For the last few months, Bodog has offered a $100 buy-in $50k guaranteed event at 10a EST on Sunday, a warm-up of sorts for their $100k guaranteed later in the day. That tournament typically draws about 320 entrants for an overlay of about 50% ($50,000 - 320*$100 = $18,000…divided by 320 entrants = $56/entrant). It’s been a great value even factoring in the downside of Bodog’s unreliable software.

You can see the overlays in the major weekly MTTs here. (Note: missed a couple when I was out at WSOP last Sunday!)

Overlays in weekly MTTs

This week, in an impressive display of underestimating elasticity of demand, Bodog reduced the guaranteed amount to $40,000, no doubt figuring that the entrants would stay the same. Instead, the number of entrants fell by almost 25%, resulting in an even bigger overlay of $65/entrant. Admittedly, the overall spread between the guarantee and the buy-in amount fell slightly, but compared to the windfall for entrants who still chose to enter and the ill will created with those who didn’t, it was a bonehead move.

A better line, in my opinion, would be to address the fundamental reason why their tournaments don’t sell out—poor software, limited cash-out options and minimal site traffic. I’m very much a fan of overlays, but when factored against the opportunity cost of time and regular client failure, the Bodog tournaments are the happy hour hors d’oerves of online poker—good value if you’re a little hungry but leaving you feeling gross if you stuff yourself with them.

Still digging...

Edmond

WSOP Event #15 $1500 NL: In which Dana goes deep, Edmond chops an STT and Adanthar continues his war with luck...


The Setup

My buddy and I flew out to Las Vegas on Saturday morning for Event #10, ($1500 NL). I had planned to head out the night before, but my schedule got spun around a little so I couldn’t head out until the morning. I had a little nervous moment when the self-serve kiosk couldn’t confirm my flight reservation (gotta love that when you get stiff-armed by an ATM at the airport at 5a) but I managed to get on a 7:30a American flight and into Las Vegas well before 9a. I hooked up with Dana (he was on a different flight), grabbed a limo and headed to the Wynn to drop off our bags. Then on to the Rio to register, grab some breakfast with PianoMan and maybe meet up with nath and Adanthar before the event.

Registration went smoothly (<10 minutes) given the time of day, my existing Harrahs rewards card and cash in hand. Dana's registration took slightly longer since he needed to get a Harrahs card and had pre-registered (courtesy of an LA charity event where he felted 200+ other players), but the total time start to finish was <20 minutes.

The lines for the 2p event started to form around 11a, and by 1:30p, they were very long. If you’re going to register for a weekend event, you should try to get to the registration area before 11a to avoid the lines.

After registering, we headed over to the Café Sao Paolo to meet PianoMan for breakfast before he headed back to St. Louis for a break before the Main Event. We had an interesting breakfast with him, his brother and girlfriend and Derek Lerner, who had some entertaining “some girl named Brandi was hitting on me” scoop. PianoMan recapped his week—a 35th place finish in the 6-handed event for 7 grand, a couple of bust-outs and some nice cash game wins. We finished up around 12p and headed back to the tournament area to get a sense of the set-up.

This year’s layout at the Rio was somewhat different than last year’s. Obvious differences: a smaller exhibit area (no room filled with online site booths) and fewer exhibitors in the hallways; a Poker Kitchen area (basically, a grill set up in an unused convention room—good luck, Rio, getting the smoke and grease smell out of that room), the STT signup area was moved near the cashier cage (instead of presenting cash at the table like last year, you must sign up and received a registration card) and the cash game brush area was set up at the back of the Amazon room. In addition, at the front of the room to the left (facing the cage/cashier) is a large TV table/lounge area for final table type viewing. Some things haven’t changed—there are limited bathrooms. One thing that was really odd was the lack of tournament monitors in the room. For any given tournament, you have to hunt to see a level time monitor.

Anyway, enough on logistics…


Event #15: In and out in just under four hours

Event #15 was a $1500 NL event and like the other relatively low buy-in weekend events drew a big field—2,628 entrants, prize pool of about $3.6 million. A look are the crowd...



