Been a long-time lurker, occasional poster and I've always enjoyed reading about other's experiences in Vegas. Here is my week (June 10-15)....too much fun and already looking forward to next years trip!

Arrived Wednesday around 10am and after getting checked in (stayed at Rio), went to scope out the WSOP. Decided to try to Sat into event 24 $1500 NLHM. 10 person table, $175 buyin, 15 min blinds and 1500 starting chips. Didn't go well.....don't remember any hand particulars....just that it quickly became a push-fest and didn't see many good cards.

So I bought into the trny and decided to get my feet wet "cheaply" and headed over to the Sahara for their 7pm $45 trny. Arrived at 4pm and played 1-2NL...what a good decision that turned out to be. I bought in for $200 and cashed out for $618. I really couldn't miss with any two cards....too bad the trny didn't go as well. 3000 starting chips, 20 minute blinds with one $20 rebuy for 2000 chips. Coasted along for the first 2 hours catching just enough to stay viable. The stacks at that time were pretty big so I had to make a move soon.....loosened up and started playing some suited connectors. Went out on 10Jsuited diamonds with a flop of 9D8D2C. Unbelievable amount of outs and lost to pocket 7's.

Went back to Rio, played some 3 card and had a few drinks before going to bed around 12. *Sidenote: Last year I had a lot of success at 3 card, so I thought it would continue....probably lost $600 for the trip...couldn't hit one three of a kind or straight flush!

Thursday: got down to the WSOP Amazon room about 930am (trny starts at noon) and after walking around and realizing that aside from sat action, there was nothing going on so I decided to try out a 2-5 NLHM table. I felt that I would just play very tight and let the game come to me.....if I get good cards I'd play and if not then just sit back and enjoy the environment. I was glad I was at a table once it got closer to the start of the trny as they did not let players in the trny enter the Amazon room until 1150am. I realize the risk of playing a cash game outside of my comfort zone just before a major trny....if I had a bad run I might in effect psych myself out. Fortunately, the cash game "luck" continued....I bought in for $300 and cashed out at $525.....nothing big, just small pots mostly won after the flop.

WSOP #24 Thursday: 1 hour blinds, 4500 starting chips. Started out very card dead....once in a while I'd see a small pocket pair or AJ, but nothing that I could continue with after the flop (missing the flop was sadly becoming the theme of the event for me). Level 4 I finally get KK in middle position. I raise 4x the big blind to chase away questionable callers....get one caller. Flop comes K82 with 2 diamonds. I'm low chipstack at the table (how did that happen?) and I push to take down the small pot and hopefully gain some momentum. He calls and I put him on a flush draw or possibly a smaller set. Bottom line he rivers a diamond to complete his ADKD and nut flush. I'm out.....and very disappointed.

I take a 3 hour break to cool off, have some dinner, calm down......and then go back to the cash games. In the span of 3 and a half hours at a 2-5 table I turn $500 into $1900. The big hand was vs a man who bluffed away over $800 to me with my pp Q's (overpair to the board). Cashed out when I started to bleed chips and pocketed a modest $1000 profit for the night.

Friday played the Venitian Deepstack.....$540 with 15000 starting chips and 50 minute blinds. Field of 600+. Card dead.....starting to wonder if I should play any more tournaments this trip. If I had AK, AQ, JJ, QQ.....the flop always missed me and left me facing a big bet for all my chips. Went out with 4575 chips on a hand where I had JJ...blinds were 400-800 and I go all in with a rainbow flop of 10, 9, 3. Get two callers...one had a set of 3's and the other had an OESD. Set of three's won and I'm out. At this point I'm swearing off tournaments for the rest of the trip!

That evening I returned to the RIO and sat back down at at 2-5 NL game in a bad mood. I bought in for $500 and in the mood I was in, probably shouldn't have been playing.....I must have played 70% of the hands dealt....bet big if I hit the flop or had a big PP and folded if I missed the flop. Made another $1228 profit before the cards dryed up and I changed tables around 11pm, after an hour off to walk around watching the pros. Bad mistake...should have just cashed out and gone to bed. Lost my $500 buyin on my flopped 2 pr to a set.....played another hour or so and leaked another $115 before going to bed.

Saturday, June 13: Woke up around 10am and on a whim decided to play the Caesars Megastack at noon. Guess I got stubborn and decided that I had to give a tournament one more try.....glad I did. 50 minute blinds, 15000 starting chips....great structure. 141 players entered, which at the time I thought really sucked that Caesars has the worst payout structure.....they pay 9 places if they get 150 players or less and 18 places if they get 151 players or more. It ended up working out to my benefit....
Started out sitting next to a "larger than life character" called/named Monkey. No kidding....players, dealers, floormen....all shouted "Hey, Monkey...hows it going"? When the casino manager walked up behind Monkey and started giving him a back-rub I knew I had a "true" vegas regular to my left! He starts talking before the tournament started and never stopped.....learned his girlfriend is coming into town in two days...he thinks he's getting engaged and has been on a tear with the girls he and Branden Cantu have picked up at nightclubs the past two weeks.....got into an arguement with a newer floorperson about how loud he was as other tables were complaining (our table was all laughing!)....his reply to the floor-person? "Thats absurd...I paid my $340 and not only will I not quiet down, I'll probably only get louder". Constant texting to friends, taking action, giving action on this trny....comments about his last court appearance....etc....non-stop banter that was way too funny. He "talked" his way to big stack right away......granted he got very good cards, but got a lot of "frustration calls" due to his table image. I was cautious, being to his right as well as the fact that the blind structure was such that there really was no need to get involved and risk any chips unless I had a big hand. The German in seat 10 contributed to my stack, trying to bluff me 3 times in the first 2 rounds....doubled up through him with AQ of diamonds to his AQ of hearts with a turned diamond flush.

At one point I mentioned to Monkey that I admired Branden Cantu's style of play....he immediately pulled out the blackberry and texted Cantu that he had a fan from Denver....not two minutes later Cantu replied, "Well, that's one."

At this point I'm sitting at around 70,000 chips with average of 117,000 and two tables. Nice guy from Minn is two to my left (chip leader) and a German kid directely to my left with 3x my stack. I look down at AQ of diamonds again and decide to play. Binds at 2000-4000 with 300 ante (I think)....and I'm on the button. Raise (12,000), call, and I call with sb calling and bb checking. With a flop of AJ2, the sb checks, bb bets 24000 and I'm the only other one to call. Turn comes the miracle Q. checks around to me and I go all in and take it down......bb shows AK. Don't know how he didn't bet. In essence a nice double up for me and I coast to the final table!

One funny story....happened with two tables left. Hand between the German kid to my left and Monkey. They get it all in on a flop of 852 rainbow. Monkey is eliminated holding KQ to the German's Q8. Monkey goes Hellmuthe on the poor German Kid, throwing his chips across the table into other players chipstacks and berating the German on his play. First time I've ever felt the urge to duck under the table at a tournament!

Played till 2am as we had to get to the final table before day two.....when we were down to 10, we all made a deal to put $100 ea in a cup for the bubble. I was at 210,000 chips with 2.1 million chips in play.

I start the final table Sunday at 2pm with $181,000 chips and in 5th chip position. The Minn guy is chip leader with $805,000 and the two Germans are at ~230,000 and 440,000. The first 30 minutes eliminate four players, and we're down to 5. I'm now at a minimum of $3200 payout and feeling pretty good about taking some chances. Little did I know that I'd eliminate everyone else and win! It started with a double-up through the German to my right (500,000 or so in chips, my JJ to his 98 of diamonds, the bully!)....right after that, he stated that he had to leave as he had to catch a flight. The funny thing about that....I overheard the Germans talking to the floor the night before about this....I kept it to myself, knowing that he'd be playing fast. If I could just wait him out (he was on my right) and be selective on my hands played, I'd jump a place in the prize pool. They took his remaining chips out of play (~241,000) and down to four. I'm at ~500,000. AK vs A9 and I've eliminated the lone woman left. AJ vs 99 with an A on the river, and I've eliminated the other German.

Heads up! I'm a 1.4 million to ~500,000 chip leader, and I start bullying. Minn guy would raise and I'd pop him, with him folding. About 6 hands into the heads up match I have AK offsuit. I'm the sb...8000-16000 with a 2000 ante. I call and flop comes K83. He pushes all in, I call, he shows K3, and it's over. I won $11,488 with second paying ~$8500. Biggest cash ever for me. Total time at the final table was only two and a half hours.