Today was my last day in Vegas. Myself, Welcomeme, Chipmystak, and Yaboystu went to Ceasar's to play the $235 turbo. The tournament was actually a really good one. It got to be a shove fest at the end though. I ended up placing 9th out of 95 players for ~$700. It was a small payday but it was fun to go out on a cash. Stu and I both made the final table, but Stu took an awful beat 99 vs A8 for a huge pot to bubble. I lost a 40k pot with 55 against an old dude's 93o, which sort of crippled me and eventually I called with K10 and ran into AK and AJ in a multi-way pot. I could not see myself folding with that many chips in the pot and considering my stack would be next to nothing if I folded. To conclude this entry, I'm going to share a few thoughts from my trip.
1. I really do hate live poker, but it is a nice change of pace. These people are so bad that it would just be a shame not to sprinkle in the occasional live tournament. I see people calling 1/2 their stack to see a flop, making 10x raises preflop, and folding getting 10:1 on their money. I definately plan to sprinkle in a few live events in the future, HPT and Canterbury Fall Classic in particular.
2. I like the idea of Vegas more than I like Vegas itself. In anticipation of this trip, I was so excited. I kept dreaming of the big scores in the huge tournaments. In reality, I played only 4 tournaments, cashing in only one for a small amount. I know I am better than a vast majority of the players in these tournaments, but to take full advantage, I need to play enoguh tournaments to reduce the variance of those large fields. Aside from that, this city is expensive. Every cab ride to our place cost $35. Food in a casino typically runs from $10-$30. Everyone expects a tip on top of it all. The city is also so busy. There is always something to do. That means little sleep and inevitable fatigue. I enjoyed my experience at the clubs, but its not something I would want to do every night. Drinks cost too much, music is too loud, and the place is too damn crowded. I would much rather chill in a bar/lounge and have a few cheap drinks.
3. Sometimes it pays to take a chance. This reference has nothing to do with poker or gambling. Rather, it describes my decision to come to Vegas for two weeks and share a house with seven complete strangers. I had never met any of these guys in person and knew nothing about them aside from my notes on the virtual felt. Before leaving, the thought crossed my mind that the people I would be staying with could be a bunch of wierdos with absolutely no social skills that shared only poker as a common interest. That was definately not the case. The people I stayed with were all very cool. They are a collection of people from all walks of life, hailing from different areas of the country and all having different backgrounds. Each person offered a unique contribution to the atmosphere of the house. I hope to join up with these guys again in Aruba later this year. After this trip, I consider all of these people to be friends of mine (off the felt, that is).
4. The game has gotten a lot more difficult. In the live tournaments I played last summer, the players were all your typical "limp and try to hit" live players. Now, though most players are admittadly bad, far more players are willing to 3bet light and play LAG solid poker. With the rise in popularity of online training sites and poker books, there is quickly becoming less and less margin for error in the game. I am definately going to have to work hard to improve my game and stay ahead of the curve.
So there you have it, a brief summary of a long trip to Vegas. I didn't have nearly as much success as I had hoped for, but I gained valuable experience. I know that I can compete in live tournaments, I just have to get out and play them. This trip has, at the very least, set a foundation for my live tournament career. Hopefully it is something I can build off of.
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