You can see the Bluff Magazine reporting here.

I was seated at table 157, seat 3. It was an uneventful table; no big names, no crazy hands. I made it through several rounds with a few playable hands—AQo, 88—no big pairs, no suited connectors. With the blinds at 100/200/25 and a stack of 2500 or so, I needed to get busy and pushed with 77 to pick up the blinds and antes. A couple of hands later, I doubled up all-in with AJs v A8s and was feeling somewhat better about my stack. I then promptly lost about a third of my chips in the following hand.

I made it 600 in middle position with AQ and was called some guy in a cowboy hat on the dealer button. I fired 1K at the 973 board, and Tex shoved. Ugh. I asked the dealer for a count and thought for a minute. It was about 4500 or so more for me to call into a 6500-ish pot. I figured I was at best 50/50 if my flush draw and over-cards were good and pitched the hand. Tex showed TT. I thought he had some sort of made hand when he pushed and had I really thought it out, I probably could've concluded that he didn’t have A or K and my draw and over-cards were indeed good. Worst case, he had a set; best case, a worse draw.

In any event, I was in tough shape with 2800 chips a few hands later, when utg+1 raised. Next to act, I picked up 99 and shoved. The table folded to the raiser, he showed QQ and when the other nines refused to present themselves, I was out. I wasn't unhappy with my play but I'm definitely rethinking the AQ hand.

As it turns out, Adanthar had busted out a few hands earlier so I met him at the rail behind nath, who was still in decent shape with a 20BB stack. My friend, Dana, was on fumes but scratching his way along. At this point, it was about 4:30p and I hadn’t eaten all day, so Adanthar and I had lunch before hitting a couple of STTs.


$525 STTs…Charmin soft

The STT set-up is, as I mentioned above, a line by the cashier area. It looks more formidable than it is. Both times Adanthar and I got on line for a $525, we were seated within minutes. This year, though, you have to show your rewards card/register/pay at the cashier and take a registration card to your table. It's actually somewhat more efficient than the old "pay at the table" approach since the dealers aren't handling money at the table. A few pics...

STT sign-up line



Satellite area



The structure

$525 structure


STT #1

Our table included an Iraqi ex-pat with reddish hair. Imagine a 60-ish, short, stocky Saddam Hussein-lookalike with red hair and no poker skills and you’d have our guy. On my right was some guy to my right that kept ranting about beats he’d been taking. To my left, some guy from North Dakota now living in Utah. Adanthar was across the table in the 7 or 8 seat. To his left, a quiet Asian guy; to his right, a woman from somewhere in Texas.

An interesting exchange developed at 50/100 when the complainer to my right raised to 300 from the dealer button, I folded my SB, but Dakota called. The board was all low cards and Dakota led out for 800. Complainer pushed and Dakota waffled and folded KK because "I know you've got aces." Complainer and he then get into an ongoing exchange about who really had what. Complainer claimed he had JJ and Dakota claimed he had KK; both insisted each other was lying. I was sandwiched in between, bemused, trying not to call them both out as idiots.

Early on, Adanthar had doubled up and was the chip leader at the table. With about 6-7 of us left and the blinds at 50/100, I make what he later reminded me was a revealing (aka donkish) 4x raise to 400 with JJ utg. Read his thoughts on betting tells here. The table folded to Adanthar, who waved at the pot like he was shoeing kittens out of a kitchen—all-in. I tanked for about 15-20 seconds (enough time to reflect on how much it would suck to see QQ here) and called. Fortunately, he showed AKo and, because he’s running so delightfully bad, I doubled up.

20 minutes later with the blinds at 100/200, I raised to 800 with QQ from early position (another revealing raise, in retrospect). The big stack at the table, now a woman, pushed and showed AKo when I called. The board bricked off and I was the new chip leader.

A few hands later, Complainer and Dakota mixed it up again. Dakota limped and called Complainer's min-raise from the dealer button. Flop was non-descript and Dakota check-raised all-in when Complainer bet. Dakota showed K5, no pair, no draw v Complainer's AA. Runner 5, runner K and Complainer went off, howling about how bullshit it all was. Two hands later he pushed on my BB with Q9o. With 5 to 1 odds, I called with J5d and promptly flopped a jack. Turn and river, no help and he was apoplectic. Whatever, pal.

