BigWhale & brother does Vegas + World Cup 2026 (6th-20th June)
Hello, good people of LVL!
Starting this TR a bit early, well, for me at least. As the title says, me and my (twin) broth
Then we play a fun one where I raise JThh from UTG to $12, a sticky female joins the party
Hmmm, no pics?
Today though, both me and brother are going to fire the $400 MGM Grand 2-day tourney at 11am. Should be fun with some (relatively) deep stacked MTT-play for a good price point.
Looks interesting, but the Daily Deepstack at WSOP is only $250, you get almost as many chips (25k) and they've been getting 1000-ish players, making for a very nice prize pool.
I haven’t played cash at the Venetian for years now. Years ago though it used to be my go-to room. How was it? I’ve heard now it’s located very far out of the way?
It sort-of is, as it's on the Palazzo-side, in Grand Canal Shoppes.
However, it looks super nice and is always very busy. Games are a bit nitty at times, but never terrible imo. And Double Board Bomb Pots every dealer change is fun!
Changed our minds, and jumped into The Orleans $300 Monster Stack instead!
The Orleans $300 1-day Monster Stack got very frustrating for me, and I felt that I was unlucky in several spots.
We started with 30,000 chips, but I had a slow start and couldn't get much going in terms of card distribution. So I went to the first break with 23,900 when blinds were about to increase to 300-600-600.
After the break I got into an interesting spot where I raise 88 to 1300, an OMC to my left calls, before button makes it 4100. He has been playing somewhat weirdly but does not seem completely clueless and have a decent stack. My hand is probably a bit borderline out of position, but I figured the OMC would also call giving me better odds and a bigger pot if I could hit a set. He did however not call, he folded after I made the call.
Heads-up then to J-9-5 one diamond. I check and opponent checks back after thinking for a bit. Turn is Jd, but although I have no diamonds I thought this was a good card to bet. I make it 3500 to charge his Ace highs, with or without a diamond. He thinks for a bit and calls, but he did it in a way that I had seen from him before - he sometimes gave away his hand a bit with some of his mannerisms.
River comes another 9, which means that we have been counterfeited. However, he clearly has Ace high and I have to make this look like I want to get called. Therefore I only bet 4500 into something like 19k, although I hindsight I should probably size up just a little bit. But I still like the general idea and execution, as he should recognize that I basically have no bluffs here (except counterfeited pairs).
He thinks and agonizes a bit, before finally saying he will donate and flicks in the call. I proudly show my hand, which is not good against his obvious AQo. That's a bit annoying as I got value on turn when I was ahead (he didn't have a diamond), and I will take him to valuetown with most of my holdings on the river.
That hand left me with only 11k and I had to grind the short stack for a while after that. I couldn't get many good cards at all, but I was occasionally able to steal the blinds to keep me somewhat afloat. But with rising blinds, it was hard to stay ahead.
Which brings me to the last hand; I have 6500 at 500-1000-1000. It folds to me, and I find KJo in cutoff. Obvious all-in, one would think? Wrong. I make it 3500, which gives the clueless OMC an opportunity to call my raise, and Small Blind (guy with AQo) also joins the party. Big blind folds out.
J-8-6 two spades is a great flop, and I even have Ks for some backup if I need it. Small Blind checks to me, I jam for my remaining 3000, and the OMC folds. Small Blind sighs and goes into the tank and says that he will make a donation. He calls and shows 76o. I am way ahead, and we see a 3 on the turn to keep it that way. River is however a 7, giving him two pair. So instead of being back up to 18k or something, we are instead OUT of The Orleans Monster Stack.
I could obviously have bought in again with 30 big blinds, but I generally don't like to re-enter in many tournaments unless they are very cheap.
Regardless, it felt very annoying and unfair as I had been grinding the short stack for a long time and finally found a great spot against some droolers who don't even pay attention to my stack. That is partly why I make these non-all-in sizings, although the biggest reason is to be able to fold (!) in some spots if it goes completely crazy behind me. Not saying I was deep enough to fold here, but as a general concept this is how I play 10-11 big blinds and below - bigger raises pre, but without committing my entire stack.
Obviously I should play better (like the guys above) to avoid getting this short, but sometimes that happens in tournaments. If you lose one or two medium sized pots in that structure (although it had very slow increases), it's easy to get a bit short.
Brother is still in the tourney with a decent stack, hopefully he can make a deep run.
Now I am going to find a cash game instead.
After shopping, we walked (nice scenery above) over to Venetian to play some $1/$3. There was a bit of a waiting list but after around 30-35 minutes we got seats at different tables. I folded for a bit before finally picking up a playable hand in 55. I make it $12 from mid-pos and only a female player in her 50s calls on the button.
We go heads-up to 7-8-3 rainbow on the flop, and I bet $15 for protection against overcards. She calls, and the 4 on the turn gives me a gutshot as well. I decided to bet again, this time for $25, although it might be too optimistic. But I didn't get the sense that she was very strong on the flop, and if I can get a 7x to fold out it wold be glorious.
She now goes for the classic min-raise to $50, which puzzled me. 56 came in, but I double block that hand and part of me was almost tempted to raise again. However, by pure stereoyping this woman likely has no raise-folds on the turn and maybe I should just fold? I ended up calling simply because she is so unlikely to have 56s or similar, but realistically I don't have many outs here.
