo - $350 game! I'd not realised though, until I bought in, that the game was LIMIT! Feck me you couldn't lose a single player in ANY pot until the river card had made someones high hand, low hand or they missed entirely. While that may have been fun for the first hour or two once the blinds had reached 300-500-1000 (yes they have this level in Las Vegas) then my chip stack, which had reached a nice looking 18k (from a starting stack of 10k) suddenly didn't seem so high.
The following hand defined my day...
In BB I held K-K-Q-2. Five players called the 500. I raised to 1000. The next 3 players called. Player 4 raised to 1500. We ALL called. 7500 in the pot.
Flop was Kd-Qd-7h. Having made top set I bet out 500. There was an IMMEDIATE raise to my left to 1000 and two callers. I raised to 1500. The immediate player to my left made it 2500. One player dropped. One called. I made it 3k...capped...and both of the remaining players called. Over 12k in the pot already! Four of us in the pot at this time.
Turn card was the 8s. Nice card for me. I bet out 1000. Player to my immediate left calls. Player to HIS immediate left raises !!!!!! Player 4 drops out. I make it 3k. Player to my left calls. Player to HIS left raises!!! I cap it at 5k. Both players call.
They're now almost 30k in the pot. I myself have put in almost 8k and the one card I DON'T want to see on the river is a DIAMOND. What happens....the 3 of bloody DIAMONDS drops! I check. Player to my immediate left bets out. Player to HIS left just calls???? and I, of course, plop in another 1k chip to see that the player to my left has the Ad-4d while the player to HIS left holds the 10d-Jd!!!
What a fecker!! The 33k plus pot drifts to my left and the 8k I have left gives me one shot left which, needless to say doesn't last long. My time at the tournament table was over 5 hours and I got peed on from a great height!
Poker ehe...don't you just love it!!
Friday 28 October 2011
Day 2 - Oct 28th
Poker can be a cruel game!
Enterered the Venetian cardroom at 8am this morning and two hours later I was $500 down in the $1/$2 NL game. I could say that I was subjected to several bad beats but the truth was that when I did have a decent hand then someone else had a better one and once all the money goes in the pot then its upto the poker gods!
Anyway as yesterday was so good I can't, and won't complain, after all if you live by the sword etc etc.
Day 1B of the $350 NL tournament started at noon and for the first 90 mins I got zero hands and whittled my way down to 9600 from a starting stack of 12000. Players were generally tight so you could see flops fairly cheaply. Trouble was that my hole cards were nowhere near those that appeared on the flop which meant that despite my best intentions I got pretty much nowhere!
Immediately after the 1st break I pick up 10s-10c in mid position and with blinds at 150-300 I raise it up to 800 and get 2 callers. Flop is a magical looking 10d-8h-5h. Its checked to me and I bet out 2400. Well bugger me if the guy next to play raises me back to 6000!
So its decision time folks...what would you do??
Of course I'm all-in and I get an instant call with my opponent showing 6h-7h for an open ended straight flush draw. I suppose if the situation was reversed I'd have done the same!
Anyway there's no waiting for him as the Ah pops out on the turn and the 2s does nothing for me except for me to say 'Nice hand', and depart towards the exit door!
I then went over to Ceasars Palace to play in the $100 NL event taking place there at 4pm but no good there either!
A pissy day all round with almost a grand gone in entry fees and cash games!!
Enterered the Venetian cardroom at 8am this morning and two hours later I was $500 down in the $1/$2 NL game. I could say that I was subjected to several bad beats but the truth was that when I did have a decent hand then someone else had a better one and once all the money goes in the pot then its upto the poker gods!
Anyway as yesterday was so good I can't, and won't complain, after all if you live by the sword etc etc.
Day 1B of the $350 NL tournament started at noon and for the first 90 mins I got zero hands and whittled my way down to 9600 from a starting stack of 12000. Players were generally tight so you could see flops fairly cheaply. Trouble was that my hole cards were nowhere near those that appeared on the flop which meant that despite my best intentions I got pretty much nowhere!
Immediately after the 1st break I pick up 10s-10c in mid position and with blinds at 150-300 I raise it up to 800 and get 2 callers. Flop is a magical looking 10d-8h-5h. Its checked to me and I bet out 2400. Well bugger me if the guy next to play raises me back to 6000!
So its decision time folks...what would you do??
Of course I'm all-in and I get an instant call with my opponent showing 6h-7h for an open ended straight flush draw. I suppose if the situation was reversed I'd have done the same!
Anyway there's no waiting for him as the Ah pops out on the turn and the 2s does nothing for me except for me to say 'Nice hand', and depart towards the exit door!
I then went over to Ceasars Palace to play in the $100 NL event taking place there at 4pm but no good there either!