So now we're down to five players with the blinds at 200/400…me, Adanthar, Dakota, Saddam and an Asian guy hiding in seat 10, who both Adanthar and I pegged as competent. Dakota raised from EP; Asian guy called from the blind. The flop came A76. Asian guy checked and Dakota shoved. Asian guy tanked and called for his stack. Dakota showed 96 and (in)competent Asian showed 45.



96s>45o and we were down to four.

A few minutes later, Dakota shoved some POS hand and lost to Saddam's AA so it was me, Saddam and Adanthar for the money. With the blinds at 200/400 or thereabouts, Saddam raised Adanthar and then called his AJo shove with A2s. Flop came AAKx…2 and Adanthar was out. Gruesome.

At this point, Iraqi guy had me covered 2:1 but immediately proposed a 3:2 money chop in which he would pay the taxes and dealer tip. I’m pretty sure I was EV+ there but I took the 2 grand and headed off to play another one.

I deal in a home game the first Friday of every month where players routinely stack off with hands like pocket tens on a AK772 three heart board. The competition in the $525 STTs is somewhere between that home game and a $20 sit-n-go on Party circa 2004. Seriously.


STT #2

The 2nd STT had a slightly tougher line-up, figure a Stars $20 regular sit-n-go, circa 2005. Early on, I was the SB, with AKo facing an EP raiser, two callers. I usually re-raise here without a second thought, but I just completed, whiffed the flop and check/folded like a nit.

A few hands later I was UTG with AKo and tossed a 100 chip in intending to raise but didn’t state “raise.” so I ended up with two callers. Hate that. The SB bet the KK5 flop and I raised hoping he had a crappy K. “5 no good?”, he asked and folded.

Adanthar busted relatively early when his flopped two pair < KJ no pair flush draw all-in on the flop. I lasted somewhat longer but with less than 10BB found myself utg with JJ. I pushed and was insta-called by DB with 99. Brick, brick, brick, brick…9…and I’m out.


Back to Event #15

At this point, it was getting late 10p or so and I wasn't happy with how I was thinking or playing (see AK hands above) so I checked in on Dana. He was riding a short-stack roller coaster. All-in with K2s multi-way and spiking a K. Then all-in with KK v AQo and getting savaged by a river A. Nonetheless, he was kicking and scratching his way along as the field narrowed from 2600 toward the money—260 or so.

At one point, pulled me over. “There’s this guy in an Ultimate Bet jacket at the next table. What a tool.” I told him that’s Phil Hellmuth and make a silent prayer to the poker gods that they’ll put them at the same table. If anyone will call Hellmuth out as a complete and utter tool, it’ll be my friend. And, with any luck, it'll be on camera.

Around 11p or so, the bubble broke and everyone burst into cheers. Dana was a little perplexed by this, “Are you serious? Net fifteen hundred for 10 hours of work? An ugly call girl in this town makes $300 an hour. You guys need some perspective.” Dana’s just likable enough where this cracked up the entire table. If I had said it, I’d have been pelted with cell phones and iPods.

I sweated him for another couple of hours or so until they had their final break at around 1a. He was kind of cooked at this point, but they were breaking for the night at 2a so I told him to hang in there and avoid anything stupid. He said was fine but sat down at the wrong table at the end of the break. I steered him to his table and kept my fingers crossed that he had another 45 minutes of cogent thought. He did and we were on to Day 2.


Day 2

Sunday morning we met up at the gym in the Wynn for a quick workout before heading back to the Rio. Note: anyone who's serious about playing live poker has to COMMIT to a healthy diet and regular exercise. It's easy to fall into an unhealthy lifestyle—the extended sitting, irregular meals, stress, dehydration. A look around the poker room should give you all the confirmation you need—lots of out-of-shape guys, bad posture, poor food choices, smoking. That's not a winning line for guys without health insurance.