River comes a 9, and after I check she checks behind and quickly flips over 77 for a set. She had me almost dead on the flop, and although she played it absurdly bad I think I could perhaps have just folded turn.
You made "bluff", "protection" bets on the flop and turn. Against your whole range that includes over pairs, maybe she made a small mistake. But against your hand, she probably got the max. If she raises to $100-$150 on the turn, are you more likely to call? I think you called out of curiosity and she got paid. Not raising the river might be a little weak but 2 straight draws now have her beat. I don't think she played it horribly.
Happy to be wrong. Just curious how you would've played it?
You made "bluff", "protection" bets on the flop and turn. Against your whole range that includes over pairs, maybe she made a small mistake. But against your hand, she probably got the max. If she raises to $100-$150 on the turn, are you more likely to call? I think you called out of curiosity and she got paid. Not raising the river might be a little weak but 2 straight draws n
She didn't raise flop, she only min-raised turn, and she chickened out on river. Against my really strong overpairs, she could have won much more earlier in the hand.
Appreciate the feedback though. I made a bad turn-call, it was just a weird line.
Good morning from Las Vegas! This post is coming from the Market Cafe at Vdara, where I am updating this TR while nibbling on some pasteries.
Let's move the time back to yesterday. After busting the tournament at Orleans, I eventually just put myself on the list for a $1/$3 Cash Game at Aria. While waiting 15 minutes for my seat, I also said a quick hello to TJ who was playing a PLO Cash Game.
Eventually a new game started up, and I took my seat with $400 in betting units. First hand of note is when I raise T9ss from UTG to $12 (7-handed at this point), get two callers who both only started with $200, before BB (active young-ish guy) made it $75. This guy had been raising a ton in the beginning, which made me suspicious. But T9s is around the bottom part of my UTG-range, so I chose to just let that one go.
(The two shorties got it all-in with him, and he had AK for what it's worth)
One round later we find AQo from UTG and make it $12 again. An active Indian player calls on the button and the young kid also calls in BB. Q-8-5 is a very good flop though, as it's rainbow and there are few natural two pairs. BB checks, I bet $20 and on only button calls.
Turn comes a 2, which obviously never changes anything. I bet $50 to keep targeting his worse Qx or hands like 99, but he just folds after thinking about it for thirty seconds.
One more AQ shortly after, and same opponent. I raise to $12 again from early pos, and he is the only caller in BB. The flop comes J-9-9 and I decided to check this one back after he checked to me. Turn comes a 5 and follows the same pattern (check-check).
River is another J and he now comes out and lead for $15. This does not seem like a value line to me at all; he would have bet all Jx on the turn. So, unless he was slow playing 9x we have the best hand here. I call, and beat his King high. I doubt he could tell you whether he went for value or not.
A new young Asian player then joins the table, and after the Indian guy limps for $3 he now makes a gigantic raise to $25 and I have AA (!) on the button. I decided to make it $80, simply because he made it so big that I thought he had a hand he liked for sure. That said, maybe I could exploitatively made a smaller sizing to $65 or similar since I am in position. But he just ended up folding quickly, and later in the session I saw that he indeed almost always opened to $25. Weird, but that's the beauty of poker - no one plays the same style.
Then I lose an annoying pot however, which starts with me raising K4cc in hijack to $12. Light open, but it is an open as per an app I have on my phone and we were only playing 6-handed for this one. The Indian in the BB is the only caller, which is not a huge surprise as he was involved in a fair bit of hands.
T-7-8 two clubs, so we flop ourselves a flush draw. Opponent does however come out with a lead of $20, and against this sizing (almost full pot) and on this board I think my hand is a pure call. So that is what I do, and we see a red 4 on the turn. He bets $35 this time, and even though I have a pair and a draw I don't think this is a good spot to raise. But if he has something like T9 or 97, then my hand suddenly turned a lot more equity. I call once more.
River does however brick with a red A and he now bets $65. He chooses a value-ish sizing on a card that favors me (I could have AT here), thus I think there is nothing to do but fold. Especially since I block the flush draw as well. He could even have ran into Ax of clubs, leading to set his own price or something.
More losing, when I find KThh from 2nd pos and make it $12. Two tight opponents to my left calls from mid-pos, and we see the 6-4-3 board with one heart. Not ideal, and being out of position I check to see what develops. The first caller bets $15, and the second one calls, which means that I cannot continue. I fold.
I also tried flopping a set once with 55 from the Small Blind and called a $15 raise, but missed on K-9-4 and had to fold to aggression.
And that was really it for this session. I was up a bit in the beginning, but got back to even after the K4s-hand and then just slowly bled down a little. The end result was -$46 USD after 2 hours and 30 minutes.
The reason for cutting the session short was that I had non-poker plans of the female variety. Here are some pictures, not of her but of something almost as pretty:
The trip feels a bit lackluster so far. I am enjoying it, don't get me wrong, but there just haven't been a ton of exciting stuff happening poker-wise so far. But I obviously know why, and that is lack of volume. The below is such a small blip that it's hardly worth registering, because bricking 2 tourneys so far and being down slightly on 8 hours of cash is nothing.
We need to increase the volume for sure, although this trip is not 100% about that. I can rather be more narrow-minded with my time on the trips where I travel alone.
Not sure what is 'on the deck' for today (to steal an expression from TonySoprano), but will figure it out shortly.
