Summary: of Days 1-6: about “even”, 112 JackPots of 125 & up in 43 hrs VP. four RFs, three quadAs w/kicker for seven tax forms of 2000 each. 18 hrs of Live poker hold’em for $980 entry entry fees with a Hat to show for it.
Day 7 Thursday
VP starts around 1:00PM, with a nice wild 2222 for 500 to supplement my Baileys coffee.
I continue with 50c x 5 Deuces & DDB for a long run: with 11 x 125 J/Ps of quads & SFs plus 2 x 200. Up 400.
I migrate to $1 coin & lose that back plus another down 500.
back to my roots of 50c x 5 and down another 900. I escalate to $1 x 5 line & lose another 500 each on Deuces & DDB. Only one quad 4 for 400 to mention. Seems like a dearth of quads or Wild RFs.
Long runs of losses require a change-o-pace, so I TAXI over to Silver Legacy to grab my $250 freeplay. That vanishes on $1 ACE$BP, so I invest some of my OWN bankroll, my hard-earned CASH, well, I am getting a pension these days which still SEEMS to be free money. $1 DDB prog bank, I’m on my 3rd benjamin when the machine freezes up with all ACES and a 4 kicker. Look at me! Change-o-pace! $2000, a tax form and damn! a Jackpot winner T-SHIRT! I do some shopping trying to spend some comp balance, but the Carriage House is closed - that’s where I buy my liquor. So, I taxi back to Pepps, stash my T-shirt in my room, and have Yoshi roll & Halibut at Oceano again.
No poker tourneys today, they are running satellites to qualify for the Main event tomorrow, and I am already qualified and PAID and signed up.
7:30 $1 DD A&F thanks to 3 quads for 250/400/250 I have a sweet +800 session.
I redeem that UP ticket, and return to the same machine, same game & give it all back.
and lose another 400 at $1 coin games.
Back to 50c x 5 DDB & NSUD, down 400 when I hit ANOTHER ROYAL for 2000. Puts me UP (“only”) 500 on the day. That disappears after a $1 DDB run on the suited progressive machine in high limit, so, back to the cube bar area.
50c x 5 NSUD and I get ANOTHER $2000 ROYAL. That’s #6 now on the trip.
check my photos out on vpFree if you haven’t already.
I call it a night, enough excitement.
Poker: 0 hrs
VP: 8 hrs, 30 J/Ps; Plus 1900
Day 8
I’m on the casino floor at 11:30. I grab a tall coffee while playing 50c x 5 NSUD. An early dealt WRF gets me $312 and a winning +400 session. I’m off to the poker room for the Big Show. The tournaments this week are being held in the “OLD” poker room, which got converted years ago to a Slot Tournament area when they built the new deluxe enclosed poker room. TO convert it back to a poker area, they crammed all the machines in one end, hung up a curtain, and brought out from storage or rented some poker tables (withOUT the automagic shufflers in them) and VOILA.
NOON: Day 1A of the Hold’em Main Event. Guaranteed $100,000 PRIZE pool. My table begins with only four of the nine players showing up on time. It fills up within the hour, I guess it’s “cool” to be casual about being on-time. What I’v ecome to realise is that if you want to win or even get a prize in these tournaments, you have to be prepared to sit at the table for up to 12 hours, and you might only be actively engaged in 10 hands every hour.
You have to have that patience. I have an enjoyable FOUR hour run in this one. I’m OUT 48th of the 64 entrants.
I didn’t REBUY-in for $1100 of my own money- I think that would have been a bad investment of money & time. But I watched the progress of the tourney for the next two days. 14 people qualified from day 1A, they quit at midnight. They had another ~90 entries Saturday, including REBUYers. FINALS action Sunday finished about 11PM and first place won about $35,000 (?) I think prizes went to the top 15 players.
back to 50c x 5 DDB (down 500) and NSUD (down 500) switch to $1 x 3 DDB, then NSUD where I hit 2222 for 1000. I switch over to $1 single line DD A&F where I run up my creds to PLUS 1100 thanks to 250/400 and 800 (JJJAJ) quad hands. UP 1400 on the day.
