I am getting extremely excited for my upcoming trip! Heading out on Wednesday and I can't wait. I typically make 2-3 V
8/17-8/22 if all goes according to plan.
Probably playing a mix of Wynn Signature Series, RW dailies, and whatever is going on at Venetian.
mrbaseballThanks for the kind words guys. Just got back to my room and I'm kind of frazzled. I'm tired but I'm not sleepy. I haven't eaten since those chicken tenders this morning and I'm not even hungry. I am thirsty though and I'm sitting up in the room right now sipping on a cold one.
I'm sure I'll have more to say about this tournament once I wrap my head around it. But right now the whole thing is just kind of a blur. I will say this though I ran extremely hot and I made huge hands. Once we're on the bubble in in the money I was like the Grim Reaper if this was a bounty tournament I had a really scooped a lot. But it seems like all the run good that wasn't there for me earlier in this trip showed up all at once today. I made five full houses and I had quads once. And these were in big hands.
I'm just going to pound a few more beers and hopefully get a good night's sleep tonight. Although it wasn't the WSOP bracelet I was hoping for I got one of these instead so I guess it will have to do.
This trip just turned from one of my worst poker results trips to not so bad....
mrbaseballWrap up
Finally made it home safe and sound. Thanks to all for following along! I enjoy both doing TRs and reading TRs. This trip was challenging to keep up with all the LVLers TRing at the same time. I typically make "off season" LV trips so I am usually the only TR going or one of very few.
Turns out being here during WSOP was pretty close to what I expected. Very busy poker happening everywhere and tons upon tons of tournament options. If I do it again next year I will have a better plan although this plan was okay. Then again I usually do a road trip somewhere in June and I am definitely not a fan of 110 degree heat everyday. I have mostly avoided LV summers as much as I can. I do know the good walking routes from The Venetian to get the least exposure. To get to Resorts just go all the way through Wynncore and you are pretty close. Going the other was it just zipping in and out of the casinos (Harrahs, Link, Flamingo etc) that border strip, then zip across to Bellagio and take the hallway to the Cosmo, Aria, tram. So there are ways to avoid the bulk of the heat.
Venetian/Palazzo
This is my favorite place to stay (at least off WSOP) because I like the off season dailies at the Wynn and whatever deepstack series the Venetian is running. I guess you can add Resorts World to that list as well 😀 Then again if Wynn and RW are both running their 200 daily Wynn will likely get the nod since it will most likely always have a larger (and probably stronger) field. But the bigger the field the bigger the prize pool.
But all my favorite food is at the V/P and I like the pool. The poker room has decent comps for all of that food I like and the poker room is always active. And if you are a lazy bastard, according to my fitbit from my room at the Palazzo to the poker desk was only 250 steps.
Poker
Cash
Poker this trip had a lot of variance (like usual for me!). Cash was extra frustrating. I just couldn't get anything at all going until the last day. It seemed like every session I would get stuck and then it just wouldn't improve. It was very uplifting to have a couple of decent cash sessions to close out the trip. I played all 1/3 except one 2/3 session. I was surprised at how much larger the 2/3 played. It's only a dollar in the small blind and 500 vs 300 cap but (at least at my table) it was playing huge and aggressive. Plus the bomb pots at 2/3 were $16 vs. $6 for 1/3.
Speaking of bomb pots, I hate them and will no longer play. Not because I am a nit but because it is just a stupid idea to start with. I did play them this trip and chopped one but a net loser on them despite always just folding other than the one small chop. It just doesn't make sense to slow down the game with these things. If I wanted to play PLO I would play PLO. It might be a huge edge for a select few but otherwise its just a huge gamble. Had one table break because 3 guys went out on a bomb pot. If I wanna gamble there are whole lot of ways to do that in LV. I took up Hold 'em because I wanted a way to visit Las Vegas without getting killed at the craps or blackjack tables. Something I learned this trip about bomb pots is that they are really only $5 and the extra dollar goes to tip the dealer. If they are forced to deal that crap to a bunch of players who don't understand the game they certainly deserve it.
Cash results this trip was -$187 which is fine considering how poorly it went for the most part.
Tournament
Tournament poker is my favorite way to play. I got very luck this trip and ran white hot at the exact point in time in a tourney when you want to run white hot. I am still learning how to navagiate through a tournament but I have a decent track record and am certain I am a lifetime winner at tourneys. I'm a lower level guy though. All the Wynn and Venetian touneys wre in the $1100 range mostly and they were getting huge fields. The V had an $1100 senior event that drew 505 players. All day long they are calling alternates because hey only have 50 tables. The Wynn on the other hand added a whole bunch of tables to their already large tournament area. I am more interested in the sub 1000 entry fee because tournments can be a cruel taskmaster.
I would at some point like to take a shot at somethng bigger. For me the key in a tournament is being patiant and staying focused. If I can do that I feel I have a legitimate chance.
This trip tourneys were my saving grace. I entered 6 tournaments for $1770 that returned a profit of $2616.
Gambling
Didn't really do much in the way of gambling but what little I did worked out. I won 30 on my free rolls at RW and I won 18 on my V comps and another 50ish from other slot play. Slots are a hard way to make money so when I had a couple of quick hits I decided to leave well enough alone.
I also had one to two bubble craps sessions each day. I don't have the exact numbers and am just guestimating but I only had a couple of small losers and a lot of small winners. Got all pressed up a couple of times but never really scored. My biggest win was probably $50 but mostly in the 30-40 range and guessing I was up $300ish
So between slots and craps I would say +$400?
General
I had a great time! It was nice to get out there for poker mecca. I wish I could have crossed paths with more LVLers who I was TRing with side by side. I ran into Big Whale a few times and he is a true gentleman. And he knows a whole hellava lot more about poker than I ever will. During breaks I was picking his brain about bet sizing one of my weaker points.
To sum up, the weather was HOT! I ate and drank way too damn much! I have been on a very strict keto and intermittent fasting routine for the past few months and all of that went out the window for 8 days 😀 But I'm back on the horse now! Haven't eated since that fabulous steak dinner last night and will continue to fast until tomorrow. And when I do start eating it will be strictly keto. My results were good but binking a tourney makes that happen. Its always nice to come home with more than you left with.
So I had a great time and thanks to all who followed along. I need to get caught up on all the others TRs happening now that I can read them on a 24 inch monitor rather than a tiny phone screen....
mrbaseballThis morning I went down and cashed out my Venetian poker room comps for tonight's dinner. I had $69 in change. I got the comp for my favorite Steakhouse in Las Vegas the Delmonico here at the venetian. I had the bone-in ribeye and steak fries as always along with a couple of beers. As always it was outstanding.
After dinner I headed straight to the poker room and got into one last cash game. I only played for about an hour and a half and it was an outstanding game but I had to get up to the room to start getting ready to leave tomorrow. Cash is sucked for me this trip until this last day. I was in for $300 out for $393.
I'll do a more detailed write up when I get home tomorrow but so far it looks like I won just under $2,800 in tournaments I lost just less than $200 in cash and I made a little over $200 in bubble craps and slot machines.
It's been a great trip but 8 days in Las Vegas is a long time. Prior to this trip my longest trip out here was 7 days which I've done a few times. But I have to admit I'm looking forward to getting home....
