Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Quick HH and Vegas recap

It's been a long time since I posted, so I figure I may as well get that monkey off my back with a recap of my Vegas extended weekend.  I arrived on Wednesday night, meeting my wife who I haven't seen in over 2 weeks.  (Quick recap: I'm in Denver for 4 months on business travel, and only get to go home once every 30 days.)  Anyway, we met at the hotel (she came in earlier in the week from DC), and went out to dinner as I was starving; it was an hour later in Denver time than in Vegas, and we were approaching the 8:00 hour in Vegas.  We walked around a bit and settled on a so-so family style Italian place in the Venetian or Caesars (can't remember which).  The "so-so" part was the sauce on the calamari marinara was watery and the angel hair was not drained adequately, while the steamed mussels were somewhat flavorless.   Oh well - lesson learned, but kinda expensive.

The next day, we went hiking up in the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.  It was an awesome hike; we were climbing huge rocks and boulders, and basically having a good time getting re-acquainted with each other after the 2 week hiatus.  As the day progressed, we realized we should have brought a picnic lunch, and got in the car to find food.  We opted for an awesome place called Krayvings - an all natural healthy place right down the block from Red Rock Casino.  The food was great, and the price was really terrific.

Afterwards, we headed over to Fremont Street to the old strip.  Neither of us had ever been there before, and it was an interesting experience, to say the least...  I doubt I'll be back to that area, though I can say I've been there.  We also visited the world famous Binions Casino - my wife took a picture of me in front of the Poker Hall of Fame display they have outside of the poker room.  It was cool being there, but the place had the feeling of death and despair - very much a has-been casino.  In fact, the last sentence mostly summarizes all of the Fremont walking area, unfortunately...  As it was getting late, we went for a decent dinner at the Michael Mina's Pub 1842 at the MGM Grand.  We both enjoyed our dinners, and for casino food, the price was quite reasonable.  After dinner, we went to the late show of Ka at the MGM Grand later that night.  The show was awesome, but I recommend going when you have more energy.  We had done so much during the day that we were both fighting to stay awake.

The next day, my wife was scheduled to return home, so we had limited time.  We drove out to the Hoover Dam, which was a pretty neat experience.  The drive took about an hour, but we had the opportunity to really see outside of Vegas, driving through Henderson and then Boulder City.  Interesting fact: Hoover Dam is split between Arizona and Nevada, and is considered a shared resource.  The building is magnificent, when you consider that it was built from 1931-1936, prior to computers and modern engineering techniques.  Very impressive stuff - coupled with the new bridge that was completed in 2010 (you can see the bridge in the background of the picture to the right.  We wound up going for Mexican food later that night at a place called Michoacan Mexican restaurant - the place was AWESOME with great tasting food and an awesome price.  If we lived in the local area, we would have taken home doggy bags, because the quantity of food was absolutely overwhelming.

Dropping my wife off at the airport later that night, I would have my first session of poker - the crux of this blog...  I wound up meeting up with RobVegasPoker of Rob's Vegas and Poker Blog and Ante Up fame.  Rob was kind enough to put me on the waiting list as he arrived - he's like a celebrity at the casino we played.  I think all the dealers and desk workers knew him, and they knew I was his friend - so I guess I was almost famous :-).  We played together for an hour or two before he started feeling tired (he was playing in an earlier tournament in another casino prior to our meet up.  The hands were definitely hitting for him, and he wound up having a really nice session before we parted ways.  I would stay on at what would turn out to be an awesome table - filled with 1 drunk and a ton of semi-knowledgeable tourists.  Everyone at the table, though, was there to have a good time.  I certainly showed them that good time by running the conversation.  We started by talking about wives and ex-wives, but quickly moved into prostitution and the regular flow of half-naked club-goers streaming in and out of the club behind the poker room.  I was asking "innocent questions" about how much prostitutes cost, what the delta difference in pricing for geographic location may be, whether prostitutes charge more for being hot or being good at... well... prostituting...?  FYI - I put quotes around the "innocent questions" because I know full well that others at the table were pretending to not know about these sorts of things, though they were quick with certain answers...  Personally, I've never partaken in such activities but have always been curious about the economics behind the oldest profession in the world.

Anyway, I wound up having a killer session after starting off down $500 at a the 1/2 game.  This was my first time since the beginning of the year playing down, as I had solely been sticking to 2/5.  Quick semi-standard hand history: I call a mid-position raise to $12 with 3 3.  Flop comes 3 K K - 2 diamonds.  Belgian dude leads for $20 and I raise to $45.  He flats, all else fold (think there were 4 to the flop).  Turn puts out the 6d and I lead for $50.  He raises me all-in and I snap call.  He shows the Ace high flush and I scoop a nice $400+ pot.  Easy game.  I wound up quitting that game at 5am!  I am still exhausted as I type this post 2 days later.