At the start of Day 2, the field was now down to 120 or so (nath busted the night before in 226th) so they moved into a smaller roped off area at the Rio. At this point, his stack was still below average but not horrible. Dana moved in just enough to stay ahead of the blinds—A5o, ATo, etc.—making progress only through field attrition.

After a couple of hours, Matt LaGarde sat down at Dana’s table with what looked to be about 200k+ chips, easily the big stack at the table. I pulled Dana aside and reminded him that Matt could raise and re-raise light, so any decent ace or pair was likely good. On the very next hand, Dana raised half his stack from middle position and Matt put him in from the blind. They showed TT v AJo, and because Dana runs better than Chad Johnson against a horse, he won his third TT coin flip of the tournament and doubled up. Matt apparently runs even better, because just an orbit later he rebuilt his stack to over 300k when another decent stack pushed AKs into his AA big blind.

TT holds yet again...




Taken out by a SKIRT

So now the field was thinning quickly…94…87…72…and moving toward better money. It's really funny how focused some players are on the various money jumps. At one point, a middle position medium stack held up AJs (showing his friend behind him) and FOLDED it in an unopened pot. WTF? I was tempted to yell “You SKIRT!” but I was full on multi-tasking at this point, taking pictures, texting nath keeping him up on Matt's progress and PianoMan on Dana's, chatting via phone with Dana's little brother and didn’t feel like spending the rest of the tournament outside on the curb. But seriously, WTF? How do you fold AJs in an unopened pot with 60 players left? Even more surprising, another player openly insisted he was only playing premium hands. He was fortunate to triple up with AA and AKs but still, he was obviously exploitable.

I thought about mentioning the AJs fold to Dana on the next break, but a few hands later Skirt raised from the button and Dana pushed with JJ. Skirt insta-called with AA and Dana was out in 56th with 10 grand for his 21 hours of work. It was sort of anti-climatic but a nice cash nonetheless.

Over 20 hours of poker (600+ hands), Dana never had AA. He had KK twice and both times it was cracked, once by Ax, once by 85o. Even more damning, he had TT all-in three times and each time it held. Hmmm…56th with no premium hands holding up…

When we were waiting to give Dana’s info in the cash out line, there was some big dude in full on Harley gear SOBBING like someone had trashed his vintage Shovelhead. Wow, dude…get a grip already. In any event, they presented Dana with a stack of hundreds and we were off to the Wynn for a nice dinner before the run home.


Wynner, Wynner…Chinese dinner

A note on the Wynn. The Wynn is a beautiful hotel, the nicest casino/hotel/spa property on the Strip in my opinion. Unfortunately, the desk and concierge staff aren’t as accommodating as the property. This was the second time I’ve stayed at the Wynn; both times I was treated like a panhandling railbird. For example, I checked in late (3a) and although I had a confirmed and paid for reservation for a non-smoking room, I was given a smoking room. When I called the front desk and asked if I could be moved at some point later in the day, the front desk person dismissed me with “No one guarantees non-smoking rooms.” She might just as well have said, “We have your monies, fish. Too bad.” Similarly, when my buddy and I called the concierge at 6p on Sunday after he busted out and asked for a reservation at a restaurant, the concierge brushed me off with “This late in the day? Our restaurants are very popular.” I basically had to beg to get a table a Wing Lei, the Chinese restaurant, which, btw, was great. We ended up running up a $800 bill for two—a 56th place finish, Peking duck and Opus One will definitely build a pot—and the food and service were top notch.

On the way back to the room after dinner, I looked in the other restaurants. They obviously had tables available. It’s a shame the desk and concierge staff act more like doormen at some vodka/Redbullshit nightclub instead of hospitality personnel at a five star hotel trying to accommodate registered guests. In my opinion, you’re probably better of staying at the Bellagio. It's slightly less nice but centrally located and with a staff that treats you like a guest rather than an inconvenience.


Conclusion

All in all, not a bad weekend. Nice finish by Dana, some tournament chips from the STTs and a good sense of how things are running. I'll probably head back out in another week for more of the squishy STTs and try to satellite in to the Main Event.

