I had the good fortune to attend the Cirque du Soliel show LOVE at the Mirage this past weekend. The show is a interpretation of a number of the Beatles more interesting works interwoven with artistic and athletic performances of more than 60 live artists. The producers (including Sir George Martin) sampled 130 Beatles songs to create 27 new works that serve as the soundtrack for the performances, and the sets, dance and athletic feats are beyond belief. I was transfixed for the entire hour and forty minutes. Even if you're not a Beatles fan, it's a must see event.

I should warn you, though, if you're at all driven or creative, it's pretty humbling. First, you'll be reminded once again about the staggering body of work the Beatles put out, in their 20s, in a relatively short period of time (<10 years as a group). Second, you'll be in awe of the strength and talent of the Cirque performers and their ability to perform and transition with grace and without error. Finally, you'll be struck by the creative and organizational genius that this show requires. It's all I can do to get four friends to agree on a restaurant and then show up on time for the reservation.

If you're in town for the WSOP, get a ticket and go see it. You can see the trailer and buy tickets here. LOVE trailer and tickets.

Edmond

And the FEARFUL…and UNBELIEVING…and ALL LIARS…shall have their part in the lake of fire! And so it was at the Grand Sierra Pot of Gold tournament...

We were in Reno to gather info on poker rooms because we’re committed to providing quality info to the TwoRags community. Our last stop of the day, the Grand Sierra Casino & Resort (formerly the Reno Hilton), is located in the opposite end of town from the other casinos, on other side of the freeway. The Grand Sierra is a luxury hotel/casino/resort complex that seems like it's trying hard to shed its white trash roots but just can't bring itself to let go. The monument sign and website pitch the elegant rooms and spa and announce upcoming events like Harry Connick, Jr., dinner with the vintner from Duckhorn Vineyards and the American Ballet Theatre. But a look around the property—bowling alley, RV park, go-cart track, bungee jumping—confirms that this girl grew up watching Nascar. It's like the Pam Anderson of casinos—nicely renovated and elegant in formal wear but with tattoos and a social set that scream “I like rockers!”.



In any event, we were there to get info on the poker room so that’s where we headed. The room itself is located in a semi-enclosed area in the cavernous events center. It’s not the most intimate room, but its proximity to the events center is convenient for tournaments. Turns out, we showed up at about 5:45p about 15 minutes before the $200+$25 tournament was starting. To the staff's credit, they were very patient and gave us the info we wanted even while trying to organize the event. As we were wrapping up, it dawned on us that this was a great opportunity to get a better feel for the room from a player's perspective. We were both burned out from running around all day, but a live tournament in 15 minutes with no wives in tow? Are you kidding me?

The Grand Sierra requires all players to present a player card to register for a tournament, and for that, you need ID and money. Unfortunately, I left my wallet in the car so I sprinted out to the parking lot and then back across the casino to the players club desk. [Note: this property is BIG.] After a brief wait on line, I received my card which not only entitled me to register for the tournament but also opened me up to a "cavalcade of cash & prizes" just for swiping said card at the Everyday Prize Machine. I didn't see what prize I qualified for that day, but the couple in front of me was giddy with pride as they walked away with a fine coffee mug stand. This is obviously a promotion not to be taken lightly, but we were here to pull hard cash from the locals not add to our kitchen decor. Card in hand, I hit the cashier to register just under the wire. Total entrants: 82; total prize pool: about $16,000.

Assigned to the last table, I took my spot in the 4 seat. Rick was right behind me and sat across from me in the 9 seat. As soon as he settled in, he was dealt in under the gun. I thought for sure he'd fold here and get his bearings, but no, he fired out a raise. Two callers behind and I was thinking, "Uh oh. This is gonna suck when he's the first one out." Not good considering I staked him for the event. Flop was 965 two clubs, and Rick bet out. Guy to my right, an off-duty dealer, called and the other player folded. I repeat to myself, "Uh oh. This is gonna suck if he's the first one out." Turn was a club putting three clubs on board, and he fired again. Now off-duty dealer thought for a bit, announced he's got a middle pair and a draw (I'm not sure why guys do this on the turn ”Here, how 'bout I tell you my cards so your river play, should I choose to call, is much easier.”), counted out his chips…and then folded. Ok, pal, thanks for the recap. Rick flashed two queens (no club) and scooped the pot. I'm pissed he showed but relax a little now that my horse is out of the gate clean.

