Long time. Long trip ahead. Long report. Photos on VP_Free.
I was overdue for a junket, my last visit was Dec 2014 and I’d been dreaming of video poker screens for a few weeks. The clincher was a Hold’Em poker tournament mailer came for May at Peppermill: the Main Event had an $1100 entry fee & casino marketing offered to pay my way. The week prior to this Tourney was filled with other tourneys, 3 per day at $125 or $240 entry fee. The Poker NY Spring Challenge. I booked it, staying 11 nights, 16th floor of the Pepps tower, corner imperial suite. Solo trip. Flights on Alaska as Southwest no longer offers non-stops from Seattle.
Day 1: Friday
overheard two folks entering Hi Limit: “Oh- High Limit!” “Are you scared?”“Kind of…”
took over two hours to burn off 750 in freeplay playing $1 single line ACE$BP, DDB & NSUD; 50c x 5-line NSUD & DDB.
7:00 I enter my first hold’em tourney. I last 3 hours, but only finish 33rd of 49 entrants.
Take dinner at Milano - Salmon, then a room break until 11:30PM.
after two hours and a rare dabble on Super Times Pay 50c x 3 NSUD, I snag quad ducks for $500, no multiplier. My best jackpot of the day. So I stopped soon after.
3 hrs of poker: minus 125
5 hrs VP: 17 J/P (jackpots) of 125 or more: plus 400
Day 2:
My only room service breakfast of the trip: omelette with salmon was too dry.
30 minutes of $1 DDB with suited prog RFs and I drop 500.
Noon: poker tourney #2, $240 entry. I last an hour. I push ALL-in with AK, a bigger stack calls. Board comes xAK, turn T, river X. He puts me out with his QJo (offsuit).
Back to VP: I really LIKE Dbl Dbl Aces & Faces, at Pepps, it’s as full-pay as DDB and the bonus is quad faces and kickers AKQJ - cards you want to hold anyways. I hold KK when dealt KK55x. Anyhow, I score my first tax form with a AKAAA in DD A&F for 2000.
ANother few hours & I’m down about 1000, stopping sessions when down 400. Only quad wild 2s for 500 on 50c x 5 to mention.
5:00 I go for my 2nd poker tourney of the day. Omaha Hi/Lo $125 entry fee. After a few hands, I realize the game is LIMIT poker. The blinds and max bets go up agonizingly slow every 30 minutes. Granted, any live poker you see a hand every couple minutes, quite a downshift from VP playing 15 hands a minute. But at least in No Limit you can accelerate the action once in a while. I last THREE hours this time and make the final table, so I win a HAT. I go out 9th, but cash prizes are for the top 4 finishers only- only 25 folks entered this tourney.
During our 10 minute break after two hours- I scoot over to High Limit for some $1 DDB. I hit 2AAAA for $2000 & a tax form after about 20 hands. Luckily, the handpay comes quickly from the high limit “concierge” & I’m back to the table without missing a hand.
After the tourney, I take a room break to put my hat away (no I didn’t WEAR it!) and drop off my glasses (need them for poker, don’t need them for VP) and return via the back elevator near my room to the casino floor, up 1000 on the day to here.
I game until 2AM. I note 2222 for 500 on 50c NSUD, AAAA for 800 in DDA&F and a KKKK for 625 playing a rare $5 coin session of ACE$BP.
Roast turkey at Milano.
Poker: 4 hrs minus 365
VP 9 hrs; 18 J/P; plus 600
Day 3:
after a couple hours VP, I’m down 1600 with only one nice 2222 for 500. I need a change of pace, as I decided to not play in any poker tourneys today, so I taxi over to Grand Sierra to cash my standing 400 freeplay offer. I SCOUR the floor AND high-limit for a playable game. NOTHING! not even 9/6 JoB. I know, there is supposed to be a bank of playable 25c games, but I play 50c, $1 and $2 coin these days. So, I saddle up to a 9/5 DDB for $1’s and hope I hit quads or I’ll probably catch the same taxi that dropped me off. I DO hit quad 9’s for 250. I see that their Sunday prize is a cordless screwdriver if you accumulate 175 points. I go to the promo/cashier cage and ask how it works. First off, she gives me some new cards: I’ve been downgraded to Gold (near the lowest) from ELITE (the highest). Harrumph! SZo, I head to the kiosk, swipe my card, get my coupon for the screwdriver, pick it up and head for the taxi stand. Even.
Back to VP at Pepps with a fresh appreciation for their VP playtables. I pop over to the Chandlier bar in the tuscan tower. Long walk. The musician there is doing a gawdawful soundcheck, but I hit quad A w/no kicker on $1 DDB for 800 to keep me about even since my return from GSR. Tonite’s my splurge nite for dinner: a big 24 oz Porterhouse at Bimini Steakhouse. Not a splurge moneywise (it’s all covered by comps), but an hour & 1/2 waiting for big steak, which takes 45 min to cook to perfection. (medium well). Worth it? Eh, I overate and I have been off dairy, gluten, red meat & added sugar or artificial anything for about 9 months now, so food is not such a big deal, and simple whole foods like salads & veggies & brown rice & chicken & fish are plenty fun for me. Long room break ensued.