I lose that on $1 and $2 coin games, then back up a little on 50c x 5 games.
I’m back to $1 X 3 NSUD when another 2222 hits me for 1000. My profit for the day is almost gone when I’m back to 50c x 5.
You guessed it, but I am STILL getting shocked by it: ROYAL FLUSH #7 for 2000. Another happy photo op, and $20 tip for the now familiar attendant staff.
It turns into a long night. from my handy dandy index card, looks like I played all my favorite games and machines. and hung onto profit when I took a room break at 12:30AM.
UP 1500 on the day.
Back down for more VP. I feel rich I guess so I play much $1 x 5 line NSUD with only a few WRFs and DDB with NO quads! ugh. I slip into negativeland after a Down 500 session on $2 single line DD A&F despite a quad Q for 800. It’s 2AM and I somehow turned a PLUS day into a DOWN day. Sleepytime.
Poker: 4 hrs, $0
VP: 10 hrs, 37 J/P, down 1200.
Day 9
1PM and a Milano breakfast at the counter. Waitress calls me “Honey”- I love it.
Off to cube bar for 50c x 5: my routine. I spy three veterans at the machines, this being Memorial day weekend. One has a “comfort dog” on the marbletop siderail. One guy pushes the other’s wheelchair when they leave. Waitress says they are there “everyday”.
I wonder if I ever need a wheelchair, will my VP pals help me out. Surely.
Overheard snippet: “…I’ll lose wuick…”
A dealt WRF for $312 and a 2222 for 500 gives me a plus session, but I return it all on 50c x 5 DDB. I lose 1000 on a couple $1 coin sessions. Some long sessions on a full mix of games has me down 600 on the day with only quad 2s for 500 on a rare Super Times pay session of 50c NSUD in the no smoking room to note.
Down an additional 1300 in three sessions due to not enough quads hitting.
I remember to break for Prime Rib au jus dinner at Milano, then a room break.
9:45 for a restart. many down sessions, one UP 500 session on the $1 DDB suited prog hi-limit machine thanks to quads for 250/250 and 400 and a rare SF for 250.
My nightcap session ends at 2AM on $2 ACE$BP in hi-limit which I end with AAAA for 800, a plus 900 session, but way down for the day.
Poker: 0 hrs (no more Live poker on this trip)
VP: 10 hrs, 31 J/Ps, Down 2700
Day 10
Gaming at 1:00 4 quads for 250 ea on a $1 DDB session for Plus 500.
After brunch at Milano, 50c x 5 NSUD nets 2222 for 500 and +800 session
Jethro Tull lyric: “Wonderin’ aloud, will the years treat us well…?” Ian Anderson makes me maudlin.
I return my early day profitson playing $1 DDA&F and $1 x 3 NSUD, but also on a rare session of 50c x 5 Ultimate X DDB. $1 x 5 BP in the corner of Hi Limit is Up 500 thanks to quad A’s for 400.
I break out the routine for 2 hours of Pai Gow. I always forget how much I enjoy Pai Gow.
An even session, different pace, but no iPod allowed and I never like to puff a cigar in the table game area - it’s too crowded so it’s kind of an obnoxious thing to do. Even money at Pai Gow. And up 900 for the day.
I lose 500 at $1 DDA&F. I try some 10c x 5 line Multistrike 7/5 BP, a fad I got into many years ago. I have an even session thanks to hitting quads on the top line twice for 125 each hand.There’s no good paytables on the MS, but the game’s sound is pleasant nostalgia.
A bonus quad on $1 DDB 2222A for 800 makes for a nice plus 700 session. Plus 1200 on the day.
I break for dinner at CHI: vermicelli & jumbo prawns plus CHI fried rice is filling.
I take an hour room break and it’s back to VP at 10:30.
I spend almost two hours switching between $1 x 5 DDB and NSUD.
