Day 22 Sunday June 27

I wake up the LLM (Low Limit Monster) and tell him to meet me at the Boar's Head Bar at Main St Station, as we are both staying downtown.

I play some VP and craps and pick up a quick 2 bills to start the day....I fund the LLM near the brewpub, and as we walk past the cage to the MSS Sunday brunch, the LLM points at the ticket-redemption machine.....I look, and see noone....and then, I see what he is pointing to. There is a C--note sitting in the tray that someone left behind. LLM walks over, and picks it up. As we continue to the buffet, a female casino patron starts talking gibberish to him, making gestures like she saw him pick it up, but in no way indicating that it was either hers, or that she was upset. He couldn't understand her, and we continiued to the buffet, me fully expecting security to come over any second. They did not, and still haven't.

After breakfast, we split up, and I head to the Cal. I pass another redemption machine, and laughing to myself, look in the tray....there is a 20 sitting there.....I add it to my 'reverse miscellaneous expenses."

After re-napping, I play some 5-play 50 cent bonus poker. I make a 'bad play' by breaking up a AAQT7 hand with a 3-royal to make the draw....Line 3 pays dividends with a 2000$ royal.....I add 1420 to my bankroll.

I meet up with the LLM and we head to ARIA to play some cards. I plop myself at the 1-3NL table and the LLM plays 4-8 Limit. 45 minutes in, this woman (44-ish, bottle-blond, hot and ugly at the same time...you kknow the type) approaches the table and PLOPS her enormous handbag down on the felt and makes a big production out of buying chips, acting stupid, etc. She introduces herself as "Chickie", says it is her given name, named after a friend of her Mom's.....the rock on her finger has to be 6 carats. She talks a good game after acting like a moron, and then complains about the drink service...says her boyfriend is playing some event. Anyway, she was noteworthy. My only noteworthy hand came out of boredom. I raise a few limpers from the cutoff with 86 suited mostly because I've been very tight. I didn't note all the action, but I remember making 2 pair by the turn, and then shoving on the river when my boat hit against a guy that I realized had an overpair.
So when he called my turn bet, I knew I was screwed, and then saved by the river.....Chickie left, the game got boring again, so I picked up my suckout money and left, making 292 in 2:30.

Back at MSS, I dropped 625 playing VP.....caught up with the LLM, and found a 50cent progressive 8/5 BP carousel where the royal was 4100, making it a 101%+ game. Me and the LLM chased it for about 40 minutes, but when a girl on the other side of the bank hit it, those 10 machines emptied out faster than rats leaving the Titanic.

I end the day up 1142, and am now up 10k for the trip

Day 23 Monday June 28

up at 11AM; I drop off laundry, deciding this time to pay the nice lady to have it ready for me....21$...which I would have lost at the bad VP machines they have there anyway....now I have the afternoon free....We meet up with our Pittsburgh buddy, who has spent most of the trip in the Mirage card room, and decide to do the 20$ Crown and Anchor 'free lunch' (for those that don't know, if you buy in to their 97% vp machines, and play, (even slowly) your yummy lunch is comped.

We meet, and then throw some darts (my other passion) (BTW I turned a 10$ profit on my lunch...LLM broke even....) and drove to Casino Royale. I hit dual (on 2 of the 3 lines) 'quality quads (2s 3s and 4s are 'quality quads)' playing Super Aces and ended up turning a 400$ profit.

Over to the Rio with the LLM, I play about 1/2 an hour of 2-5NL. I am up about 200 when I end up all in preflop against a guy who was tilting. We coin flipped and he won....-315.

I also played a 275 satellite and donked out when I could not put my opponent on an ace the way he played the hand, and got all my chips in with kk with an ace on the flop. Horrific read....

Then I head over to the Gold Coast and blow thru about 900 at various VP games....seems I cannot win a thing in that building. I have a pre-birthday dinner with the Pittsburgh buddy at Casa Don Juan (authentic Mex 1 mile from the plaza) and then head back to Casino Royale for 'an event that will live in infamy.'

I plop myself down at the bank of triple-play VP machines, but not at the exact machine I usually play. I am playing .50 and 1$ Super Aces, switching back and forth as the mood strikes. I get ahead, and then start losing. I'm pretty anal about checking the paytablesto be sure they are what I expect, so I am surprised when the following occurs.

I am now in the hole about 1800, but have about 900$ in credits on the machine. I am playing 7 1$ coins per line, 21 bucks a pop at triple play.

I get dealt 3 to the royal, and the middle line pops the Royal...and says JACKPOT 2100$. I could SWEAR I saw something change at the top left corner of the screen (where the royal payout is displayed) and am totally miffed, as this royal should pay 5600$!!!

A changegirl comes over and congratulates me (she has no idea what she is in for) and starts to 'card' the machine. I tell her to please don't do that yet, and ask her to look at the screen, and see if she sees anything wrong. She looks for maybe 4 seconds and shakes her head no, and I ask her to please send her supervisor over and not to touch the machine. She looks confused and starts to card it again, and I put my hand in front and said "PLEASE GET YOUR SUPERVISOR and do NOT touch it." She looks at me like one of the 1$ beer drunk regulars and shuffles off.

