(Note: As of December '07, the kills had been eliminated completely, regardless of what the players wanted.) Only late afternoon and on could you be sure of getting limit games of 3/6 or 4/8. (But over 3/6 was hard to find ANYWHERE when I was there. I stuck mostly to NL because of that.) The room was clean, chairs comfortable, and tables great. I like the hard racetrack around the edge of the table to keep the chips stacked neatly and encourage players to keep their cards forward enough to be always visible so players and dealer always know who is in. The room's open feel is nice; from one end you can see the lion habitat and from the other the Rainforest Cafe. But I was never positioned right to see the club-attending parade of beauty I had read so much about here...Only downside, as mentioned many times, was the annoying promo music from Centrifuge. Can be very distracting and irritating, though after days of play I became numb to it.
Being a Florida player, I'd have to say that the competition here is pretty tough; there is a group of regular twenty-somethings that feel very much at home at any NL table, and they can get into trash talking and very aggressive, creative play. But I think the average to strong player can give them a wide berth and make a good showing as there is simply plenty of action for everybody. And there are a few middle-aged local rocks who will sit hours not playing, fooling themselves into believing they are pros! Their standard play is to check ANY flop, good or bad. They can be played around even more easily than the hotshots. Slow play regardless of value seems to be the local-rock mantra. (A good player must slow play as often as possible, they think. Some pretty sad results, as you might imagine!)
I had a run-in with one dealer while he was playing. I didn't KNOW he was an MGM dealer, and I forced him to show his cards to the whole table after he flashed them to his buddy next to him. To his credit, he was very friendly to me later when he was working. Once I told him it was my first time in Vegas, he just said, "Forget it. I had made a bad play, I was a little embarrassed, but don't worry. Just have a good time." I found all the dealers to be sharp, and most to be friendly and even funny. They all earned their tips!
Never went thirsty during normal hours, but at 5:00a.m. they wouldn't get to upset if you went to their little prep area and woke them up. Sometimes they would leave a tray of drinks so we could help ourselves at that crazy time of the morning, or we could even pour our own coffee. But at all other times it was quick and friendly service. Plus you can order food from the Stage Deli--stick with the turkey and avoid the corn beef! (Reasonable prices on yogurt and fruit too..._)
Considering how jammed MGM got in the evenings, I can't imagine a mob being managed better. Lynn, Marcy, and Nikia were the ones who sat me most often, and they all leaned my name the first time I came in, greeted me with smiles, and really made me feel like my business mattered--despite the big crowds they got. In fact, it is the management there that makes me willing to go back and do better next time against that somewhat tough competition! (I tried five other cardrooms those ten days and none came close in the management aspect, though a few were easier to win in.) Here is an example of good mangagement: A very young player jumped the line, joining our table without being seated. He immediately posted and then folded preflop. Just then, the floor man came over and said, "Sir, I'm sorry, but we had somebody waiting for that seat; they were on the list." The jerk said, "The rule is, once I make a bet, you can't make me leave." It went on for a few minutes, the jerk challenging the floor man to have security come, and the floor man whispered, "We can do this the hard way or the easy way. I'll give you your $2 post out of my pocket and you get in line, or security will escort you out of the MGM." After steaming for a minute, the young jerk actually took the $2 and stomped off. This at a time when the room was jammed. The floor man then said to the table, "Sorry for the distraction folks, but if we let people just run to any empty seat, we will really have chaos here." He was applauded! As for the tourneys, though the structure is too fast, they are run extremely well.
One reason I like playing here is they don't take out for a jackpot, so the lack of the bad-beat, high-hand stuff is a plus for me. Some locals grumbled about that though.
The food comp seemed reasonable at $1 per hour, but the places to use the vouchers are very expensive, like $15 minimum, plus a tip. I recommend the Huevos Rancheros at the Studio Cafe. Que sabroso!
