Bracelet Hunting - A WSOP 2026 Trip Report
Time for a new thread!
Credit to rppoker (who made the suggestion in my previous thread) for the title of this years’ tri
Those 20$ chips at the Bellagio are SO sexy. Something about the color scheme etc. And everyone who's (correctly) admiring the towers and towers, that's LIMIT FOR YOU! #limituntilIdie
I've had racks of 25s at the Bellagio before in the 50/100 game- still not as cool. 2 chip/4 chip game vs 4/8, and the quarters just don't look as good as the 20s. Envious 😀
Speaking of getting them to the cage, how common is it to color up at the table? Either the dealer wants change in the tray, or a player wanting to break down bigger chip(s)/
The dealer isn't needing those color chips in the tray. But yes, players buying in for chips will frequently get a rack from a player in the game. But if you do what I do (and TS does) and not play out of racks, chances are someone who already keeps their chips in racks will be the quicker transaction.
I also love having heaps of chips, had a handful of 7+ rack stacks buying in for 2 or 3 racks in the last year. Unfortunately I am too shameful or embarrassed to ever take a chip stack picture.
I also love having heaps of chips, had a handful of 7+ rack stacks buying in for 2 or 3 racks in the last year. Unfortunately I am too shameful or embarrassed to ever take a chip stack picture.
What is there to be ashamed of? I took this a month ago at some local mixed game that I learned of recently. 8/16, full kill. I'd love to play bigger but you gotta work with what you got...
Tony crushing it. I gotta come check this game out for a min when I get in. Whats jeff like in the game? There for a good time? Stick in the mud?
GL in dealers choice. Im feeling a day 2 run.
Day 9
Wednesday June 3rd
So I’m running hot In the cash game and cold in tournaments so far. Well a dealers choice tournament is about as close to a mixed cash game as you can get. Maybe today’s the day for a deep run?
I had hoped we’d get some experienced dealers in the box for this tournament, but no, it was all the newbies and it was a disaster. They have a hard enough time dealing holdem so imagine how they did with 20 games? Yes about what you’d expect. Super slow, lots of mistakes and constant calls for the floor.
It also didn’t help that I couldn’t win a hand. My table companions were calling a lot of badeucey and badacey and I had a lot of good 3-card starting hands that never improved.
I also wasn’t a fan of those game choices even though I do like the games. They’re very slow games with a lot of chopped pots so hard to accumulate a lot of chips.
When it was my turn to pick the game I went for big bet or one winner games. I was picking NL 2-7, PLO, Big O and Stud high.
Not that the game variation mattered much, the outcome of my hands was the same. Never got going and was never above starting stack and finally bust in a Big O hand with the nut low and nut flush draw that never came.
So another short tournament day.
I walk over to Bellagio and we start a 3rd $80 Mix table after a while but I’m not on it long before I’m moved to the 2nd table.
It was a very up and down session although I was never winning or losing that much. Win a big pot, lose a big pot, win a big pot, lose a big pot, rinse and repeat.
In big bet I won a $1,600 capped pot in 5-card PLO double board and another in PLO. I also lost a capped pot in NL 2-7.
Truth be told I didn’t have my A game today and can consider myself fortunate to finish +$600 when I racked up after a 6 hour session. It also wasn’t a great lineup but that’s no excuse. In fact that should be more reason to play better when the table is tougher.
Had a little action on game 1 of the NBA finals. Bet the under before the game as I was leaving the Horseshoe and then bet the Knicks in-running at Bellagio. So between that and the poker I just about recouped the tourney buy-in today.
On Deck Tomorrow: $1,500 PLO 8 and time to change hotels again.
Great comeback from being stuck nearly $5k in that cash game.
There's no way I wouldn't already been deep into a second bottle of wine back in my room by that point 
Sounds like your WSOP is going about the same as mine.