The supervisor approaches and asks what's up, I show him how much I've been betting, and the paytable 'error' and tell him to check out the 4 identical machines around it, and claim that the payout is wrong, and I should get 5600$ for my 7 coin royal. I also tell HIM please don't card the machine. He furrows his brow, and checks the paytables on all the other machines, and sees the '5600$' number. It's midnight, and he is the most senior person there, and clearly has no authority to make such a decision. I politely inform him that he can either pay me the 5600, or we can call Gaming. He leaves, comes back, checks the other machines again, and I ask him if he has called gaming yet....he says no. I whip out my phone, and he tells me to hang on, he called the slot super and got him out of bed, and he thinks we can 'resolve' this, as he is pretty sure something is 'not right' I tell him nobody is touching the machine until gaming shows up.

Slot supervisor finally shows up, and looks at the machine with the royal, and essentially says "Something's wrong' I agree. He dsappears for 15 minutes, comes back and tells me that the payout seems as though it is not right, and says he will pay me my 5600, and then I have to cash out my remaining credits (850+$) and they are going to shut the machine down. Well, that solution is Quite agreeable to me, I get pay, and for the 1st time ever, I 'KO'd a VP machine. Now that he can card the machine, based on our verbal agreement, he discovers that for this particular game and denomination, the Royal has been set up not to give the 'bonus' that you usually get on the *5th* coin until the *10th* coin. So they claim there was an error made by the slot tech in initializing the paytable. Regardless, they pay me my money, and I must give credit where it is due to the Casino Royale. The LLM and I both surmise that HAD gaming shown up, they probably would have sided with the casino, saying that 'That's what the paytable said...2100', and probably rightfully so. But I SWEAR the paytable changed WHEN I hit the royal.....and wasn't at 2100 before it....but that is not the way it looks.....whatever.....I got paid, and the Royale had a happy customer who was now up 4100 for the day.

I can't sleep because of being wired and such, and go donk off 60 bucks at the IP playing 1-2 for 2 hours. at 6 AM, I go sleepy-bye.

ANd That's only Sunday and Monday!

Tues June 29th day 24.

up at 11AM and make a quick c-note having coffee at CROY; then the LLM and I head over to Boulder Station, as I want to play some Omaha High. I lose 59 bucks, but get overpaid when cashing out (which I don't notice as I'm talking to the LLM) and as we are walking away, he says "Did you just get an extra hundy?" and I look, and say....Ummmmm Yes, I did. Another "Reverse Miscellaneous expense" Serves them right for letting people smoke cigarettes and NOT letting me smoke a clove cigarette.

LLM has a rare comped night at the Hard Rock, so we head over as I have never stayed there. We check in but the Poker room is dead (4PM) and he decides he wants to put some points on his Stratosphere card to resume getting room offers. I agree to help him with that, and that decision costs me 300 in VP. However we do meet 'Suzy' a buxom cocktail cutie from NY.

We head back to the 'Rock' and I have a horrendously draining (2600) VP session at the circular bar after ingesting about 8 Patron shots.
I guess THOSE weren't free!...I head to bed in a foul mood down 2400 for the day.

Wed June 30 Day 25

I realize I was supposed to check in yesterday at the Gold Coast. I go to check in, and receive no hassle or penalty (remember, I cant win in that building, so they love me.)

In true form, I lose about 2 grand in the course of the day at VP while the LLM plays poker at the Mirage....I head over to the Mirage, and am instrumental in starting a nowadays rare Omaha hilo game there, which lasts about 30 minutes. Our Pittsburgh buddy heads to the airport, and gets out of town with a 30$ profit for the week.

I lose 22 at 1-2NL, and 80$ at Omaha when I flop a boat only to lose to the LLM's BIGGER flopped boat....I then play at the 'best BJ game in town' and drop 600 bucks in a dozen hands, and nothing has gone right since the 'disputed Royale royal'.

I'm down 2700 for the day, but we have a free food comp, so we head to the steakhouse at the Gold Coast and eat some comped cow-flesh.

I then decide to punish myself for my excessive VP losses by chasing the bad Beat Jackpot with the LLM at the 2-4 limit table at the Gold Coast, since it shares the BBJ with the Orleans, and it is now approaching 150k$! Luckily there is a 3-6 game going, so the boredom factor is slightly reduced. The first 40 minutes is boring, and I am losing about 60 bucks, then, a series of interesting events occurs.