Keep digging!

Edmond

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

In a fit of OCD waiting for room service during my recent Tahoe trip, I compared the 2006 WSOP structure with the revised "double stack" structure for this year's WSOP. I applied the 2006 field attrition (interpreted from PokerWire posts) to both structures. Looks like the play will probably be pretty much the same.

WSOP 2006 structure vs 2007

I think it's going to be interesting to see how many entrants materialize. With online rooms unable to buy in directly for the event, I'm positive the number will be much lower. Think about it fro the typical player. He wins a satellite and Tilt transfers the $10,000+ to his account. For most guys, that's real money and could go a long way toward paying a few bills. I can definitely see a scenario where most satellite winners take the dough pay a few outstanding bills and MAYBE play smaller events or other live satellites to the event. I'm betting the total number of entrants will fall by almost 50%. I don't, though, this means the live poker is dying. The 2007 LA Poker Classic main event had 791 entrants vs. 692 in 2006.

Still digging,

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

Last night, a friend and I played in an annual, invitation-only tournament sponsored by a national financial services firm. There were 144 entrants (free entry) competing for a prize pool that included a video iPod (3rd prize), a $500 gift certificate at a local steakhouse (2nd prize) and an entry into the WSOP main event and hotel accommodations (a $12,000+ value) for the first place winner.

I busted out about 60th or so when my AQs refused to stand up to my opponent’s K3o, but my friend actually won the event, taking home twelve grand of value for a few hours of work. The quality of play ranged from laughable to abysmal with few players understanding things like hand value, position and blind stealing. Typical for events like this, the blinds increase rapidly—organizers usually want to complete the event in an evening—so you need a certain amount of luck to find your way to the final table. That said, an intermediate player with a decent understanding of poker and tournament fundamentals would have had a huge advantage over the field.

As I was sweating and coaching my friend, it struck me that it may seem a little down market for an aspiring player to compete in these events, but there can be a lot of value in doing so. I'm a big fan of improving my game by playing better players, but I'm an even bigger fan of money. Admittedly, the event above was an invitation-only event (it's good to be on the list!), but there are other pockets of unskilled money out there in charity/invitational events and home games. The prize pools often include non-cash prizes (TVs, gift certificates and the like) but can include, like this one, entries into major tournaments. Novice and intermediate players should definitely keep an eye out for them.

These events are also low risk opportunities to work on basic people reading skills. Very few players in a charity event will sit with the hat and sunglasses ensemble that you see at even low buy-in casino events; of the 144 players in the event we played, none wore sunglasses or a hat of any kind. Novice and intermediate players can use the opportunity to watch the other players for visual clues—their demeanor, how they handle their bets, how they look when put in awkward spot, etc.—and work on matching hand strength to these clues. In a live casino event, other players will be making a conscious effort to conceal their emotions and read yours. In an invitational or charity event, players tend to be less serious and less self-aware so it’s a great opportunity to train yourself to look for tells and try to predict hand strength.

Similarly, I think home games are another source of dead money and opportunity to work on your game. I deal and play regularly in a home game hosted by a friend of mine, and I often bring a friend who is an improving player. We usually play 1 or 2 single table tournaments over the course of an evening. While my friend has a definite edge in live and online tournaments, he has a huge edge in this home game. The other players have poker knowledge (a sharp contrast to charity events) but still make routine mistakes about hand values, position and bubble play. Add alcohol into the mix and you've got a real value opportunity for a thinking player. Doing the math…

Home games = drinking
Drinking = impaired judgment
Unskilled players + impaired judgment = more mistakes
More mistakes = more money

Further, home games are another good opportunity to work on people and hand reading skills. In our home game, I regularly see strong means weak, weak means strong reads, speeches ("Well, I don't like my hand but I guess I should call…") and other basic tells. While I'm dealing, I'm practicing my reading skills and putting guys on ranges of hands based on those reads. It’s surprising how good you can get at it, if you make an effort.