A note on the Grand Sierra’s Pot of Gold tournament series. If the rest of the events were run like this one, this is a nice series of events to play. The structure wasn’t bad for a tournament of this size, and the event was well-run with great dealers and floor staff. Again, there were 82 entrants for a prize pool of about $16,000 with $5,500 to the winner. Not bad for the 19th event of a two week series in Reno. There were a couple of familiar faces—Jerry Buss and two little cuties he hauled up from Los Angeles, a couple of guys I recognized from televised events. An inexpensive place to camp out for a couple of weeks, reasonable (<$1000) buy-ins for the whole series and a well-run room? That's worth putting on the calendar for next year.

Back to the action. The first few levels were uneventful with the exception of one hand. One guy raised in MP, Rick called from the blinds with TT. Flop came J high and Rick checked to the pre-flop raiser. Guy bet a little less than half the pot and Rick check-raised the pot. His opponent collapsed like a cheap soufflé.

A few hands later, I put on a rare show of good judgment and fold 83c under the gun. There’s a couple of callers to Rick in the BB. Flop was, of course, 883 and I cursed the poker gods for taunting me. Someone stabbed at the pot, and Rick called. Turn was a 9. Check. Check. River was a blank and Rick bet out half the pot. The other player was thinking and Rick, channeling Scotty Nguyen, said “you don’t want any part of that…you can’t call that" at which point I knew I was happy my 83 was in the muck. Sure enough, the other guy called and Rick tabled 98o for the turned boat.

A few hands later, our table broke and Rick and I were separated. I’ve recently begun to move toward a more active style in tournament play but was nonetheless getting ground down and facing blind pressure. With less than 8 blinds in late position and holding KJo, I shoved on an MP raiser only to be shown QQ. Ugh, I hate KJ! But then, with a J on flop and K on turn. I brush off the shame of showing down KJ and stack the chips. A few hands later, I was in middle position with JJ facing an early raise and moved in. It’s folded back around to the EP raise and he insta-called (uh oh!) and proudly showed KQo. Dude, wtf? The gods, so graceful a few hands earlier, now confirmed their disgust with my new style and presented a K on the river. I was short again.

I survived another orbit picking up the blinds when I moved in with 77. Still short, I finally picked up AA in the big blind (love that!) and stacked up when the cut-off shoved with some woeful piece of trash. I then kicked and scratched my way to the last two tables with powerhouses like KTs, QTs, 66. Meanwhile, Rick was coasting along with a 2-3x average stack at the other table, the bastard. He later told me he had one sketchy hand at 300/600 where 2nd position raised to 2400, MP called and Rick pushed for 6500 from the hijack and took down the pot. But other than that, he was having an easier time of staying ahead of the blinds.

Finally, down to 15 players, I picked up QQ and pushed on a min-raiser directly to my right. I was concerned because he'd been stupid tight for the last hour, mentioning to me a few hands he folded. But with the blinds at 400/800 with an ante and sitting with fewer than 4,000 chips, I couldn’t afford to drop the hand. Of course, he showed aces, and as is often the case when two women showed up your door at the same time, I was out of money and alone on the rail. Whatever, I still had a horse in the event and that horse had chips. Time to cheer him on.

At 14 players, play was excruciating (it seemed like every 3rd hand was folded to the blinds) and it was all I could do not to howl “Will somebody please RAISE!” Fortunately, the blinds did their work, narrowing the field to ten, and the staff seated the final table. Unfortunately, only 9 spots paid so more painful viewing followed. A short stack would raise, and medium stack would push. Shorty showed KJo, medium stack showed JJ…K on the river. Gross. Two hands later same thing. Shorty would show A4, medium stack would show A7…four on the flop. And so on, ad nauseum.

Things were a little nervy when Rick open-shoved with what he later told me was AQo; the big blind took FOREVER to fold. In retrospect, the blind obviously didn't have much, but then again I didn't know my horse was holding AQo. A few hands later, Rick again short in the big blind. With an EP raiser, he paused for a bit then moved in. EP called and showed AQo. Rick flipped up two black aces (nice Hollywooding, dude!). Hold…hold… hold….yes! The AQ whiffs the board and we’re in good shape again.