Cash Games:
Hours played: 7h 45 min
Won/Lost: -$102 USD
Hourly rate: -$13.16 USD
Tournaments:
Won/Lost: -$450 USD (2 played)
[QUOTE=BigWhale]One more AQ shortly after, and same opponent. I raise to $12 again from early pos, and he is the only caller in BB. The flop comes J-9-9 and I decided to check this one back after he checked to me. Turn comes a 5 and follows the same pattern (check-check).
River is another J and he now comes out and lead for $15. This does not seem like a value line to me at all; he would have bet all Jx on the turn. So, unless he was slow playing 9x we have the best hand here. I call, and beat his King high. I doubt he could tell you whether he went for value or not.
[/QUOTE]
He was probably spying on you at Orleans and put you on 88. 😉
Chill start to the day so far, first joined up with brother in the spacious Aria gym:
Then we took a Zoox over to Fontainebleau just for the experience:
While there, we grabbed some food and had a quick look around the property:
Now however, we are playing this tournament:
I've always had fun at the GN summer series. Memorable to me events included one win (chip-chop with biggest stack and got the coin) and another I entered late, and was out third level (my first) set over set for like 100+ bbs.
Run it up!
Good luck in the tourney. The Aria gym is one of the best on the strip, but I can get busy when they have conventions. This time of year it’s great.
I've always had fun at the GN summer series. Memorable to me events included one win (chip-chop with biggest stack and got the coin) and another I entered late, and was out third level (my first) set over set for like 100+ bbs.
Run it up!
Thanks! Yes, both my cashes last summer was here, including chopping an evening deepstack turbo.
Good morning(-ish) from Las Vegas! Today I actually slept something like 8.5 hours, I must have been tired after the tournamet yesterday.
As mentioned yesterday, this was the 1pm $200 Golden Nugget tourney, and I must admit that it played much deeper and longer than I had expected it to. We started with 30,000 chips and the levels was 30 minutes long, and in total it got 130 entries.
My table looked very recreational for the most part, and although I found myself down a couple of thouand chips in the beginning it felt like I had ample of time. The first really interesting situation is when there are two limps for 300 (at 200-300-300), and an old woman makes it 600 (lol). Small Blind call, I complete 300 more with 55 from SB and both limpers call.
T-7-5 two diamonds is rather favorable, although I have seen players limp hands like 77 already. SB check, I check (could lead maybe?), and the first limper bets out 1600 into the preflop-raiser. The second limper then raises (!) to 4500 and the two players behind fold out. Surprisingly much action, but I don't want to slow play at the board is wet. And it's very hard to find a non-committing size given my stack. So I just jam it in there for 23k, only to unfortunately be met with two fold (second player thought for a bit).
At 200-400-400 we find KK from UTG and I raise it up to 1000. The same older woman who made it 600 in above hand have lost some chips, and I can tell she is getting frustrated. How frustrated? Well, she jams in 16k when it gets to her (40 bb), and I obviously snap-call when it gets back to me. She only has ATo, and although the flop comes T-9-3, the turn and river are both Kings and we end up with quads. Regardless, it was more than enough to eliminate her and get a good boost to my stack.
I won a few other small pots as well, and went to the first break with 56,000 chips which is a very good start. The Golden Nugget Ballroom was quite busy last night, largely due to the fact that the Bar Poker Open tournament was playing down to it's final table:
One hand from 300-600-600, where there is a limp for 600 and I make it 2000 with A4ss in the hijack. The female limper is the only caller, and we see K-7-6 two spades. She checks, I bet 2100 and she calls. Turn comes a 4, so I have a pair and a flush draw now. After she checks I decide to bet 4000, both to hopefully get her off someting below a King, but also to build up the pot if I hit. She calls.
River comes another 7, and after she checks I think for a bit and just check back. I can beat hands like 98 and 54 at least. I can also beat the hand that she turns over, which is 95 off suit. LOL, what. Gotta love the player quality at Golden Nugget.
I had a funny spot a bit later against a new older female who had sat down recently, where she limps from EP1 for 800. I find TT in mid-pos and raise to 2200 (a bit too small, that's what she said), only to be met with a check-jam for 42k (!). I was a bit perplexed by this, but there are limp-jamming hands I am crushed against and overall I don't need to take marginal spots at this soft table. If she just spazzes out with 66 or something at times, then so be it. I folded face-up, hoping she would show, but I got no reveal.
For the most part I kept winning pots though. I won a nice one with KQo when I turned the nut straight after having raised pre, although opponent sadly folded to my pot sized river bet (I though they would not fold an Ace). I also knocked out the woman who limp-jammed on me earlier, when she had gotten short and I woke up with AQo at 600-1200-1200.
When second break arrived I had 91500 chips.
After the break an old man to my left who was easily 80+ years, suddenly wakes up from his slumber and raises to 3500 from UTG. He gets one caller, and I have AQo in BB. The OMC has at least 60k, and I just didnt feel like 3-betting AQo here against his range. So I just call.
The flop comes A-9-3 all spades, and after I check the OMC now bets 6k. The second player folds out and I make the call. Turn comes a red 6, and after I check he thinks for a while and checks back. This tells me a lot about this range.
River is another red card, the 7, and I decided to lead for 16k into 24k here. Fairly big bet, but I just thought it was very likely that he has KK or QQ or similar when he checks back the turn. And if I make it big, he might not believe me and think that I missed a flush. Will I value-own myself sometimes against AK with no spades that just got scared? Sure, but that is an outlier anyway and I still like the bet. He sadly folded after having thought about it for close to a minute.