I am in the 2 seat, and the LLM is in the 3. A black guy with tremendously bloodshot eyes sits down in the 4 seat. He is talking on the phone, and in a language I do not recognize. He plays a few hands (apparently he had been at a different table previously) and is not holding up the game, but decides to leave the table, still on the phone. He returns and is STILL on the phone. A rather large (for the 3-6 game) pot gets going between on-the-phone-guy (PhG) and the 10 seat, and possibly a third player, with much raising and reraising. Action is now on PhG after the turn, and he is now heads up with seat 10. The tiny Asian dealer tells him that it is now time to get off the phone. He looks her in the eye and says "Please do not tell me that" is a firm but quiet voice. Dealer instacalls the floor, and Floor comes over to see what's up. dealer tells floor that this guy has been on the phone for over 10 minutes, and he is now slowing up the game. Floor tells PhG "Sir, please hang up the phone and play your hand. PhG does not do anything....continues talking. Floor says "Sir, Hang up the phone now." PhG does not even LOOK at him. Floor says "Sir, Did you hear me? If you do not hang up right now, I'm going to kill your hand." LLM and I are slowly backing our chairs away from the table, and I'm looking for a beer bottle cuz we can see what is about to happen. PhG does NOT hang up, Floor says "His hand is dead." Dealer starts to push pot to seat 10; PhG goes ballistic, reaches into the pot and grabs a handful of chips, and starts berating the Floor, saying that the other dealers had let him talk on the phone, blah blah....Floor is walking away to call security and PhG is getting louder, still holding about 15$ from the pot in his hand....Floor points him out to security and says 'He's LEAVING!' and security escorts him out of view, while he is still pleading his case. Then the floor asks the table what we think the guy had in his hand for chips, and we come up with about 14$, which he removes from the drawer and gives to the 10-seat....Cool!

Very soon thereafter, seat 4 is filled again with a New Player (NP) we play about 2 orbits, and I pay my blinds, and when I am in middle position, I go for a smoke. I make it a fairly quick one. NP is also having a smoke. When I return, LLM informs me that, to minimize blind-payment, I should leave the table to smoke when it is my BB, and then return on my BB. I inform HIM that if my blinds are 'up to date', even if I'm not at the TABLE, if the BBJackpot hits, I get a share. As he is rolling his eyes at the improbability of this occurrence, the Floor announces to the room that the BBJ was just hit at the Orleans, and for the dealer to Note all the 'active' players for their share of the BBJ. LLM looks at me and we both start laughing uncontrollable that 1) the improbable has just occurred 2) if the angry guy hadn't been on the phone, he would have had a share and 3) NP in seat 4 did *not* pay his blinds, and he ain't gettin nuthin'.

We ended up getting 334 each, which covered my 3-6 losses by about 130 bucks.

LLM and I then play some Cow Pai (Pai Gow) and I make 50$ while he loses 3. We have drinks.

I let the Gold Coast abuse me more, and go to bed in the hole 3k for the day, up 8770 for the trip.

Thurs Day 26 July 1

I arrive at the Gold Coast Bar to find a smiling LLM. He apparently whacked a dollar Roal at 9AM and the leftover hookers gathered for the Benjamin display, trying to find a new friend. LLM treats for the breakfast buffet, and we head over to TI/Mirage to play poker.

there is no 3-6 limit, and only a few people at the TI 1-3 game, so we tram over to the Mirage. I make 17$ at 3-6, and 88 at the 2-5 NL table...nothing notable.

We drive back to downtown (MSS) to check in; The progressive Royal on the 8-5BP 1$ machines that I popped previously for 4800 is now up at 5k again.

LLM and I decide to play a bit. I sit on his left, and the machine is KILLING me.....I rip thru 300$ in no more than 15 minutes....I mean 2 pair is a big hit. He tells me to stop banging my head on the wall, so I move to his right.....Within 15 minutes, I get dealt AKQJx of spades, and pull the 10 of spades! That 5050$ is much needed, thank you MSS! and that is Royal #9

We walk over to the 4Queens, and I realize the promo they are running for their slot club is one I haven't cashed in on yet...I end up with 165$ in free play after drawing 2 'mini-lunchboxes'

I play it thru and cash out 170$, and some cashback (140$) so things are looking up!

I head to the Palms and play 2 hours of 2-5NL and make 51 dollars.

Back at MSS, I get abused on VP and drop 850, but at days end I am up 12.7k for the trip.

Friday 7/2 day 27

LLM and I decide on cashing in some coupons from the ACGuide and LVA. We go to the Sahara, which I have not been in in years, and use our 25$ match plays which we both lose. However I bet the other 3 green chips I bought on the craps table, and won, so I end +50. On the way in, we notice that the sahara is actually in 'Winchester Nevada', a sign I had never seen before, although I HAVE seen the 'Now entering Paradise' sign not a mile south on Koval. (most people don't realize that most of the 'Strip' lies in unincorporated Clark County, and is NOT within the city of Las Vegas, which starts North of sahara Avenue) We immediately devised a new tourism slogan for Winchester, Nevada " Practically Vegas, Almost Paradise"

Then I tell the LLM I wanted to stop in the Greek Isles, which used to be the 'Debbie Reynolds' casino. He looks at me funny, buy goes along for the ride. The name has changed yet again, and this place makes the Western look good.

We're off to Aria, and get there about 1PM I'll pick up the story later.

Next episode (End of week 4, and Week 5) Drinking and tournaments DO mix, the GF arrives, LLM leaves, losses at Hidden valley Ranch, M, and more!
When I return, LLM