33334 for 800, 2222 for 1000 and two bonus quads for 400/400 are highlights.
Up another 300 and about 12:30AM I am tired.
Pai gow: 2 hrs , +$0
VP: 7 hrs (is that ALL!?) , 41 J/P ; Plus 1500.
Day 11: monday, my last full day of this trip.
10:45 gaming Mostly on $1 games, I’m down 1700, noting only a cool Dealt SF for 250, AAAA for 800 and 2222 for 400.
I’m now playing $1 X 5 DB on a slower type multi-line machine near Oceano.
I get the kind of DEALT hand that is the main reason I play Multi-line games so much.
- Hold Hold Hold Hold and Hold. double check my holds. Hit draw and watch the machine freeze up with the call attendant happy message. 5 times 800 for $4000 hand pay. Photo, Tax form, smiles all around. Spoiler: best hand of my trip.
It’s one of the 12 hands I uploaded to vpFree (all tax form hands).
I am up 2500 on the day to here.
I decide to take a happy break for brunch at Milano and a two hour, even money session of pai gow.
Back to VP and I start one of those ugly DOWNspins.
When I lose all the day’s profit and begin to go negative about 6PM, I take a break to do some gift shopping for my girlfriend, and get myself a shirt and, on impulse, a cowboy hat to burn off some of my $900+ comp balance. Take the good to my suite and take a rest.
Back about 8PM, and the downspins on 50c x 5 continue., so I switch to $1 X 5 DDB & NSUD, alternating for almost 2 hrs. 3 sessions are Plus, 5 are Minus. There’s an AAAA for 800 and a 2222 for 1000 as happy moments. Up or down, I’m enjoying myself, there’s quads and WRFs sprinkled in there, just not enough. Down 1700 on the day to here.
Abotu 10PM I go back to Pai Gow. A large lady next to me is betting 1000 or 1500 on each of two hands. She’s been there a while I guess: the dealer’s tip pile is about $300.
I feel silly tipping a buck or two like I usually do on good hands. Funny: when the high roller left, they switched dealers. I’m betting $40 each playing two hands. I up that to $80 times two hands in the last 1/2 hour, and I lose 300 for the two hour session.
I return about midnight to VP, and lose 800 to the $1 DDB five-buttoned bandit.
Back again to $1 x 5: DDB nets me plus 300. BP in hi-Limit, with a “shit-ton” of quads, nets me +700.
1:30AM, I’m done.
Pai gow: 4 hrs, minus 300
VP: 9 hrs, 41 J/Ps, down 1800
Day 12.
thanks to pre-packing the night before, my morning routine is swift and efficient.
I check out in VIP, pay cash for my total room charge of $5.03 (from the day 2 room service tip gratuity). Suite itself was comped, I am pretty sure the food charge to my room came off my comp balance rather than be pre-comped, but not 100% certain). Bags to bell. I have one hour before I catch the limo to the airport to try to overcome my approx 2000 trip deficit.
Hows about a session of $1 x 5 DDB & NSUD? Awright.
Quad 7s, 250. Quad As, 800, yay; quad 9s 250. WRF 125. then…nothing!
Down 700 and it’s exactly time to go catch my limo.
I piddle an additional 300 on shitty airport DDB. Kind of a nasty habit.
Uneventful flight home.
Filing this report is the last of my reporting duties.
Overall stats?
Anyone still reading?
jackpots:
121 x $125
26 x 200
73 x 250
29 x 400
12 x 500
1 x 625
19 x 800 (includes the 5 line dealt hand)
5 x 1000
11 x 2000 (four quad As & 7 ROYAL FLUSHES)
···
12 tax forms
297 jackpots in 88 hrs of VP
-300 in 6 hrs of Paigow
-980 in 22 hrs of hold’em tourney.
two hats, a nice shirt and a T-shirt for me, two jackets for my GF & a cordless drill.
24 two-sided index cards with all my notes.
& a good time was had by all.
cheers
~MARK TIME