Anyway, I tried to get in touch with Tony Big Charles of tbc's blog about grinding low stakes poker the next day, but was unable to roust him from his slumber.  I went for my In-N-Out fix and settled down at a 1/3 game in the Bellagio.  Interesting poker room - this must be a grinder's paradise; no bad beats or player pool drops, max rake is $4 on 1/3 and 2/5, and the room is as busy as any other on the strip.  I sat for a few hours before Tony finally decided to contact me.  With 4 hours before my flight, I decided to spend my last few hours in Vegas meeting up with the man, the myth and the legend.  I picked him up at a McDonalds, bought him lunch and got to hear about the ills of his world.  He's an interesting guy, with a lot of predisposed notions of the world - if you read his blog, you'll know what I mean.  However, I think he's a lost guy in need of someone to take him under their wing.  I think that if he had friends to help take care of him and oversee his daily activities, his life situation could be much improved.  Unfortunately, he won't apply (or possibly can't get) aid from the state, and I'm not that guy to be his caretaker since I'm here in Denver and DC.  Anyway, watching him, I understand from whence he comes.

All in all, it was an awesome trip!  I got to spend real quality time with my wife who I so dearly miss.  I miss my kids too, and didn't get to see them this trip.  It's been 7 years since I'd visited Vegas, and I hope to make it back next time in a shorter duration.

21 comments:

  1. no fried oreos or twinkies? i love downtown. strictly gambling and cheap food.none of that family friendly shit. the grit and sweat of old gamblers past.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Funny; we were going to buy a Bluth Banana (actually just a chocolate covered banana) at the Fried Oreo / Twinkie place to share, but the line was out the door... We got McDonalds ice cream sundaes for $1 instead...

      Delete
    2. true that place gets busy.also, like the hotdog wrapped in bacon then they fry it.good times.how u digging this colorado weather,dude? sunny and 60s then next day 1 inch of snow. lol

      Delete
    3. I'm actually really enjoying the weather here in Denver. It's not that cold when it's in the 40's because it's sunny constantly. It's far more dry than the east coast weather; I'm constantly drinking water to keep myself hydrated.

      Delete
    4. keep up with the water,bro. ppl dont think colorado and dry enviroment but it is.also,watch 4 nosebleeds. some ppl get that bcuz on dryness and altitude

      Delete
  2. I thought Patrice O'Neil had burned the banana stand down?

    Nice trip report. I'm a big fan of the Michael Mina Pub. Coldest beers on the strip, and decent food (albeit on the pricey side for what it is)....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah - the food was pricey, but it seemed more reasonable than most of the other places in the casinos.

      Delete
  3. Dang, but poker is EZ when you flop boats! Sounds like your table was the perfect situation at MGM -- if you are lucky enough to find where the poker room moves to each week.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great meeting you, TPM and glad you had a nice run after I left. I will post about our session together as soon as I have some time.

    The subject of hookers comes up frequently at the poker table. It's always guys saying, "from what I've heard." Never that they engage in the activity themselves. I'm curious about what the rates discussed were, because every time I hear the discussion, it's a wildly different amount. Do the rates vary that much or is it just the guessing that varies?

    Not that it matters, but if you arrived Wednesday night you lost a day there, from your re-telling of your trip. I know Saturday was the dam cuz that's when we met, but can't figure out if Red Rock/Ka was Thursday or Friday.

    Fremont St is interesting.....I'm not a big fan and probably only go there cuz I like that Saturday Binion's tourney so much.

    It's 1/2 at the Venetian, not 1/3 right? Venetian, Bellagio and Aria are the last three rooms to thus far avoid the promo/jackpot drop. MGM was the most recent to add the promo drop, to much controversy.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. not a big fan of fremont? HERESY.LMAO.binions.the nugget.4 queens. 99 cent shrimp cocktails. binions cheap midnight deals,fried oreos,twinkies,hotdogs,and such.3 for 10 dollar vegas t shirts,fruity dranks in tall plastic cups,and the chance to c vegas best street performers. geeeeez. u guys must b like mitt romney not want to b with the peeps. lol

      Delete
    2. Yeah... I skipped Thursday as it was the day we sat out by the pool and walked around the strip. It was an R&R day.

      Delete
  5. the venetian does not have, nor has it ever offered, $1-3 NL games

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tony - meant the Bellagio and changed it in the post. Thanks for the update!

      Delete
  6. Who is that ugly your guide beside the beautiful lady?

    I am glad to hear you both had great fun. The pictures look awesome.

    Hope to see you at our neck of the woods.