And don’t forget, the vigorish in a home game is a lot less than in a casino event. In our game, we each chip in for food and drinks—there’s no fee to play or expected dealer tip (although there should be…ugh), like there is in a casino. The payout for the players is a lot more efficient than in a live event.

So off-casino event and home games are good spots for an intermediate player to find value. But what about online events? I think online play is usually better than live play at comparable levels, but there is still plenty of, if not obvious, free money. For example, one overlooked source of dead money online is in tournaments with an overlay.

Several online sites offer tournaments with guaranteed prize pools that undersell—not enough people enter to cover the guaranteed prize pool, so the sponsoring site has to make up the difference. The balance is called the “overlay” and is extra prize money spread across the field. For example, a site offering a $50,000 guaranteed prize pool in a $100 buy-in tournament would have to draw at least 500 entrants to cover the prize pool. If they drew only 400, the overlay would be calculated as follows:

400 entrants…400 x $100 = $40,000 of buy-in money

$50,000 guaranteed prize pool - $40,000 entry fees = $10,000 balance added by the site

Therefore, each player would then receive an overlay of $25 ($10,000/400) on his $100 entry, making his $100 worth $125 in this event.

That extra money gets compounded by your skill advantage. If you're 2x as good as the average player in the field, you've got an expectation of $200 for your $100 buy-in. In other words, if you play this tournament multiple times, you can expect to win an average of $200 each time you play. In a tournament with an overlay, your expectation would be 2x the buy-in PLUS the overlay or, in the case above, $250. If you figure the average tournament runs 5-6 hours, that’s an extra $10/hour of value for a good player.

I’ve been tracking the major weekly online tournaments over the last year to see which ones provide overlays. The major PokerStars, Full Tilt and Party tournaments rarely offer them, but the weekly events of many second tier sites, Absolute, Bodog, Pacific and Ultimate Bet, almost always do. Moreover, on holiday weekends, these overlays can be pretty sick—one recent Bodog tournament offered a 90% overlay! You can see the overlays offered in leading tournaments over the last year or so here…

Overlays in online MTTs

To sum up, I’d say there’s a lot of free money out there, if you’re willing to slum it a little in off-casino events, home games and second tier online sites. I’m all for competing against the best, but if your goal is maximizing your dollars per hour of play, keep an eye open for local charity events, find or start a home game and look at some of the guaranteed tournaments offered by second tier sites on that chart. They can be low-risk ways to build your bankroll (or win WSOP entries!), skills and confidence so you’ll be that much stronger in live casino events.

Still digging,

Edmond

I recently saw a hand from the Aussie Millions Cash game and I thought it was pretty instructive for intermediate players on how NOT to play a hand. With 60-70 hours of poker programming on each week, many players continue to enjoy the game by watching players on TV. Unfortunately, a number of the hands shown on TV reinforce behavior patterns that are real money losers for most players. For example, playing small suited aces out of position is a EV- play for most cash and tournament players, yet you routinely see this in televised play.

In another blog, I recounted a hand where Phil Hellmuth gets eviscerated by Daniel Negreanu playing an A4o, out-of-position. Similarly, in this Aussie Millions video, Phil Ivey, arguably one of the best cash game players ever, dumps over $60,000, playing A3 under the gun. In the context of his playing experience with the other players at the table, the play may have made sense. Furthermore, there may be places where such a play is justified—you're facing blind pressure late in a tournament or you’re seated at a passive table and assured of seeing a cheap multi-way flop—but in your typical online or live cash game, small aces out of position are money pits. Fold them.

Here's how the hand played out.

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The blinds are 300/600 with a 100 ante. There are eight players seated; the starting pot, with antes, is 1700.

Ivey starts the action by limping with A3 for 600. Directly to his left, Erik Lindgren limps as well with AQ. Novice and intermediate players have to recognize that these plays are not optimal in the typical online/live cash game. If there are 4-5 players to a flop, I can see Ivey limping, but Lindgren's limp behind is horrible here, in my opinion. There's $2300 in the pot with Ivey's limp, and AQo is a decent starting hand but one in which you need to narrow the field and figure out where you stand. I think the better play is a raise to around $5000 and would argue that a player in an online/live game is making a big mistake by mirroring Lindgren's action.