A while later we find 99 on the button and raises to 5000 over a limp for 1500. BB calls, and he is a late 30s guy who I have been seated with since we started. He is not terrible but I can tell he is not a big crusher either. The limper folds.
Heads-up then to K-Q-3 two clubs. Not ideal, but my range crushes this board and I am considering going bet-bet-bet here. I start out with a small bet of 3500 after he checks, and he calls. Turn is however 7c, and my plan was to keep betting only if no club appeared. So after he checks, I just check it back. I do have 9c in my hand for what it's worth.
River comes another K and he now blasts for 22k which is more than the pot (20500 if I remember correctly). This makes no sense to me, based on what I know of this player. He is never in a million years able to value bet Qx, at least not for this sizing. And against my range, who now looks a bit weak, why would he overbet with trip (trup) Kings or a flush?. I also slightly block the flush.
All of this leads me to a fairly easy call; it's not like I loved it but I don't think the line makes sense. And I would still have 70k+ back if I somehow had read him wrong. I put in the chips, and he just shakes his head and seem unwilling to show. I flip up my nines for max ownage, and collect the pot.
I then get into an annoying spot against a new fishy OMC that had joined the table. He came with a good stack, and had been doing typical OMC-stuff by limping a ton pre and being a bit sticky. He limps again UTG for 2000, and I have K8hh in cutoff. I would have opened this if folded to me, so it seems fine to open against a fishy limper. I make it 6000 (maybe 7k is better), everyone else folds out, and he makes the call.
The flop comes 2-6-7 one heart, and he reaches for chips and throw out 6000. I have two backdoors and position, therefore I am going nowhere against this weird line. Turn comes 6h, which means that I add a flush draw. He now bets 6000 again. Ah, the good old "same bet". This is surely a weak 7x or a hand like 55 or similar, and if I can get those to fold it would be great. I raise to 25k, although I should have made it a bit bigger in hindsight.
He does however call fairly quickly, which I did not like to see and especially when river is Qd. I miss my flush draw, and although I don't think he is super strong it's not entitrely impossible that he has 6x either. So I give up and check behind, and the OMC wins the hand with the mighty J7 off-suit...
Shortly after it's a 40 minute dinner break, and I go there with 100k chips. Brother had sadly been knocked out shortly before it, but stayed around to keep me company during the break.
We are down to 39 players and top 17 will get paid, with $410 for min-cash and around $5k on top. I couldn't get much going the next level however, and kept getting blinded down before finding a spot. The above mentioned OMC then limps for 4000 (blinds have increased to 2k-4k-4k), and I have ATo on the button. I decided to make it 20k, sort-of committing myself but still leaving myself with 10 bb if the OMCs in the blinds go crazy behind me. They do not however, as they fold.
One who I know doesn't like to fold is the OMC-limper and he calls the bet. Not a disaster though as I have created a big pot and should be way ahead of his range. And especially when it comes A-K-Q two spades. He checks, and this seems like a clear jam for me for 41k. If I can pick up the pot it would be huge, and if he by some miracle has outflopped me I still have outs. He sighs, tanks, and eventually call with QTo. I have him in very bad shape, and he does not improve on a low runout.
Nice double up to 120k there, and I also win another small pot or two to get up to around 130k when blinds increase to 3k-6k-6k. We are down to 25 players how, and I look at my first card UTG and see Qc. I haven't had a big pair in a while now, so that would be nice to get. Prayers answered, as the second card is also a Q. Hello ladies!
We minraise to 12k from UTG, and when it comes over to the terrible OMC he forcefully takes his 1k chip stack and slams it forward, before reaching for his bigger chips and annonces 'all-in'. The dealer does however stop him, because this is clearly two motions and he didn't say any words until the first stack was already out there. Since the amount he originally put out is just 15k, it's correctly rules as a call. This also brings in a short stacked player in BB, who calls 6k more.
J-T-6 is the flop, which I didn't love as the OMC could have JJ and TT. But an overwhelming feeling tells me that he is a bit fed up after having lost some pots and doesn't have to be super strong. BB checks, I check it over to the OMC, who now snap-jams around 120k into 45k. BB goes into the tank, seems very uncomfortable, but eventually sigh-calls his remaining 40k. There is no way he has me beat based on his mannerisms and long he took to act.
It gets to me and I just laugh and say something like 'what a weird hand', but I don't see how I can fold here. I call within 10 seconds, and I am well ahead of the BBs KJo and the OMCs AKo (although latter have some outs). This pot is something like 320k, and winning it would set me in an amazing position at a weak table just a few players before the money.
6 on the turn, still safe. 'No Ace, no King, no Queen' I am thinking to myself before the river. But of course the universe, the poker Gods, or anyone cares that I am the best player at this table and deserves this pot against this terrible donkey.
Q on the river, making broadway for the OMC which beats my trup QQ.
And I have been eliminated in 25th place, just a few spots shy from the money and just one card from having a monster stack and be a near-lock at the final table (in my opinion). That one hurts. Not because it's a gigantic tourney or anything, but because it feels like I played so well and controlled, and knew where I was against these fishy players almost all the time. Sigh.
After getting back to Vdara I was way too tired to play any poker, so just chilled with a quick massage at NYNY and a little bit of video poker (running terrible at -EV so far).