A few hands later they’re down to 8 players with two critically short stacks, one of whom was a pro I'd seen on TV but couldn't place. UTG limped and the two shorties were all-in (less than a blind) to Rick in the big blind with Q6h. Rick checked and the flop fell 977 with two hearts. Rick checked again, and the EP limper shoved. What was that? How about just checking it down, pal? It’s about another 15,000 to call in a 30,000 chip pot. I'm not one to chase a flush draw late; I probably need to put more gamble in my tournament game. But Rick said “I guess I call if I want to win.” and counted out chips. UTG flipped over KK and the shorties showed A3 and some other unmemorable hand. Turn was a trey and the river…the beautiful Ah. Nice! Side note: there was a lot of fun commentary by the pro who pointed out that if UTG had RAISED with his kings, both of them would still be in. But he didn’t and they weren’t and it was down to five.

A few hands later, four-handed with two shorties, there was talk of a chop, but that was quickly dismissed by the two big stacks. One of the short stacks went out soon after. Three-handed, there was a tense moment when Rick open-shoved with the remaining short stack and the big stack still to act. The short stack labored for a full three minutes before calling. I’m thinking he’ll show 44 or KTo. No, he tables AJs. WTF? That’s an insta-call for me in that situation and I'm conservative. As it turned out, his apprehension was deserved, Rick's ATo found a T on the turn. Bam! We're heads up, fellas!

One on one only lasted a few hands, maybe 10 minutes tops. On the final hand, Rick’s opponent completed the small blind and Rick checked. Flop was QKx rainbow. Rick bet half the pot. Opponent quickly called. Turn was another blank. Rick checked and his opponent moved in. I’m thinking “Uh, that's a fold.” but Rick looked into his opponent's soul and saw nothing but deceit. He said matter-of-factly “You don’t have a K.” and called with Q6s. I’m thinking “Uh, this is gonna be a long ride home.” Instead, his opponent turned over ATo, a gutter draw and overcard! River blanked and my horse had the title. Nice!

So now it’s 1 a.m. and Rick is basically catatonic. They take his photo, get his info and hand him 55 black chips. Rick comes to his senses enough to raise the tournament director for value, “Hey, do you have a hat I could have?”, and asked me if I thought he qualified for any of the “cavalcade of cash and prizes” mentioned above. I slapped him back to reality and herded him out to the car to split up the cash and roll back to Tahoe. By the time we got back to the Hyatt Lake Tahoe, room service had stopped serving (this ain't Vegas, baby!) but found the bar/lounge still serving food. That's the downside of winning tournaments—eating lousy bar food at 3a, but whatever. We'll take the win!

Edmond

I recently had some business in the Lake Tahoe area and had intended to bring my wife, but she had to bail out at the last minute. Naturally, I had a poker friend tag along to help me figure out a way to fill up the three days I wouldn't be working. We left LA on a Thursday, got into the Reno airport around 7p or so and drove the 30-40 miles to Lake Tahoe. If you've never been to the Reno/Tahoe area, it's a trip worth taking. Reno is a white trash town, but Lake Tahoe is stunning--pine trees, views of the lake, clear air--a big change from LA.

We rolled into the Hyatt Lake Tahoe around 9p. The Hyatt is a beautiful, rustic resort located directly on the shores of Lake Tahoe. The hotel/casino is not known for its poker, but it did have a room and there was a game, so we figured we'd have dinner and check it out.

After a nice steak at the Lone Eagle Grill, the Hyatt's main dining room overlooking the Lake, we wandered over to the poker room. I'm usually a NL player, but all they spread is 4/8 limit with 1/2 blinds and a 10/20 pineapple game with 5/5 blinds. Only the 4/8 was running so I bought a couple of hundred in chips and sat down.

Wow, talk about horrible play. The 1/2 blinds encourage lots of limpers--7 to the flop MINIMUM with me the only one who would even contemplate folding pre-flop. Ever the nit, I managed to blow off $100 or so playing crap like AA, KK and AKs. One guy considered himself a "semi-pro" from Santa Barbara who's "a supervisor for the City of SB but he makes his REAL money playing poker." This guy was classic, about 40 years old, sunglasses (at 4/8 limit...nice), struggling with trivial odds decisions. At one point, he over-called two players with four to a flush and straight on board and tabled two pair. Uh, I don't think that's gonna get it done.

