continued from The Best and Worst PART 1

Sunday morning I wake up ready to counquer the world (or at least a table or two), but I am waylaid by an unexpected inability to stand fully upright. As it turn out, those purgatorial banquet chairs at Treasure Island and the Flamingo can take a toll on your back after 16 or so hours. Which of course make me wonder if a girl might want to hit the gym a little more often if she is getting hurt playing poker. Luckily a little soak and an awsome massage over at CP set me right (or at least upright) and I was back at the tables.

First off, I hit Paris. Now, I am not happy with the new location of the poker room. I know many people hated the old room, which was just a group of roped-off tables on the casino floor, but I liked it, and I'll tell you why. The space was open and bright with proximaty to the bar, but my primary reason is that it had alot of foot traffic and there were always one or two people buying in for $100 and playing thier very-first-ever live game. That was awsome. Now the room is tucked away in a space shared by the sports book. Its cramped, its hot, and the only people playing there are people who came looking for the room. Also, I'm a cash game player and because of the constant torunament schedule, I can rarely find more than 1 or 2 cash games on hand. On the plus side, there is a bathroom right inside the room and cellphones are banned because of the sports book.

So at Paris, I sat down to a 1-2 game and bought in for the max ($300). The game was pretty tight and passive with mostly raises for mid-big pocket pairs. I wanted to share one hand in particular where I'm in the small blind. There is an early position raise to $7 with 6 callers when it gets me, I call as well and the big blind then raised to $66. it fold all the way around the button who hems and haws and them pushes all-in for $79 total. Now I decide to call (yeah, that's how I roll) knowing the betting I'll close the betting and that the initial raiser has another $150 behind him. The flop comes like a dream with 7-10-A of clubs clubs. It checks to me and I decide to push all-in and get called by Kh-Kc in the big blind. Turn is another club giving my oponent the better flush, so now I have two cards in the deck that will give me a straight flush...and the river is the Jack...of...spades (so close).
This hand to me represents everything that is great and wonderful about the game of poker. The excitement was contagios and for the 90 minutes or so the entire table was action-happy--with massive pots. The whole thing was a blast and I left after about 4 hours up $220 or so.

I took a nice long stroll to loosen my back up again and then had a very nice dinner at Tao, after which I headed to Ceasars for some fun late night action. Warning: Ceasars in now officially the site of my most loosing session (ever). They have always been one of my favorite rooms, but now I hate them...I can't herp it. First, I buy in for the $400 and the brush asks for my players card, at which point I mistakenly hand them the Venetian card. Well, the dealer spent the next 20 minutes expaining to the table why Caesars was better than the V. It was funny the first couple minutes but then it was just pathetic. And I'm loosing (did I mention that). I'm calling massive bets and never raising...why? Why am I doing that? I ask for a table change and after 35 minutes and maybe 8 new players being sat ahead of me, I finally get moved. At this point I'm just hoping the new table won't see what a big giant Donk I am. I continue to get (and bet) the second best hand, including loosing a $280 pot with the second nut flush. And walking into 2 made boats on the river. I leave down (drum roll please) $810.

Sleep, blessed sleep. Monday I awake to a slightly sore back. Sore enough that I think another massage might be in order. I have to say this is the best $150 I spent in Vegas this trip. I spend the afternoon playing at Paris for in a relaxing game where I picked up about $90. After which I grabbed a great lunch at the Bon ami (name?) resteraunt with a table outside overlooking the stip.

In the early evening I spent several hours at Bally's. When I first sat down the game was super tight, worst of all the guy on my right was raising any hand $25 if he had position. My main resentment wasn't the raised themselves, it was his killing any action at the table. Eventually he raises $25 into a limped pot on the button and I look down to find 55 in the blind. I decide to call hoping at least one other person will--which is exactly what happens. The flop comes A-J-4 rainbow. Its checked around to the raiser who bets out $100, and I decide to make a play and reraise all-in for another $220. He considers carefully and finally folds. Knowing I'm not gonna run a bluff like that again anytime soon, I decide to show my bluff when the other players ask to "see my monster hand." Now a beautiful thing happens about 1 oribit hands later. There is any early position raise to $12 with 4 callers including myself and my earlier nemisis. I'm again in the blind, this time holding 79h. The flop comes 8-10-A with two hearts. I decide to bet out $45 from early position. I get one caller (my nemisis from earlier). The turn brings an off suit jack giving me the second nut straight, I bet out for $100 hoping to take it. He starts asking me all those quesitons: "what have you got? YOu might be playing 9-Q, I know you like those garbage hands etc," and I know he has two pair--I just know it. He eventuall calls after I do everything I can to appear overly confindent and agressive. The river is a blank and he checks to me. Now I start wondering...is the whole thing a set-up? Is he the one with 9-Q? And I can't decide whether to bet or just check it. In the end I bet all in for another $120 or so, which he eventually calls with his two pair. And just like that, the debable at Ceasars is erased, at least in so far as my bankroll is concerned. I play a little longer and leave up close to $800.

My finally session is 1-2NL at Flamingo from 9-10pm before I head out to catch my flight. Nothing much of interest except another hand where I flopped the bottom straight and re-rasied all-in against two pair. He didn't make a boat so, I picked up an additional $140 or so before I headed out to the airport.

All in all the trip was awsome--although my winnnings were minimal after the entry fee to the Venetial DS and the Caesars debacle. I'm hoping to make it back for Memorial Day Weekend, afterwhich the summer heat will probably keep me away until October.

sed limpers when it get to me and I look down and see 89c. I decide to raise it up to $8 trying to get some money in the pot in case I hit the hand hard...

nd Never fear, because a maseuse at the masseuse at the

Turns out those rise