Those are the most obvious "I'm picking this game because nobody knows how to play it" candidates in the WSOP dealer's choice list, but I question whether edges can even be that big in the limit split pot games. I'd think the best path to an edge in the WSOP dealer's choice would be to get really good at pot limit 2-7 and PLO8 since most people won't be great at those, and the potential edge might be bigger. From what I've heard, those are games where a strong player can steamroll. I've also heard a lot of pros say that seven card stud hi is a game where top players have a huge edge over the merely average-to-good players. I know I'd much rather play badacey against a pro than PLO8 or an obscure big bet game.
Day 10
Thursday June 4th
Moved hotels from Excalibur to Horseshoe. Not easy lugging a big suitcase up the strip but I wasn’t getting a taxi.
Twin room is nice enough. Facing away from the strip so not much of a view.
Super convenient location. I didn’t mind the walk in from Excalibur at lunchtime but when I’m tired and going back at 1am it’s not much fun. Now we’re on site for the tournaments and just across the road from the office at Bellagio for the next 11 nights.
The Horseshoe pool is all the way out the back and quite a hike.
Interesting fact, it’s one of the only pools in Vegas with a proper deep end, but looks like they keep it roped off and closed.
Same horrible club music playing too loud like you get at most pools unfortunately.
I found the sunbeds to be quite narrow so I can only imagine a larger person is going to be spilling over the sides. I think I’ll just use the Paris pool while I’m here.
PLO 8 today and started steadily enough increasing the 25k to 35k at the first break.
Back-peddled down to 27k at the 2nd break due to getting quartered with nut low and 2nd nut flush vs nut low and nut flush.
In the 3rd session playing 400/800/800 there was 3 limpers and I looked down to find AAK4 in the big blind and potted it for 4,000 and got two callers.
Flop: J-6-3 with two spades.
We don’t have spades, but we’re going with it with the over pair, back door flush draw and 2nd nut low draw.
I pot it again for 12,800 leaving myself only about 6,000 behind.
The other two players both go all-in and we put the rest in.
We’re up against K566 and A5KT
What the K566 was doing putting any money in pre I don’t know, but his stupidity is unjustly rewarded by flopping a set.
The A5KT has the flush draw.
We’re not in great shape but we do have the best low draw.
Turn: 4 (counterfeits my low FFS)
River: 3
GG
Also booked a loss in the cash game today. Got stuck $4k pretty quick, clawed back to even then anted away for the last two hours extremely card dead. -$1,000 after 6 hours.
Also bet Vegas again in the hockey but they gave up a two goal lead and lost in overtime.
So bad day all round.
On deck tomorrow: $1,500 Big O
That deep end looks nice.
The Horseshoe pool is all the way out the back and quite a hike.Interesting fact, it’s one of the only pools in Vegas with a proper deep end, but looks like they keep it roped off and closed.
They were probably too cheap to fill it in when the rest of the Vegas hotels wrecked their pools several years ago to be 3 feet deep. I still don't understand the appeal of standing in 3 feet of water with a cocktail in your hand, in the blazing sun. Maybe to ogle the (mostly) overweight women in too skimpy apparel? Based on my last trip a couple weeks ago, a pool is not necessary. Females were walking around all over the hotels with mammary-age hanging out. Plus other stuff too. It appears to be a trend now. Unfortunately, the vast majority of these gals have builds that don't match up well to the amount of clothing they're trying to wear.
What would the point of a deep end be? I'm pretty sure the last thing that Vegas needs is diving boards and deep water.
What would the point of a deep end be? I'm pretty sure the last thing that Vegas needs is diving boards and deep water.
The deep end is for serious swimmers I guess. I have tried it in the past, but last time i was at Horseshoe and wanted to swim there, the lifeguard said he was the only one on duty and they needed more guards to open it.
The deep end is for serious swimmers I guess. I have tried it in the past, but last time i was at Horseshoe and wanted to swim there, the lifeguard said he was the only one on duty and they needed more guards to open it.
Ok, that makes a bit of sense. Not that you need more than 3' of water to swim, but that no one else will be in your way. Still, it seems like a huge liability for the resort.