Another woman insisted she put herself through grad school (Berkeley) playing poker in the 70s. She burned off $400 dollars (again, at 4/8 limit) in less than 2 hours. In one hand, she tabled a "straight" which was really four cards to a straight. She was insistent she had a straight (even though it didn't matter; another player had the nut flush) and only backed off when the dealer counted the four card straight for her TWICE. In another hand, she was struggling with a river raise on a KTTJ9 board with two diamonds and two hearts showing. She turned to me (to her right) and said “What do you think?” I’d been friendly and joking with her, so I said facetiously that her opponent probably had the "nut flush" again (even though it wasn't possible). At that point, the other player replied, "Yes. I have the nut flush." She then hemmed and hawed, said she didn't believe him, kept asking me what "nut flush" meant, etc. BTW, she had $6 left in her stack to call in a $60+ pot. She finally called and tabled a pair of pocket fives. Good Lord.

I finished the session down a hundred or so but I managed to pull a little of that back the following night when a drunken lawyer and a couple of his family members decided to give the game a whirl. Typical action, limp, limp, limp, limp, limp, raise, call, call, call, call, etc. Fortunately, I managed to turn a boat with pockets tens in one of these family pots so I ended the session up.

Two things stuck out from the session. First, the lawyer's wife thought he did an amazing Jack Nicholson impression and encouraged him to perform it for us. Love is indeed blind; the only similarity between him and Jack was the sunglasses and an odd fascination with the Lakers. Second, I'm not a limit player, but it struck me there was a ton a value in the game. Not only were people playing crap out of position, but they were repeatedly FOLDING post-flop when checking was an option. Thanks for the EV, guys! I'll give it a good home!

I'm pretty sure the crazy pineapple hi/lo split game was pretty juicy, too. It wasn't running on Thursday night, but Friday and Saturday, there was at least one table going. I'm told it's been a staple of the room for over 15 years and there's a few regulars in the game, but the action looked RIDICULOUS from where I sat. It's probably a game worth learning if you live in or visit this area frequently.

Couple of notes on the staff. Dan, the room manager, was very friendly and had an obvious command of the room. The dealers were efficient and fast, despite the lack of auto-shufflers, and every staff member endeavored to learn players' names. When I first sat down, I thought it was a room full of regular since everyone seemed to know everyone else, but within moments, the staff was addressing me by my name, too. It's a nice touch.

Overall, I had low expectations for the poker but was pleasantly surprised. And the hotel is fantastic! I didn't try the spa (I'll leave that aspect of the trip report to my wife next time) but the rooms, restaurants, service and setting were all really special. I highly recommend it to anyone visiting the Lake Tahoe area.

Edmond

Ok, I’m in town at the Mirage for Super Bowl weekend with a group of real degenerates. One of the guys is a $1k per hand blackjack player so we’re all comped—rooms, limos, meals, the works. We fly out Saturday (private jet, of course) and spend the early part of the afternoon screwing around, covering the casino’s overhead at the craps table. I’ve got a few hours to kill before dinner, so I head by the poker room and put my name on the $2/5 NL list. Unfortunately, there are 7-8 in front of me, and it doesn’t look like they’re inclined to put another table down so I leave and figure I’ll check back later.

A word about the room. The Mirage Poker Room is one of the best run rooms on the Strip. They’ve got 31 tables in a semi-enclosed, non-smoking room (and, yes, they will toss you out if you smoke). There’s an automated list, but most of the time, they manage the list manually. The tables and chairs are in great shape (new tables, nice felt, comfortable swivel chairs). There’s a decent selection of games, although at peak times you can wait 15-30 minutes for the game you want. They also run a daily tournament and ongoing sit n gos throughout the day. Overall, it’s one of my favorite places to play.

For anyone who hasn’t been out to Las Vegas for Super Bowl weekend, I’ve found that weekend to be highly lucrative. It’s one of the busiest weekends of the year, and there’s lots of players who have an idea how to play but tend to OVERplay hands. I hear people say that the Mirage competition is some of the toughest on the Strip, but I’ve always had nice luck there. Players are aggressive, but if you’re patient, someone will push on you light and you can build a nice stack.

As it turns out, my friends wanted to head over to the Hard Rock where another of our friends was staying, so I banged around over there. Is it just me or are the Hard Rock chips tough to read? Even worse, no poker room. I played craps for a while and then headed back to the Mirage for dinner. It was after midnight when I found my way back into the poker room. This time there was immediate seating in the $2/5 game, so I picked up $500 in chips and sat down.