I will update stats later today, and now head out and actually play some cash games.
Poker can be such a cruel game. Good run, Whale. Sucks that the fish got lucky this time.
Unfortunate ending, but that's how it too often goes. I played the same tournament one day later. Very friendly waters.
Thanks for stopping by to say Hi last night. I was gonna go look for you during the break but you beat me to it. Run well!
Yesterday, June 11th, 2026:
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I woke up, updated this TR and then went with my brother (who has yet to post in this thread) to the Aria pool for a little bit. We first decided to get some unhealthy food at this new location:
I forgot to take a picture of the inside, but it looked like a typical In & Out, only bigger than the one on Linq Promenade. There was also a ton of people working and no line, and they all seemed super friendly and eager to talk to you. Almost too much for my taste in that regard, but I am just a grumpy European who is used to no-one being friendly 😀
From there we walked in the blistering heat over to Paris, where my brother got his WSOP-account verified in case we decided to play anything there. I also wanted to say hello to 'rppoker' who I knew was playing in Colossus day 1B. Eventually found his table in Horseshoe, and we had a brief chat although he didn't have much time as he was playing and couldn't miss too many hands. I have to agree with one of the posters in another thread, who said that he looks a bit younger than what he is trying to portrait himself as!
I then headed over to Bellagio, as I wanted to play a cash game session there. I got immediately seated at a table and bought in for $400. For some reason I forgot to take many stack pictures yesterday, so I will try to keep this brief.
I was up a little bit in the beginning after flopping a set with 33 on K-Q-3 two hearts (limped pot). An OMC lead out for $10, a fishy female player called, and I made it $50. Having bottom set and unblocking all the good stuff on the top is obviously great, but it didn't help me much as both opponents folded.
But then I started losing some pots, especially when I found TT from UTG and raise to $12. BB is the only caller, and we go heads-up to to J-7-5 two diamonds. He checks, I bet $11 and he calls. A 2 lands on the turn, and goes check-check. I probably missed a bet here though against his BB-range.
River comes a black 4 so the flush draw missed. Opponent now leads for $35, and although this could be a Jack it could also be various missed draws. This guy had seemed a bit aggressive so far, and also putting on the straddle whenever he could from UTG. I end up making the curious call, only to be shown J7o for top pair.
Then we raise A9cc from cutoff and an Asian female to my immediate left calls (decent player). No-one else joins the party, and we get the 7-7-5 flop one club. I decided to bet small for $10 to get folds from hands like QJ and KQ who have some equity against me, but she raises to $30. This didn't make much sense to me unless she is making some kind of stop raise with 88 or similar. With two backdoors I decided to make the call, although being out of position makes it very annoying. In other words, I should probably 3-bet or fold on this flop.
Jc on the turn, which means that we now have equity. I check, and she bets $60. A big part of me felt like she wasn't super strong here and I considered check-jamming. Only really in terrible shape against 7x and dead against 55. But in game I chickened out and just called.
River is a red 9, which I thought was good news as we finally make a pair. I check, and she quickly checks behind. I say something like "I got there" and shows my hand, and she looks confused for a few seconds - enough to make me think I have the winner. But eventually she turns over TT, which is about where I thought she was in the hand and it's clearly one that I can get to fold on the turn. Sigh.
Above is my starting stack, which has quickly evaporated. I do win some money back in a Bomb Pot though, where I flop a straight on top and TP + flush draw + wrap straight on bottom. The guy to my right folded to my flop raise though, so I could 'only' pick up something like $60 there.
More trouble against the Asian woman, when I raise 54cc to EP1 (it's a 75% open as per a chart I have) for $12, only to see her call, a new sticky OMC call, and BB also come along. A-3-T two diamonds no club, and after BB check I decided to bet $20 purely to rep the Ace (plus I have a few outs). That said, 4-ways I should probably save my continues for the flops that have one club. That will make it so much easier to barrel again on the turn if a club comes.
The woman is the only caller, and I make a pair of 5 on the turn. I should continue my story now that I have a bit more equity, which obviously means that I take the passive route and check. She now bets $70 which is a huge bet into $89, and I can't continue to that sizing. Just way too passive on my part, and I also think the flop bet is a bit too light.
A while later we find JJ and raise to $12 from early pos, and BB is the only caller. 8-6-3 all clubs on the flop, and I have none of those. But when opponent checks, I bet $15 to target single club hands + hands like 87 or similar. He calls, and a red 4 comes on the turn. He checks, I bet $25 for same reason as above and he calls.
River comes an A and he checks. I decided to check back here just in case he was chasing with the nut club, only to see him turn over 44 for a turned set. Frustrating one, although he did have one club and had some outs to beat me.
I did however win some pots to crawl a little bit back, first one when the guy to my right opens the button to $15. I have K8hh in SB, which functions best as an occasional 3-bet I think. I make it $61, really hoping he will just fold out. But no such luck, he calls.
J-5-7 no hearts, and I know I should bet small with my entire range in 3-bet pots. So what do I do then? I check. Thankfully though, he checks back. This gives me an opening on the 4 turn now that I actually have a gutshot. I make it $45, and he just frustratingly folds immediately, grabs his chips, and leaves.
The next hand we have KJo on the button, and I raise to $11 (not sure why), which brings in the female in SB and fishy/sticky OMC in BB. K-T-5 two diamonds on the flop, and after SB checks the OMC now snap-bets $15. This seems weak to me as leads are almost never strong hands, so I raise it up to $45 for value + to drive out the Asian woman. She obliges and folds, while the OMC calls quickly.