A pissy day all round with almost a grand gone in entry fees and cash games!!
Thursday 27 October 2011
Day 1 - 27th Oct
So...day one is in the bag and an excellent day all round really!
Up at 5.30am, as you do on your first day in Vegas, and after a lumberjack breakfast in Dennys for $9.99 + tax it was off round the corner to the Venetian for the first of what would ultimately be two sessions of play there.
At this time of the morning (7am) its likely that you're getting a seat on a $1 / $2 NL table with players that have been there half the night already and so it proved with the usual 'nitty' type players and the one or two 'drunkies' that still felt the need to raise to $20 - $40 every time they entered a pot. That proved good for me after buying in for $150 I finished the morning at 10am with $730 in hand and the drunk had done his bollux!
For the Deepstack Festival they started satellites at around 10am and I sat down to play in an $80 - 2 seat - one which was quite enjoyable especially as I won a seat which comprised of $300 in 'laminates' and $40 in chips. The 'table charge' is a right royal rip of though with $120 of the $800 collected going to the house.
I'll be playing in my first event tomorrow as I didn't think I'd be upto playing all day, if so required, without falling asleep at the table so at least it'll only have cost me $80 to play :)
After a snoozy afternoon shopping down at Frys Electrical Store I headed back to the Venetian for the $175 evening tournament and was duly knocked out whilst holding Ad Qh. Flop came 6d-4d-Qd-x-x and I was already all in when my opponent showed Kd-8d for the flopped flush.
Prior to this tournament though I'd won a further $75 in another $1/$2 NL game.
After the tournament it was off to bed. Hopefully I'll be ready and refreshed for tomorrow!
Up at 5.30am, as you do on your first day in Vegas, and after a lumberjack breakfast in Dennys for $9.99 + tax it was off round the corner to the Venetian for the first of what would ultimately be two sessions of play there.
At this time of the morning (7am) its likely that you're getting a seat on a $1 / $2 NL table with players that have been there half the night already and so it proved with the usual 'nitty' type players and the one or two 'drunkies' that still felt the need to raise to $20 - $40 every time they entered a pot. That proved good for me after buying in for $150 I finished the morning at 10am with $730 in hand and the drunk had done his bollux!
For the Deepstack Festival they started satellites at around 10am and I sat down to play in an $80 - 2 seat - one which was quite enjoyable especially as I won a seat which comprised of $300 in 'laminates' and $40 in chips. The 'table charge' is a right royal rip of though with $120 of the $800 collected going to the house.
I'll be playing in my first event tomorrow as I didn't think I'd be upto playing all day, if so required, without falling asleep at the table so at least it'll only have cost me $80 to play :)
After a snoozy afternoon shopping down at Frys Electrical Store I headed back to the Venetian for the $175 evening tournament and was duly knocked out whilst holding Ad Qh. Flop came 6d-4d-Qd-x-x and I was already all in when my opponent showed Kd-8d for the flopped flush.
Prior to this tournament though I'd won a further $75 in another $1/$2 NL game.
After the tournament it was off to bed. Hopefully I'll be ready and refreshed for tomorrow!
Monday 3 October 2011
Oct 2nd - Let the countdown begin!!
So I'm 3 weeks away from my next 'Las Vegas' adventure.
On Oct 26th I fly to Las Vegas for a 10 day 'poker trip'.
I intend playing in 5 of the Venetian Deepstack tournaments as can be found via:
http://www.venetian.com/uploadedFiles...DeepStackIV11.pdf
on the following dates:
Thu Oct 27th - $350 No Limit Hold'Em (*)
Sun Oct 30th - $350 Omaha Hi-Lo (*)
Mon Oct 31st - $350 No Limit Hold'Em (*)
Wed Nov 2nd - $350 No Limit Hold'Em (*)
Fri Nov 4th - $560 - No Limit Hold'Em (*)
(*) Cost includes $10 to dealer for additional chips
Total buy-in costs = $1960
I am offering 50% of my action at the rate of £65 ($100) for 5%
This equates to a $/£ rate of 1.54 (as near as dammit)
For the £65 investment you get 5% of ANY returns for the 5 events entered. (e.g if I cash for $1000 over the 5 events you get $50 back)
Investments will be payable by BANK t/f only (details via PM) and will be paid back via any method of your choosing (via poker site or bank t/f or neteller or PAYPAL) at the rate of 65p per $1 won.
I'll be doing a daily blog on my adventure (can't be any worse than last time!!) and you'll be able to track the results through the HM database or via the Venetian website itself).
Any questions or comments are welcome and I look forward to winning some dough for those that partake!
News of updates will be posted on the Hendon Mob website !!
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