When I get to my table, I'm seated in the big blind, so I post and start taking my chips from the rack. There’s a couple of limpers and then a raise to $30 by a 25-30 year-old two seats to my right who seems like he knows what he’s doing. Folded to me, I looked down and find A K. Although most people bemoan AK, I like it. You’re about 25 to 1 that no one has AA or KK when you hold it, and it’s easy to jettison if you don’t improve, so I re-raise to $100. The limpers fold, initial raiser calls. Flop comes A A 5. I’m still stacking chips, fumbling around, and I look at him. “A hundred.” I announce pushing a stack of reds toward the middle. Without hesitation, he moves in for an additional $300. I’m thinking “Ugh. Did he flop the boat?” but I call, of course, with the trip aces. Turn is a K. “Ok, that works.” River is a blank. I table my boat and he mucks. “Welcome to the table.” a guy says in disbelief. “You should leave now.” The other players nod in agreement, and I’m now fumbling with and stacking about $900 and change of chips.

Three hands later I’m in the cut off with 7 7. There’s an early raiser with one caller, my victim in hand #1 (henceforth, Vic1) has reloaded about $300 or so. I call for set value and am graced with a most beautiful A J 7 flop because I’m a clean living bastard. The initial raiser bets $50, Vic1 calls, I re-raise to $120. Fold. #1Vic calls. Turn is a blank and he checks to me. I bet $150 which puts him in, and he calls off his stack. River’s a blank and he says, “How’s your kicker?” to which I respond, “I don’t have an ace.” and show my set. He shakes his head in disbelief, mucks and gets up from the table to steam like a riverboat. At this point, I’ve played 4 hands and have about $1300 in front of me at a $500 max buy-in table. The other players at the table are visibly disgusted.

A few hands later, Vic1 has reloaded his coal-fired furnace, and a friend of mine wanders over from the casino and starts to watch from the rail. He’s an ok novice player but a little lit (we demolished some great wine at dinner). He rarely plays live and, I’m pretty sure has never played in a $2/5 NL game. Vic1 says to him, “Sit at the table.” inviting him in, and my friend, emboldened by too much Caymus, accepts the invite and takes the #8 seat.

My friend buys in for $200, posts and plays an uneventful orbit. Then, with a couple of limpers to him, he makes it $25 to go from the BB. Both limpers call. Flop is Q 6 x. My friend leads out for $50 and gets two callers. Uh, oh…flush draw. Turn is a third diamond. Yuck. My friend leads out again for $50 (dude, what do you have and since when did I teach you to min bet?), gets a caller but is then re-raised. Uh, oh...not good. The action’s back to my friend, and he’s only got $50 or so left so he shoves it in. River is a 6, pairing the board at which point I'm thinking/hoping he's got QQ underneath. One caller shows K 7; the other guy shows T 4. My friend turns over QQ to show queens full and take down $560 or so. Nice!

Then, maybe 5 or 6 hands later, he’s in middle position with, it turns out, AA. A guy in early position raises to $25. My friend reaches for chips and says, “I raise.” but only puts out $50 in chips. He reaches for more, but the dealer stops him from making the string bet (rookie mistake!). Action folds to Vic1 who cold calls the min raise and then back to EP raiser who calls. At this point, I’m pretty sure my friend has QQ+, maybe even AA.

The flop comes KQ2 rainbow, and it’s checked to my friend. He bets a hundred. Vic1 calls, and the original raiser folds. The flat call kind of bummed me out; I’m thinking Vic1 has a set of deuces or KQ for two pair. The turn’s a deuce and I celebrate a little knowing that a KQ hand has been counterfeited and trip deuces wouldn’t make sense here. But I’m still a little concerned about a set of Qs. River is a blank and my friend continues to hammer with a $200 bet. Vic1 calls. Now I’m fearing the worst, but my friend shows AA and Vic shows…WTF?...AKo. What was Vic1 thinking? He saw my friend re-raise an EP raiser, and then bet the flop, turn and river hard. If he’d thought about it, he’d realize that AT BEST he was playing for an AK split. As it was, my friend pretty much stacked him again.

So now we’re about 30-40 minutes into the session, and I’ve got $1300 in front of me, up from $500, and my friend has a little over a grand, up from $200. A new guy sits down directly across from me in the 9 seat, one to the left of my friend and buys in for about $300 and posts. It's limped to me in middle position with KK and I make it $30 straight. New guy calls, and the limper folds. Flop is bittersweet--K T x ; too many diamonds for my taste, but I fire out $50, feeling the flop out, and the new guy calls. Turn is the prettiest T I have ever seen. I look at it for a second and then say “One hundred.” and new guy re-raises to $200. I think for a second but realize he’s committed so I push. He calls instantly and when the river blanks, says “Nut flush.” turning over Ax of diamonds. I show my kings full. He looks like he wants to vomit and my stack now stands at $1600 or so.