Turn comes a safe 4c and after he checks I bet $80 into around $120. He thinks for a long time, but eventually says that he will let me bluff him this time, and folds. That said, I am 100% that I was ahead here, and I wanted the call.
After this I did however lose two more small pots, before getting quartered in a big Bomb Pot which involved me, a new Dutch player, and the Asian female. Basically I flopped the nut full house on the top and an OESD on the turn, but played my hand way too passively and did not raise the flop as I should. The result would have been the same, but I am more annoyed that I didn't take the correct line. Although it has to be said that I was a bit unlucky to not get half; the woman improved to the same full house as me on the river when spiking a 2-outer.
Overall, it was a frustrating session where I couldn't get much going and played too passively in many hands. Especially when out of position, I need to be the aggressor and not go into check-call mode.
I lost -$290 USD in 2 hours and 45 minutes, and felt like a change of scenery. I will try to get that post out in an hour or two.
Quick update from an evening session at Venetian yesterday; where I lost $134 USD in 4 hours of play.
Four interesting hands to go through. Early on I raise 76dd to $12 from UTG and get calls from a young-ish guy on button and an OWC (Old Woman Coffee) in BB. K-J-3 two diamonds are decent, and after BB check I bet $15. They both end up calling and we see 6h on the turn. This street checked through, as I didn't think I had a ton of fold-equity on the turn when both call.
River comes 3d[/d eU] and the OWC now leads $25 into $80-something. Feels a bit weak and although I was a bit wary of a better flush being out there I chose to raise to $70 to target a hand like KJ or similar. Might be too thin though, not sure. Button tank-folds (he later said he had a better flush than me), and then woman calls fairly quickly.
I table my hand expecting to win since she didn't snap-call and she didn't move in for her remaining $10 or something, but she has AQdd. This woman was just completely incapable of getting value from her hands, and if I had played this one one hour later I would have just called the river.
Down $100 immediately, but then we get a fun spot versus button last hand who was a young-ish aggro Romanian. He raises to $15 from the button, and since one player is sitting out I am now the BB. I have ATss and could 3-bet, but the hand plays fine even OOP and against an aggressive opponent I want to just rather be a bit sticky post.
[U]A-K-3 one spade on the flop, and after I check he bets $15. I think for a bit and call. Turn comes 5c which doesn't change much except he could have A5s I guess. I check, he now bets $40 and I eventually call. I deliberately took my time here to look a bit weak, although I realize it would be a tough spot if he is emptying the clip on the river.
River comes another K and after I check he now jams for $148. Interesting spot, but would he really bet a K on the turn when I have called the flop? I think that would be a bit thin to be honest, so unless he values me with something like AQ or AJ, I think I have the best hand here. I flick in the call, and he reluctantly flips over 98o for nothing at all.
I was up around $70 after this hand but gave it all away through two bluff hands. Let us run quickly through those.
In the first one an OMC limps and I make it $15 with 55 from MP. A pretty young woman from Argentina calls in SB, and she had seemed like a decent grinder (she was there with a boyfriend it seems). The limper folds out, so we go heads-up to Q-3-4 two hearts. Second pair and two backdoor draws seems ok for me, so after she checks I bet $15 to get value from flush draws and fold out hands like 9Ts or similar that has equity. She calls.
Turn comes the Ace and she checks again. Good card to rep if she has Qx, so I make it $25 with plans to bet river as well. She thinks for a bit, and I really get the feeling that she only has a queen. Eventually she calls though, and we see the 8 on the river (no flush came in). She checks, I bet $50 to make it look value-ish and she thinks for a while but eventually call with KQo.
But this is just way too passive by me since I know she has a Queen. And how can we put Qx in a miserable spot? We should bet pot or even a small overbet. Even if she suspects something it's still way harder to call $125 than $50 on the river. So although I like my idea, I think my execution was unusually poor.
One more bluff; I raise QJcc to $12 from UTG and a new surprisingly fit guy around 60 calls on the button. He has been quite passive so far. The flop comes K-3-K one club, and I have no idea why I checked here. He bets $10 and I went for the float OOP and called his bet. Stupid, as it's so hard to play my hand out of position and I have very few clean outs here.
Turn comes another 3 which means the board is double paired. I check, and he quickly checks it back. When he does that, it doesn't seem like he is very strong and I am thinking he could have a hand like 55 or maybe even Ace high.
Random 8 on the river, and in line with above I am thinking about how to make it difficult for A high or medium pair to call. Thus I make it $61 into $48, only to see him announce 'all-in' quickly. Sigh, he clearly slow played the turn with his full house. I do think my play would have worked against a lot of his range, but I create my own problems by once again being too passive out of position.
It seems plainly obvious that the game has passed me by, and that I am not able to win anymore. But I will regardless find a game now and try to reverse that trend.
Cash Games:
Hours played: 14h 30 min
Won/Lost: -$526 USD
Hourly rate: -$36.3 USD
Tournaments:
Won/Lost: -$650 USD (3 played)
Yesterday, June 11th, 2026:-----I woke up, updated this TR and then went with my brother (who has yet to post in this thread) to the Aria pool for a little bit. We first decided to get some unhealthy food at this new location:I forgot to take a picture of the inside, but it looked like a typical In & Out, only bigger than the one on Linq Promenade. There was also a ton of peopl
You'll like Boston, then - no In-n-Out, and lots of cool/cold personalities. 😀
Good morning from Las Vegas, where it's already Saturday. I wish the time didn't fly by so fast, but alas, here we are.
