Vegas Recap

I’m baaaack. And I am exhausted but, what a great time. I probably shouldn’t be in the writers seat in this condition but, I feel bad I didn’t get to write any updates all weekend. So let me knock this recap out, and head back to my napping position on the couch.

Thursday morning we had a 6:30am flight, so we had to get up at about 3:45am. As if I was going to sleep at all anyway. It may not sound like it but, there’s actually an upside to having such an early flight to Vegas. First off all, the Vegas airport isn’t such a madhouse at that hour and getting a ride is a piece of cake. By the way if you go, take the shuttle. Round trip is $11, not the $20-$30 each way a cab would cost you. The other benefit to arriving so early is an obvious one: more gambling time.

The four of us (Austin, Dana, Kathleen and myself) all decided to play a tourney at Paris after breakfast. It was a three table, $45 buy-in tourney. I liked the structure, only I never really adjusted to the short stack they give you. The tourney I normally play in gives us $10,000 in chips, where as the Vegas tournaments were anywhere from $800-$2000 with the same blind structure. They randomly assign seating, and of course I end up at a table with Dana and Austin at my table. Even sitting on Austins left. This is not the situation any of us wanted. The guys at the table were great, and I learned Canadians love poker. And they’re a bunch of nice guys.

I finished 15th out of 30. Wasn’t too thrilled with how that went. Made a stupid play, going all in with a QJ suited trying to pick up some blinds because I was short stacked. And I didn’t just get caught with my hand in the cookie jaw, I got called by pocket Aces. So, I lost the cookies, my hand, my stack and a little bit of my pride. I’m out but, my three friends are still in. Pretty cool. And then it’s the final table, and my three friends are still in. Kathleen ended up finishing 8th, Dana 7th and Austin finished in the money at 4th place. How’s that for our first tournament? We kept our rep, bro. Well, except for me we did. Still, very cool and TONS of fun. That was actually the only poker I played the first day. My buddy came in from Phoenix and we went to dinner, saw some other casinos and I played some blackjack that night.

Friday morning Austin and I headed off to a MGM for a $65 buy-in. This was a much bigger game. Six tables, with alternates for the first hour. Everytime someone went out, a new guy took his place. This made for a huge prize pool. Sadly, I never even sniffed it. I went out after about an hour, again I made a move after getting down in chips and my A10 was knocked out by pocket threes. Austin didn’t fare much better. Very cool poker room over at MGM though.

We left and headed over to Mandalay Bay to play cash games. Austin headed for the no limit, while I decided to play 4-8 limit. I won $65 in about three hours before we headed back to the hotel. We met up with Dana and Kathleen and we decided to head down to Freemont Street, and the old school, definitely old school Binions. This place was a trip. The crowd was more KC then Vegas, I mean mullets and some of the ugliest people you’d ever see. But total characters. Again, Austin went with no limit, while the rest of us played limit. And I’ve never played so horrible in my life. I played probably 70% of my hands. I was all-in three times in the first hour or so. Then I got up about $100, pissed that all away and got back up $80 again before pissing it away again. We played till right around 6am. Great times, great times.

Saturday was our final day in Vegas. Austin and I headed over to Mirage to play in a single table, $70 sit and go. Great game. Nice pay out, much better odds then the bigger tourneys. I played pretty well. Got down to three players, with the first two places paying out $460 and $240, respectively. But I was severly short stacked. The other two players each had me out chipped 4-1. Waited and waited to double up, and anytime I came in a hand I was only able to pick up the blinds. Meanwhile, Dana and Kathleen went back to Paris to play another tournament. This time it was five tables. Dana and I exchanged text messages.

He goes out but, his wife Kathleen is still in. Then I get a text that she just knocked three guys out and took a $10,000 pot. Hmm. Interesting. Chip leader with 18 left. Final table. 7 left. 6 left. 5 left. 4. Three. She’s heads up. Wow. This is her second time playing poker in a casino, and she’s heads up in a Vegas tournament. Move over Annie Duke. Kathleen ended up finishing second. And is officially uninvited to any future poker games.

We decided to head to Palms on Saturday night. And wow. If I ever go back to Vegas, that is where I’m staying. The women there were completely insane. We were walking into Steak House 9, and the bathroom door next to the restaurant opens up and out comes Paris Hilton. She was maybe three feet away from me. Tomorrow I’ll head to the clinic to see if I caught anything. After dinner we walked around a bit, I think I may have a case of whiplash. I’ll have to talk to Devil Down to see if I can sue the Maloof Brothers for a few million. We made our way to the poker room. Which is tiny. I hadn’t played any no limit cash games, so I hop in. Played uber-tight. I could have turn coal into diamonds. Pokcet 8’s? Folded them after someone raised $40 pre-flop. It’s getting late, and well I have to leave for the airport in about three hours so Austin and I decide that the next hand will be our last. I’m down a whopping $5 after two plus hours. I get dealt QJ suited, and I get in. I forget if there was any raising yet. Flop comes AcA(?))J(?). So, I have two pair, and three to a flush. I’m against this guy who is so drunk, they’ve actually cut him off. This is Vegas, and they’ve decided someone should stop drinking. That would be like President Bush deciding we’ve dropped too many bombs in the middle east. He even tells me has the third ace, and he checks. I check too. I don’t really know if he’s telling the truth or not yet. The turn comes, and it’s another ace. Now I have a boat. And I no longer believe he has the ace. No way this drunk piece of crap has quad aces. Not on the last hand of my trip. I push my last $100+ into the pot. He says call, and flips over his Ace. You have GOT to be kidding me!!! I played that tight all night, get a great hand and lose all my money to a guy that has been cut off?? If I win that hand, I end the trip even. And head back to the hotel to pack.

So now we’re outside waiting for a cab. At this point I’m really not even upset. I don’t see how I could have gotten away from the hand at the time. Even the dealer said so when we ran into him in the casino. Suddenly the valets are talking about how “she’s around the corner.” And they get into frenzy. They are moving cabs and limos out of the way, and a lime green Palms stretch Caddy pulls up. As it’s driving up, I can see into the car and I see Paris again. Door opens and out pops Lindsay Lohan, who I barely see 3/4of her face as she is surrounded by walls, or security who just resemble brick walls. Then out came some shmucks followed by Paris. Who I thought actually looked better in person. That was just about it for celebs. Although I did play poker at the Palms with a rapper from the early 90’s named K-Solo, who I wasn’t sure if he was happy I recognized his name or not. And saw Kurt Thomas of the Phoenix Suns walking around the Palms.

All in all, a fantastic trip. Great town. But I don’t think I’m in any hurry to go back. Give me a few weeks of sleep and ask again.