After a couple more orbits, it’s 2a and they’re calling for two more players for a 10-person $175 sit n go. The Mirage sit n gos can be a crap shoot but the $175s go off with 2000 chips, 25/50 starting blinds and 20 minute levels so you have some time to maneuver. My friend and I decide to rack up and take a cut at it.

The first rounds are uneventful, although, in general, the play is HORRIBLE—no suited cards left behind, calling pushes with A9o, etc. My friend’s stack gets worked a little bit and with the blinds at $75/$150, he re-raises a button raise holding JJ. The button (aka the Big Stack) calls, shows 77, flops a set and my friend is headed back to the room. At this point, I’ve got maybe 1300 so I figure I’m not far behind. Instead, I grind like the nitty TAG I am for an hour until we’re down to three players and I’m the shortie at the table. We then go back and forth for over an hour and a half on the bubble (the Mirage sit n gos only pay 2 spots, 70% and 30% of the prize pool), re-raising each other’s blinds, seeing a flop maybe every 5 hands or so. At one point, the #2 stack gets all in with J T v A 9 but rivers a J. It’s a bad omen.

Anyway, we’re finally playing with blinds at 200/400 with a 50 ante, so it won’t be long now. I’m sitting with about 4000 on the DB, ready to raise with pretty much anything when I find AKo. That’s what I’m talking about, baby! I raise and am then re-raised all-in by #2 stack. Ok, let’s go! He turns over AJo. Perfect! Blank, blank, blank, blank…J. Ugh. I’m out in 3rd place as a 3:1 favorite at 5:30a with no money. Ah, the grossness that is poker. Love it. No, seriously.

The next day, I get up around 11a, eat, get in a quick workout and head over to the Mirage Super Bowl party. If you haven’t been to a Super Bowl party at a Vegas casino, I think it’s better than seeing it live--projection TVs and buffets everywhere, tons of girls handing out drinks. Corona? Thank you. Patron shot? Why not? And typically everyone has a bet on something, so every play generates a lot of very vocal interest. But this year, I’m so pissed the Patriots aren’t in I didn’t even bet.

Anyway, about midway through the 3rd quarter, I’m bored and decided to head back to the poker room. One of the girls who one of the guys had met said she wanted to learn to play and asked me if it was ok if she joined me. 5’7”, blonde, "enhanced"…no problem, happy to help a friend of a friend. When we get there, they’re just calling a new game, so I buy $300 in chips, give her $100 to mess around with.

For the most part, it was pretty uneventful loose, passive poker—nothing very threatening. I only had one real hand to report. I’m in late position with KK. UTG raiser makes it $6. Seat 6 makes it $25. I make it $50. UTG folds and MP calls. Flop comes Kxx (nice!) and it’s checked to me. I bet $40 and MP calls. Turns a blank and I bet $30, trying to keep him on the hook (he’s only got about $60 left). He calls. River is another blank. He checks to me and I bet $30. He calls and shows QQ. Well, yes, that is a fine hand sir, but I believe me set of kings is just a tad better. In any event, after a few more hands, I rack up and leave up about $100 or so (net of the $40 that the girl managed to donk off!).

Later, after the Super Bowl ended, I returned to the poker room and sat down in the #4 seat with the big stack at the table directly to my right. Again, I buy in for $500. This time, though, the deck’s not hitting me quite so hard—I’m still at $500 or so after a couple of orbits. The seat directly to my left opens up and my friend sits in. A couple of hands later, I have AA in early position and raise to $25. Two callers…ok, whatever…and the flop comes K Q x. I lead out for $60. MP calls and it’s back to an older guy to my right who’s been playing everything. He re-raises to $160. Ok, decision-time...raise or fold? Of course, since my ego and judgment can’t handle the thought of mucking AA, I raise $200 more. Call. Call. Ugh. Caller #1 turns over QJd, and oldguyplayingeverything re-raiser turns over KQo. I’m drawing dead to about four non-diamonds and voila!...diamond on the river. Re-buy $300, please.