Fairly 'lazy' day yesterday, played some -EV games with brother in the morning (lost as usual) before heading to the Aria gym together for a really good workout. After that, we finally headed out to play some poker, and we went to Caesars Palace as he wanted to play the 2pm tourney while I registered on Bravo for a cash game seat (great new feature!).
I ended up playing for 5 hours, and it was a really fun one. I will go through the most interesting spots, and perhaps omit a couple of the smaller ones.
I was down a little bit in the beginning, but then found some good fortune and decent poker. It starts with an OMC limping for $3, an OWC completes in SB, and I make it $18 from BB with 77 (could go a bit higher out of position). The OMC calls while the woman folds out.
T-9-5 comes on the flop, and I bet $15 to get value from hands like QJ and 87 or similar. He calls quickly, but I don't think he is super strong. So when another 9 comes on the turn I bet $25 for the same reasons as above. He once again calls fairly quickly.
When the river comes with a 6, I have definitely run out of value. 66 now beats me and 78 made a straight. I check, prepared to fold to a sizeable bet, but he just checks behind and my hand is good.
Then it folds to me on the button and I make it $12 with JJ. SB folds, but in the Big Blind sits an active European player (not sure of exact country) who have been involved in a ton of pots already. He 3-bets to $40 and only have like $120 behind. That background makes this an easy jam for value for me, so that is what I do. He snap-calls, and we see the runout of K-T-5-7-2. I show my Jacks, and he just mucks while seeming annoyed (as he often did).
Great start, but then we get into an annoying spot versus the same OMC that I beat with 77. He limps for $3 and I make it $15 with Q9cc in hijack. I would raise it if folded to me, so it seems fine in position. He is the only caller, and we get K-J-5 two clubs. Amazing flop with a lot of equity that I can drive really hard. He checks, and I start out with a bet of $20 with plans to increase on the turn. He calls.
Turn comes an A, which is an interesting one. I had planned to overbet here, but on an Ace I don't think I need to. Thus I 'only' make it $61 into $74, as that should be more than enough to get his KQ-type of hands to fold. And I also build up the pot if I hit. He does however call, although he took a few seconds with it.
River comes a red 6, which means that I miss everything. He checks, and although I have no showdown value I don't think this is a good spot to bluff. If the OMC somehow have Ax or even two pair, there is no chance he will fold unless I move all-in or something. And with having a fairly active image in this game already, I just wasn't sure that he would believe me. I give up, and he wins the hand with ATcc. Woah, I guess I am glad that a club didn't come although I would have won the hand on many other turns.
I had a weird spot a bit later against a US player who also seems a bit grinder-ish, when I raise 9Tdd to $10 on the button (only 5-handed here, thus I size down to make it easier for people to play and stops the game from breaking). He calls in SB and the OMC calls from BB.
6-5-3 two diamonds is decent, and when they both check to me I make it $15. SB calls and BB folds. Turn is the 3d, so the board pairs but I make my flush. He checks, and I decided to make an unusual slow play and check behind. The reason is that this player seems to be able to read hands/boards, and if the river could improve him to a straight for example, that would be awesome for me.
Plan backfired miserably, as another 6 comes on the river. He now leads only $15, which seems value-ish and I only have a bluffcatcher now. Note to self, don't slow play! Either way, it's cheap and I don't see how he can have much 3x here (although 6x is possible). I call, and beat his 77 which was trying a small value bet to get called by A high I assume.
The aggro Euro then returns (he was up walking a lot, often leaving the table short handed), and loses a big pot to a friendly young guy to my left when there are three fours on the table by the river and three clubs. The Euro had made a flush on the turn, but another 4 came on the river making a full house very likely. The friendly guy jams, and the Euro gets all frustrated with the F-word and slams his flush with KTcc angrily down at the table while folding.
Which sets up the very next hand. Two people limp and I make it $20 on the button with AJo. The Euro is in the BB and quickly announces 'all-in' for $202 USD. It folds back to me, and although this would be a trivial fold against anyone else I think he is tilting his pants off by now and can jam very light here. It would certainly be very bad timing for me if he actually has a hand here.
I put in the call, although I realizes it is a bit of a gamble. I don't have much hope on the Q-3-6-5-Q runout though, and indeed he flicks up 88 for the winner. Sigh, the flip didn't go our way. But the mere fact that he shows up with 88 here tells me that he was willing to jam a ton of hands here. I am certain that he would have jammed many worse Aces too, especially if suited.
We are suddenly down then, although I hope to recoup some losses when I get AKss and make it $15 over a limp from the OWC. Sadly the Euro folds behind me, but the OMC calls in BB and the OWC also calls.
The flop comes 8-2-6 two hearts no spades, which is not quite what I was looking for. Therefore I just check it back when it comes to me. Turn is however Kh, which means that we make top pair. The OWC now leads for $15, which I have seen her often do into the preflop-raiser when she has a piece. I raise it up to $35, which in hindsight is too small. But I wanted to have a bit more value from worse Kx + force out any flush draw from the OMC behind me.