In any event, he limps and Chris Ferguson, an amateur in seat 1 and John Juanda fold. At that point, Patrik Antonius, holding 88, raises $3800 to $6700. I like this play. There's been no show of strength (two limpers), his eights are likely good and he wants to narrow the field. If he's called, he can re-evaluate after the flop. He puts in a nice raise to see who's serious about their hand. The blinds, Billy "the Croc" Argyros and Jeff Lisandro, both fold.

With the action back to Ivey, he re-raises $17,000 or so, a very aggressive play and again one that novice to intermediates should avoid. I can see his thinking here—he and Antonius play each other frequently; he may see Antonius making a play from position and decides to represent a monster hand. Unfortunately, Patrik calls.

Online and live, the limp/re-raise from UTG with a monster hand (AA, KK, AK) is a very transparent play and one you should use sparingly. It typically results in the pot ending right there with no further value for your hand, and when action proceeds to the flop, pretty much everyone in the hand knows what you're holding. Acting out of position when others know your hole cards is a problem.

On the 43Q flop, Ivey continues to represent a big hand and fires a 2/3 pot bet of $16,000 at the 24,300 pot. Antonius calls.

The turn is the 5, and Ivey fires another $40,000 at the pot. At this point, Antonius pushes, and Ivey thinks (more accurately, he pretends to think) for a bit and folds.

Note that Argyros comments at several points in the hand and when Ivey's contemplating Antonius’ shove, he makes a joke which falls flat. Not only does he look like a buffoon wearing his ridiculous crocodile hat, his breach of protocol is shameful for a better player. It's surprising even at these levels how many players don't show common courtesy to the other players. If you're not in the hand, respect the others who are and shut up.

To his credit, Ivey says nothing, but he’s clearly aggravated and gets up from the table to steam a little.

Let’s recap. Ivey limps with A3s under the gun, is raised, re-raises and continues his charade on the flop and turn until he’s rebuffed. Of course, if Ivey flops a monster here (two pair or trips), he looks like a hero, but those are both long shots (70+ to 1 and 50 to 1, respectively). It’s far more likely that he’s going to end up dumping off chips with a small ace out-of-position and he’s one of the best in the world. Do your bankroll a favor, fold the small aces out-of-position!

Still digging,

Edmond

Bodog $3/$6 NL. Apologies in advance for the HH format.

9-handed table; 6 seated. I sit, wait for the BB and post.

UTG $222.00 (posts $6 out of turn, one seat from BB)
UTG+1 $288.00
MP $1381.00
DB $203.00
SB $177.50
Edmond (BB) $600.00

UTG, heretofore waiting patiently for his big blind, realizes I'm in the hand and, therefore, opts to post and check. UTG+1, anxious to isolate me, raises $19. MP misclicks and folds. DB sees UTG+1's show of greed and calls. Ha! He's got position on all of us! Any two are good here! SB discounts my positional advantage immediately and calls. He'll outplay me from any seat.

I now make an obvious fish move and raise to $60. UTG misclicks and folds. UTG+1 laughs at the literary irony of my screenname reference to a "humble and poor fisherman" and instacalls the $41 more. DB instacalls. Any two cards are good here. SB, overcome by greed, tries to isolate me with my two rags and moves all-in for $158.50.

Desperate to salvage my play, I shove my last $540. I'm obviously looking for everyone to just go away and let me take my chances vs the SB. UTG+1, giddy with his good fortune I've waddled into his trap and he'll double up here, calls all-in for $228. DB, though, holds an A (a monster here!) and calls $143 all-in with confidence.

Four players all-in to the flop. Pot = $959.

Flop 3 T 8
Turn K
River 2

UTG shows K Q
DB shows A 5
SB shows J 7

I show my A A and take down the $959 pot but sit out in shame, knowing 1) I've all the credibility of a micro-limit player, 2) I've peaked on my first hand of the night and broken a fine table and 3) have to re-create a Bodog hand history without a proper converter.

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