The last hand of any note that I played was 99 in position. There was an early position $30 raise and the big stack to my right calls. I call in position and the flop comes 972 rainbow. Very, very nice. The EP raiser bets $50, the big stack calls and the action's on me. Some people advocate calling here and saving the re-raise for the river, but I’m thinking that 1) the EP raiser could have something like JJ or QQ and if an A or a K hits, my action is done and 2) the big stack has been calling with straight and flush draws. So I bump it another hundred or so. The EP raiser folds and the big stack calls. WTF? I'm thinking he's on a straight draw for sure. Turn is exactly the card I don’t want to see, a 6 and Big Stack checks to me. I bet a hundred. Big stack calls. Now I’m concerned and not wild about committing more chips to this pot. T on the river and we checked it down. He turns over AA (never saw that coming!). my set of 9s are good and I take down a nice pot. On the one hand, I was a little pissed that I missed a bet on the river. On the other hand, he’d been coming over the top of river bets and the last thing I wanted was to face an all-in betwith four to a straight on board. In any event, healthy again at $750+.

I wouldn’t have minded staying at that table indefinitely, but shortly after that hand, the big stack racked up and left the table. I played a few more hands and headed to dinner.

Note on the restaurants. The first night, we ate at Stack, the Mirage’s steak house, which I thought was mediocre at best. I much prefer Charley Parker’s in the Four Seasons, Del Frisco’s off the Strip or Prime in the Bellagio. The second night, though, we ate at Kokomo’s, the Mirage’s other steak and seafood restaurant and the NY steak was among the best I’ve ever had. Kind of funny story, one of the guys we were with loves expensive wine and had the restaurant roll out several bottles valued at over a grand each. Every one the steward opened was spoiled. Vinegar. The sommelier was mortified after the third bad bottle, but he managed to run off and find a good Opus One and save a little face. I think I’ve only sent back maybe 1 or 2 bottles of wine in my life and most of the time wouldn’t know if a wine had turned or not. That night, I think we waved off 4 or 5 and it was obvious they were bad. Smelled like old shoes and tasted like vinegar. Pretty amazing.

We finish up around 11 or so and my buddy and I headed back to the poker room for one last run at it. There’s a list for $2/5 again so we sign up for another $175 sit n go with a table of “learned from TV” players betting and moving with anything. The guy to my left is re-raising constantly and I know he’s re-raising light, but the hands I’m getting--Ax, QJ, 55--can’t handle the pressure. Finally, I’m down to about 1200 chips with the blinds at 75/150 and I move in with 99. Guy to my left Hollywoods and then calls. Everybody else folds. He shows KK. I don’t improve and I’m out. Not the most glorious end to the weekend, but it was certainly better than grinding it out until 5:30a and coming up empty.

Anyway, I highly recommend hitting the Mirage during any Super Bowl weekend. With a little patience and a few nice hands, you'll pay for your trip!

Edmond

Played the new tournament room at the Hustler for the first time last night. About two months ago, the Hustler renovated the room behind the old tournament area and added 18 new tables with yellow felt (!) and automatic shufflers. There are new chairs, more room and flat screen TVs on the walls but other than that no other added amenities. I liked the intimacy of the old, smaller room, but larger tournaments often spilled out into the main floor. In contrast, the new room is spacious and well-lit with plenty of room to move around and accomodate larger turnouts.

Apparently, the new room is a nice draw. The Wed night $150 buy-in/$25 fee freezeout tournament used to draw about 120 entrants. Last night, there were 150+ entrants including Jerry Buss and a number of tawdry hotties that seemed to be hanging with him. For anyone that hasn't played this tournament, it's well-run and always has a pretty good mix of players. It usually has a prize pool of $15,000+ and runs about 5-6 hours; the blinds start at 25/25 and the level times are 25 minutes. The tournament starts at 7p, but late entries are allowed until the end of level 1. As it was, traffic was a bummer and I got there a little late so my starting stack had been whittled down to about 1900 when I finally took my seat.

On my second or third hand (blinds at 25/50), I'm in the big blind with J J . There was an early raiser to 200 by the big stack at the table (an attractive friend of Jerry's with a lap dog...gotta love the Hustler!) with one other limper behind her. Without any reads and not wild about committing a 1/3 of my stack out of position, I decide to call and re-evaluate post-flop. Flop came Kxx...gross...I check, two checks behind. Ok, I figure maybe I'm good and I'll bet a blank turn. Ace on the turn...ugh...check, check, check. Uh, what are you guys playing? The river was a blank, I checked again, with the intention of calling a reasonable bet. Check, check...JJ is good. Ok, that was pitiful, but I'll take the 600 chips.