10PM: back to VP. I do a slow LOSS spiral, 300-400 down on each of four or five sessions,
then, thanks to a special additional 750 freeplay offer I activated after midnight, a nice up session of +600 on DD A&F. But I played Super aces Bonus, $1 x 3, for -1000 and a Spin Poker session of 50c Bonus poker for -500 and I gotta stop- it’s after 2:30AM.
0 hr poker
VP: 9 hrs, only 15 J/P, down 4100
(take heart- this was my worst result of the trip)
Day 4.
Up in time to join a $125 poker tourney. I lasted 3 /12 hours, finished 23rd of 64 starters.
My exit hand: dealt QJh, I called a raise & re-raise against two opponents. I’m “middle’stacked” & the flop comes J8Xo. I open ALL-IN, called by mr. big stack holding AKo. turn 9 river ACE and I’m saying bah-bye.
4:00 two bonus quads for 400 ea on $1 DDB for +700 session
JJJJQ on $1 SuperDDB for 800 and another +700 session.
dinner at Oceano, Yoshi Roll sushi & Halibut.
dribble a bit of those profits away, when I FINALLY hit a ROYAL on one line of 50c x 5 NSUD. It feels like it has been YEARS since I hit a Royal, I’m too scared to fact-check that statement. YAY, a good photo for my trip report. I give back much of that profitable session, but it lasts me until 9PM, an uncharacteristic early finish for the day, but I wanted to record another PLUS day on the day I hit a Royal.
poker: 3 hrs minus 125
VP: 5 hrs only 10 J/P; Plus 400
Day 5 Tues
Noon start, seems I like to play near the Cube bar on the multi-lines. Couple of bonus quads on 50c x 5 DDB for 400 & 200, then, holding 4RF, I hit another Royal on one line for 2000. YAY YAY another good photo.
I venture to some $1 x 3 line NSUD and score 2222 for 1000.
800 for QQQQJ on $1 DDA&F and I’m up 2800 on the day.
I “somehow” manage to drop 900 on $1 DDA&F- I usually switch games after 500 down.
A slow drain is halted with a nice 50c x 5 NSUD session with 2222 twice for 500 & 500.
I’m still up 1300 when I join another poker tourney.
7:00 I last an hour & 1/2 , out 37th of 45 entrants minus 125. room break.
I’m skipping thru a lot of even VP machine sessions. my play might seem frantic or “overstimulating” by the long hours I put in and the game and machine switching I do.
But believe me, I’m relaxed and it’s heavenly. I’ve been relying on my 160GB iPod the last couple years to drown out the ambient muzak and crowd noise in the casino AND in the poker room. I have Red Hot Chili Peppers, live Grateful Dead, Primus and Jethro Tull to soothe me. And, if you remember my previous posts, I don’t go on tilt, whether up or down, I just enjoy the ride. And a smile and a cocktail from the waitress is nice too.
Of course, a couple Royals will put any of us at peace for a while.
So, I find myself playing $1 x 3 DDB and I hit AAA4A for 2000 and my 5th tax form of the trip. I wrap up gaming about 9:30. Enuf of a bankroll wad has returned to my pocket from day 3’s calamity.
Looks like I had a waffle brunch at Milano, but I forgot to eat dinner.
Poker: 1.5 hrs Minus 125
VP: 7 hrs; 23 J/P; Plus 3300
Day 6
10:30AM cube bar multi’s: 2222 for 500, AAAA for 400 44443 for 400: a nice shot of cash to go with my baileys tall coffee(s).
NOON: I get back on the horse & join a $240 entry poker tourney. Opponents seem to know each other and the dealers. I play a lot of free funny money on-line, of course the play online is much looser. I feel pretty good playing, not feeling like a fish. I play THIS tourney for 5 long hours. There’s 64 entrants. I’m out 26th. Prizes only to top 8.
five DOWN VP sessions, when I hear this Grateful dead lyric from Crazy Fingers:
“…Gone are the days we decide where to go, we just Riiiiiiiide…” I’m DEALT quad 7 on $1 x 3 DDB for 250 x 3 for an UP 700 session. That disappears so, I escalate to
$2 DD A&F and I’m rewarded with quad K for 800 and quad 5 for 500., UP 500 session.
down that 500 and some more when I return to my “roots” 50c x 5 line. DDB this time when the RNG coughs out another ROYAL. YAYAYAY. Call me Royal Boy.
I’m about even on the day, it’s 10PM, and a down 500 session on $1 DD A&F has put me in the mood for some grub. I haven’t eaten since I scarfed a sub sndwich during a break in the poker tourney, maybe about 3:00. SO, I head to Milano & eat my first BURGER in about 10 months. Really! A monster california burger with avocado & bacon. Juicy & tasty. But, I certainly don’t miss burgers. Read FAST FOOD NATION and you might relate.
After dinner, I lose another 1000 or so on $1 coin games.
Just after midnight, it’s raining ROYALS again. 50c x 5 again. 2000 again. four YAYs.
My pocket & my camera are both getting heavy from these jackpots.
I finish up for the day almost immediately.
POKER: 5 hrs , MINUS 240
VP: 8 HRS, 29 J/Ps; PLUS 400.
TRIP REPORT HALFTIME!
I’m up or down less than 500 at this point. 4 RFs, 3 quad A, each for 2000.
MARK TIME’s Adventure continues on the next post.