    GolfPro

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hey, just wanted to let everyone know that my version of that great session we had together is now posted on the blog. It can be found here:

    http://robvegaspoker.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-night-poker-gods-smiled-on-me.html

    ReplyDelete
  8. The flop raise with the flopped boat with the King and the flush draw on the board is pure gold, you klown. You need to find a super-basic poker strategy book, maybe one for young children with undeveloped minds, and read the chapter about slow playing. You basically got handed the ultimate perfect example of a spot where it is utterly imperative that you slow-play, and instead you not just led out with a bet, but raised a c-bettor's bet right there on the flop. As usual in your stories, the deck caught you a 30% shot and you lucked into getting paid anyways, but my god how could you possibly raise on that flop? You'll just make AA, QQ, JJ, TT, 99, 88, 77, 66, 55, 44, 22 any hand with a King, any hand with a 3 in it and any flush draw in the world fold, in a spot where about 3/4 of the deck could improve your opponent's hand on the turn, while simultaneously having as close to zero chance as possible of your opponent catching up to you. Anyone who raises in that spot simply does not understand how to extract chips, period. People play cash for a month to hit a flop like that in a spot like that on that kind of board, and you did everything you could dream of to make sure you did not get paid off.

    I know these hand histories are not real. It just could not be. This whole thing is just to drive me cray.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Just want to point out the irony of your statement: "while simultaneously having as close to zero chance as possible of your opponent catching up to you" but yet you concern yourself about how Rob should worry about "Not to mention that you give the free card, and suddenly they hit their set of Queens or Jacks on the turn".

      Let's assume villain has a K (which you think my raise folds out any hand with a K) - quick quiz: who has a better chance of sucking out in my hand vs. Rob's hand? If you're too slow to count, on Rob's hand, which you condone cbetting, he has 2 outs (assuming he has QQ, JJ), whereas on my hand, if he has Kx - 4 outs (that would be the remaining K, and 3 of the X outs - let alone if he has 44+ and is drawing to 2 outs). He has double the shot of hitting his outs with my hand (as Kx) vs. Rob's hand and an equal shot with any 2 paired cards better than 22.

      Moreover, there are far more hands in his range to call a raise with. If I don't raise here and he misses the potential draws that he leads with, in this spot, then I get little or no more money out of him; so I call the flop and lead the turn (if/when he misses) for what... $30? Maybe less? By raising here, I set up stacks to go in on the turn and/or river with ease, vs. needing him to raise me at some point later in the hand. That little subtly seems lost on you.

      I'm not going to resort to making you feel bad like you try to make me do with every response you write. I see that you clearly don't understand the how's and why's, and you enjoy reading my blog because perhaps you're learning something. Perhaps you're just the standard internet troll and like to be a naysayer. Whatever the case, I hope my other readers learn something if you are incapable.

      Delete
  9. Seriously?! Seriously, guy? You are really comparing this hand -- where you flopped a mothafuggin full boat -- to a hand where the guy flopped just his one pocket pair? I mean, can you really think that you are somehow debunking my obvious arguments by suggesting that in another hand I told a guy who held JUST ONE PAIR that he needs to bet on that flop (which he obviously should)? You flopped a FULL HOUSE -- a hand that could not reasonably have been beaten by any turn or river cards -- and Rob had just one pair, a hand that could very easily be beaten in any number of ways, including by him not being right on his read of his opponent's hand preflop, the guy turning two pairs, or I could go on and on and on.

    As much as your play of the hand suggests how little you understand this concept, your argument in the preceding comment ices it beyond any possible doubt. You are 100% backwards on when to slow play and when not to, literally totally and completely backwards. You think an extremely beatable hand like pocket Aces is a hand to slowplay on the flop, while a very hidden flopped boat needs to not just bet but RAISE right there on the flop. What a butchery of this game we all know and love.

    Because I like you, I am going to suggest again for your own benefit, go and find a very basic no limit holdem book, find the chapter on slow playing, open your mind, and READ. You will truly be amazed at how utterly bass-ackwards you have this concept. You might even find yourself running into a winning session every once in a while for a change if you can actually internalize and execute what you'll be learning for the first time in such a book.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi poker meister,,It's really great recreation to meet wife after a long time..sounds great that you enjoyed the stay,,like you my husband also doing job far away from me.and meet me once a month like you and the time we pass really like heavens
    Poker traffic

    ReplyDelete
  11. Wow man you should really read the other anon commenter's posts. Why would you raise with 33 on that flop and telegraph the immense strength of your hand like that right on the flop? I am seriously questioning the thought process behind that move. You want this guy to stay in and make a better hand, maybe a flush, maybe 2 pairs, etc. How do you raise on that flop?

    ReplyDelete

Blog Archive