The woman calls, but 4h comes on the river and she now leads for $25. It's small, but I cannot imagine her ever having anything but a flush here. So I had to make a sad fold, although with how she was playing she would never just bet here again with Kx without a heart. The fold is easy in that regard, but I should have gone a bit bigger on the turn.
The Euro was putting on the straddle every hand, and in this hand the woman calls the $6 before I find JJ behind her (in SB). I make it $28, BB folds, but then the Euro makes it $101 from the straddle. My stack has trickled down to $220 or so, and with the dynamic between us I have once again a very easy jam here. All-in it is.
He snap-calls and I just turn over my hand, while seeing the less desirable runout of A-K-4-7-3. I sort-of expected to lose, just not in the way I expected. He turns over A6 off-suit...
Although I was frustrated, I just started laughing when I saw his hand because it felt so bizarre that he just wanted to gift me a double-up like that. But he was running good against me, winning one 50-50 and one 30-70. Not much to do with that.
A short time later the game broke though, as a couple of players left, and the Euro being the miserable Euro he is obviously was walking again. He clearly could care less on whether he had a game to return to. We all got redistributed to new tables while he was away, and I never saw him again that evening.
The new table was much duller and in just 20 minutes that one broke as well when we got down to 4-handed. I got moved to my third and last table for the evening, and after folding for a couple of hands I found a spot to get involved. The guy to my right, a strange Romanian, had been opening a lot of hands, so when he raises his third hand in a row (to $15), I make it $46 with KQo. That was enough to get the fold, although he was talking a bit and thinking before folding.
We then have an interesting spot against an Asian woman aged 20-39 (most likely around 30), who didn't talk much but seemed like she was there to grind. She raises to $15 over a limp, two players call, and I have red KQo in BB. Probably should be an easy 3-bet given all the dead money, but I was being a wimp in this hand and just called. We end up going 5-ways to Q-6-3 two hearts one diamond. Everyone checks to her, and she bets $30. It's already a big alarming that she continues to bet into four others, but I call to see another card (I have Kh).
Only us to the turn, which comes Js. I check, and she now bets $65. This spot seems a bit ugly, and I ended up making a tight fold. I should maybe have done the 'Fifth Street Chicken' as Bart Hanson calls it, calling turn to make it seem like I am intent on calling the river as well. But I just got a feeling that she was really strong in this hand, although she is not using gigantic sizings.
Then we see a limp for $3, before a non-descript white guy around 50 makes it $10. I call on the button with QTss, before SB (a weird older guy) makes it $30. Very small sizing, so after the original raiser calls I feel compelled to do so as well given my position.
9-6-3 two spades. Ok, I guess we will play a big pot here I. Small Blind leads for $50 and the original raiser also calls. I only have a little over $200 back, and my first thought was to just call as I these guys seem strong and my overcards might not be good. But then I started thinking about the pot size as it's already $190 out there and they might get scared if the flush comes in. I ended up jamming, although I didn't like it. But I was willing to gamble a bit given the size of the pot and my stack (and because I was down a lot of money, to be honest).
Small Blind immediately asks for a count and says 'I call that', at least that is what it sounded like to me. Original raiser then goes into the tank, and says that this is a big decision for him and that I must have a set. It really sounds like he has a hand like TT or JJ, but with the first player calling I realize I have likely ran into AA and only have nine outs.
The third player eventually folds, and I am more than confused when the dealer pushes the big pot towards me! I ask the dealer, and he says that he also too thought he heard call first, but that he misheard and the player immediately clarified otherwise to him. They both actually folded, which was a huge relief.
I did play some small/medium pots after this, winning most of them and built my stack up to around $470 or so. Then the big hand of the session comes up against the Asian grinder woman. There is a limp for $3 from an OMC, before she makes it $15 as she often did. I have AQo in cutoff and decided to 3-bet to $46. Everyone else folds, and she calls very quickly in a way that tells me she never has AK or any big pair.
The flop is above average, with A-6-3 two spades (I have red cards). She checks, and I bet small as the theory says ($30). I could go a bit higher though in hindsight. She calls somewhat quick, and we see Qs on the turn. Good card, although the flush comes in. She checks, and I didn't get the feeling that she considered a lead. I bet $50, which is again a bit small and she thinks for a bit and calls.
River comes a harmless 7, and she checks again. I can just tell by the way she calls and checks that she has a marginal hand, probably an Ace that she hopes to take to showdown. The pot is now around $260, and while I don't think I can bet pot I need to make it somewhat big to at least make it seem like I have some kind of bluff. I made it $135, although a common theme throughout this hand is that I could have gone a bit bigger on all streets. Maybe something like $40 - $60 - $185 or similar would have been better.
Either way, she goes into the tank before finally sliding in a big stacks of reds for a call. I confidently show my hand and she nods quickly and mucks.
Suddenly we are almost back in profit and although I lost a little bit back I decided to just call it after five hours, down $83 USD. That almost felt like a win to be honest, because I thought I played decent and got a bit unlucky that this did not become a winner. I felt composed and I enjoyed playing, as there was a lot of fun small pots (including some I haven't written about here).
Cash Games:
Hours played: 19h 30 min
Won/Lost: -$609 USD
Hourly rate: -$31.2 USD
Tournaments:
Won/Lost: -$650 USD (3 played)
And after many days of construction, the Bellagio Conservatory finally opened for the summer yesterday. Clearly an animal/jungle theme going on here:
