Arrived on the last Thursday in November anxiously anticipating some sportsbook and poker action at Mandalay Bay. Disappointed in the Packers/Cowboys line: 7. My online book was still at 7.5, so I hit the under (52) and that saved my bacon to the tune of $630 ($300 profit, plus saved $$ and vig on other bet). Light on my feet, I glided over to the poker room to double up. Here's where things get tricky.
Do you know you can't curse at MB? Well the 3 loose drunks at my 1-2 table didn't, and they were shown the door just as things were getting really juicy. They were actually good players in from SoCal, but the liquor had them splashing it everywhere. One guy called $120 all in pre-flop with 3-5 off. He busted pocket nines with a straight on the river. Please stay, please!
Well they stayed, but one guy let slip with just one two many expletives, the dealer ratted him out, and the floor showed them the door. The rest of us were more than willing to put up with it, I assure you.
After that, the action slowed down. I was now the youngest guy there, at 33, and the average was probably 58. I decided this staid group of coffee drinkers was not for me, and quit for the day, down only about $20.
Day two brought new possibiblities, and I was able to take my $150 buyin up to about the $350 mark when I decided it was time for a drink. Stoli, rocks, lime. Repeat.
After a half-dozen or so, I was tired of folding and was ready to press with anything. But magically fate intervened and I got the jacks in the small blind. Five guys had called the straddle, and I raised it to $24 to call. Just one caller, we'll call him Big Ten Alum.
Flop is 10-5-7, rainbow, and I check, setting the trap. BTA comes out with $25, and I checkraise to $50. Call.
2s on the turn, the second spade. I throw out $80 and stare at the floor. He comes back allin, and has me covered by about $20. Gotta be a set, right?
Well, the Stolis had done their work and I impulsively blurted out "Call." I flipped over the Jacks and stood up, ready to take my medicine. But you know what? The sucker had AK off. Just one inconsequential river card and I would double up. I don't think I have to tell you what happened next, but yeah it was a K on the river.
At this point I was totally tilted and should have gone to eat something, but I rebought, $200 this time. In short order I was donking it away $10, $20 at a time. No good hands, just bitterness. When I was down to about $120, I decided to make a stand. I called the straddle (it was pretty regular), with A9s.
Flop was 6c-Kc-Ks.
I'll spare you the details, but let it suffice to say that the calling station over there was in fact a good player with a limp, and he mercifully checkraised allin on the turn, saving me the last few chips in my stack. He turned over his kings and collected the big hand bonus (only $100).
So now I had lost my pigskin money and was down about $50 for the trip with one more day left. Time for a new strategy. I headed to the MGM around midday Saturday and noticed gleefully that the sportsbook was full of miserable faces. Sure enough, they all started heading over to the poker room as West Virginia and Cal failed to cover. I played in two decent 1-2 games, and managed to win about $400 while consuming an unbelievable number of light beers. 20, maybe 25 beers. I could see everyone lining me up, trying to take advantage of the drunk. What they didn't know is that I have a hollow leg that stores all the booze for later, like when I'm trying to get lucky at the bar and start slurring my words to some homely midwestern gals.
I made it an early night, but not before vowing to return to the MGM the next time I'm at the south end of the strip. It's well worth the tram/walk from Mandalay Bay.
Total poker + sportsbook winnings: $575 (not enough to cover the cost of the trip, but at least I left a winner, right?)