Sorry for the derail.... more chip pyramids, please.
What would the point of a deep end be? I'm pretty sure the last thing that Vegas needs is diving boards and deep water.
Back in the day every Vegas pool had not only a deep end but diving boards including a high dive.
Back in the day every Vegas pool had not only a deep end but diving boards including a high dive.
Cool. Is this back in the day?
It seems nonsensical to bring in families and then not protect them.
Day 11
Friday June 5th
No pool time today as I slept in and have a 12pm rather than 2pm start time in the Big O tournament.
I go down on time (so nice staying on site) and don’t know anyone at my table initially. We have a very nice first 2 hours doubling the 25k starting stack to 50k at the first break.
When I get back from break the empty 4 seat on my left has been filled by Chris Vitch and the 9 seat filled by TJ Reid so the table just got a lot tougher. Nevertheless we continue to accumulate chips and record 90k at the 2nd break.
As we get nearer to the end of late reg the empty seats are getting filled by pros with little regard for money just shoving their chips in looking for a quick double. We find ourselves in one such multi-way hand:
And end up getting 3/4 of a nice pot, dispatching Justin Liberto and Calvin Anderson in the process, although Liberto draws our table again on his next bullet.
Chris Vitch busts on our left and is replaced by Robbie Jade Lew and her furry friend. Can’t really see too well from this photo but she brought her dog with her and she’s sitting in her lap.
We play an all-in pot with her (she is short stacked) and get 3/4
That takes us up to 200k on the break at the end of late reg.
We pick up some more chips before our original table breaks and we get moved to a new table that contains John Holley who plays a little screwy and is not afraid to take the high variance route. Unfortunately he’s taking it against us and we lose about 100k to him in a pot where he 3/4’s us.
I’m happy when that table breaks and find more conventional opponents on my new table. (Holley will end up bagging the chip lead)
My new table is by the rail and Rppoker comes by to say hello and rail me for a bit. Sadly I’m pretty card dead and am getting ante’d away. I do play a pot against a short stack. My flopped set against his low and flush draw. We turn the full house but can’t fade the low so only chop.
Below average now and I don’t have the chips or cards to pressure anyone when the bubble play starts. So no decisions to make on the bubble, we survive it without incident and end up bagging 109k.
After starting the trip 0 and 6 it is nice to get a cash on the board, but after having a high of almost 300k at one point I’m a little disappointed with what I bagged.
But as they say in golf you can’t win the tournament on a Thursday or Friday. We’re still in there fighting and 109k is still a workable stack coming back to a 6k big blind on day 2, or moving day to continue the golf analogy.
This tournament has two starting days this year for the first time ever. Our flight had just shy of 1,000 entries, of which 133 bagged with an average stack of around 190k.
Tomorrow’s flight will surely be bigger and make for a bumper prize pool.
As I was walking out I got confirmation of how Mikey moves his chair around. He does indeed strap it to his scooter:
On deck tomorrow: Day off. Tomorrow is Day 1B of the Big O and then the field will combine on Sunday for day two.
I also love having heaps of chips, had a handful of 7+ rack stacks buying in for 2 or 3 racks in the last year. Unfortunately I am too shameful or embarrassed to ever take a chip stack picture.
What is there to be ashamed of? I took this a month ago at some local mixed game that I learned of recently. 8/16, full kill. I'd love to play bigger but you gotta work with what you got
Looks familiar! Big O 8-16 1/2 Kill at Commerce 3/27 2:13am
Of note for fantasy purposes, Liberto won the mixed Omaha, and Jeff Madsen the dealers choice.
I know she has big tits, but the dog is so ridiculous
**** selfish people who bring their pets to the casino. Sure hope nobody does that at any of my tables or they will get the wrath of my needling.
You aren’t cute or quirky, you are an *******.
She had to do something to draw attention to herself.
And Mikey had already played the "ship and a chair" gambit.