Four or five hands later, I'm in middle position with Q Q . EP raiser had made it 200, and I bumped it to 600. One of the blinds pushed for another 275, and the original raiser called for 875. I called the additional 275, and the flop came Axx two spades. EP pushes for another 1000 or so. I figure I'm cooked and fold. EP turns over 85s (nh, sir!) and the re-raiser from the blinds shows KK. Turn was a spade and 85s took the pot and sent KK packing. I'm back down to 1800 or so.

Card dead through the 100/200 level and blinded down to about 1200, I pushed from late position with A T . BB (shorter than me) called with TT. I don't improve and I'm 75 chips from the felt. Two hands later, I'm in with A 9 and called by BB with T2o. 9 on the flop, but T-bagged on the river and off to the cash games!

Note on service in the new room. The tableside service was noticably worse than usual. The cocktail waitress serving the room made only occasional trips to the room and I had to twice remind her of my order. The food was also sketchy at best; I order chicken teriyaki which was two grilled chicken breasts (dry), some white rice and a side of coagulated, salty brown sauce more like bad maple syrup than teriyaki sauce. It was kind of disgusting (although I did eat it!) and a sharp contrast to the Bike and Commerce, which, I've found, serve pretty good food. Despite the service shortcomings, I'd still give the new room good marks. It and the Wednesday tournament are worth checking out.

Ok, time to win back my buy-in in the ring games. When I got to the NL ring section, they were just calling players for a new $2/5 $100 min/$300 max NL game. Note on other NL action: at 9p, I counted at least five $1/2 $50 NL tables, four other $2/5 tables and a $5/10 table.

At the new table, the other players included a couple of guys who seemed like good players and the balance limp/call/call any draw types. I didn't recognize anyone and figured I'd just play my typical TAG style and people watch. As it was, I only mixed it up in a few hands.

Hand #1. In late position, with A Q , middle position pushed for $88 behind two EP limpers. When I asked "How much is that?", the pusher looked like he wanted to vomit so I figured I was probably up against a middle pair, maybe even something like AJ or KQ. I called, table folded behind me. Flop, turn, river all blanks. I show the AQ, and the MP pusher mucked. Ship it! I'm usually not one to make a 15 BB call with AQ, but the pusher had been aggressive with hands like QJo and A5s so I figured his range here is pretty wide. Admittedly, there may have been a little post-tournament frustration leaking out but whatever. AQ...winner, winner, skip the chicken dinner!

Hand #2. In EP with AA, I raised to $20. A $150 stack behind me (younger, tech type that seemed ok although he'd chased several draws) insta-raised to $60. Table folded around and I re-raised $200 more. The second I did I regretted it since given my tight image (I'd played 2-3 hands at that point) I might just as well have announced "I have aces.", but he surprised me and said "Ok, let's gamble." and showed JJ. Uh, dude, no gambling here. Ship it! In retrospect, I was thinking when the table folded to his $60 re-raise, I could've just called and tried to coax the rest of his stack in on the flop. Not unhappy with the result, obviously, but sometimes I think I could be a little less thuggish with AA preflop. In any event, now at $500+.

Hand #3. A J in EP, not a hand I like to play OOP, but I made it $15 to go with 4 callers behind. Flop was TT8 two spades. Checked to me, and I considered betting but figured with five players my continuation bet is called for sure and any spade or straight draw calls me so I checked. Check, check. Turn is an A. Again, checked to me. I usually bet for value here, but for some reason I figured I'd check and call a bet. Nope. Check, check. River is another 8. Check, check. Ok, now I bet $20 and am called by a guy with pocket fours. "I have a pocket pair.", he says. I show the ace thinking, "Uh, no...you have the board." and stack my chips. $570+, up $270 on the session. Not my best tournament and ring play, but I'll take it.

Final note: the Hustler recently bumped its rake to help offset the California minimum wage increases. In the $2/5 game I played, they now pull $1 pre-flop, $5 on the flop and $1 for the jackpot. At 35 hands/hour, that's about $225/hour coming out of player bankrolls. Of the nine players at the table, only two of us were sitting with $300+, so figure about $2000 or less was on the table. Kind of crazy to think that 10-15% of that was being pulled each hour for rake, and I'm not sure anyone but me even noticed or cared!

For reference, if anyone wants to check out other info I collected on Hustler ring games, you can check it out here.

Comparison of LA poker rooms

Edmond