Got to TI on Thursday afternoon and checked into our rooms for three nights with my wife and another couple. We got VIP check in on a marketing offer; first time using VIP usually we use the invited quest line. The VIP check-in was very nice with a little top shelf open bar and great chocolate & cognac macaroons among other things. As my wife loves macaroons this was an instant hit. We gave our friends the comped suite as it was his 40th and we took the standard room.

We all went up to the suite together to surprise our friends. Noticing the time, 1:50 my friend suggested we rush down to the poker room and play the 2:00 tourney. The wives gave there blessing knowing were too excited to stop and we were off. It was my first TI tourney as I prefer cash games but as I said in a posting in the TI section it was a good call as I managed to take 1st. It really was a good time; there were 42 players with rebuys. A friend of mine who was in town for a conference came and played with us which made it fun and I even got to bust him out shortly after the second break. Yes! more bragging rights for the home game. The tourney was run very smoothly and the room staff were great. I got to play at a table with John, a TI dealer, who was a nice guy. The tourney turned into a marathon lasting until there was about 4 minutes left in the 11th level. I was clearly a bit slap happy by this point after an early morning in Chicago, no food for the previous 12 hours a couple of red bulls. Chris, the TI room manager, and John hung out to watch the end along with my wife, friends, and some of the late bust-outs. It really was a lot of fun and neither I nor my opponent Dewey would die. Of course by the end the blinds were 7 & 15k so just a call by the small blind meant 20% of the total chips were in play and most hands were pre-flop pushes. But after about 4 ½ hours of fun I took it down for $752 a great start to the trip. Chris was kind enough to give me and Dewey TI poker hats; Thanks again Chris. Overall, it is a great tourney and I suggest players follow the advice Yappy Dave has offered about how to attack this tourney. It does play fairly tight and making preflop raises with decent drawing hands helped me take down several pots.

After the tourney it was time to cash out $55 in poker comps I had from my last trip and take my friends over to Canters with our group, excellent ruben! That evening we took the ladies down to the Excalibur as we had gotten them stage side seats for Thunder after they had been joking about going a couple of months ago. We hit the poker room while they were at the show. It was my first time there and what a change from the TI room. My table was in very bad physical condition with loose felt that had ripples in it and the table had a wood race track which I have never been a fan of. Fortunately the poor quality of the tables matched that of the players. We both played 1 2 NL at separate tables and turned a profit. It was very easy to pick out the one or two decent players from the several that would gladly call you down with top or second pair. Other then the fact that you can not price people out of a flush draw and therefore will suffer a few suck outs it is a very easy game. Keep in mind that you have to change your play here as you can’t make too many moves to get these players to lay a hand down; it truly is a room where any Ace or any pair will be played to the river. This is a room where you can come to grind out a profit if you are patient but I found it to be not nearly as fun as the games at TI & Venetian where I tend to play most of the time.

Friday was a good day I played a couple of interesting sessions at TI and cashed out ahead $180 & $330. I played at table two in the afternoon with a couple of real characters at the table. One was a very odd man who always was identifying someone at the table as his BFF A little scary as he put me in that role for a while but he kept donating chips so what the hell call me whatever you want. The wildest player was a gentleman named Jose who was a true loose aggressive player, almost to the point of crazy. He would routinely bet $100 into a $30 pot post flop and then show his bluff. Of course he would do the same with made hands so it was very difficult to put him on a hand. I did manage to take a nice little pot off him on my bluff/continuation bet. I had developed a very tight image at the table and had stacked another player twice in an hour. He was sitting on my right and one hand he had KK and the other AK and both times I had AA with all the money going in pre-flop (yes, the poker Gods were smiling on me that day) The second time this happened another player asked me if I had AA when I raised the villain and I said “of course.” No one believed me and villain pushed, after his second felting he left and my image was solidified. ½ an hour later it was folded to me and I look down at AKs on the button I raise to 15, SB folds and Jose in the BB raises to $50; I re-raise to $80 more and he calls. Everyone look at me and Jose asked, “again?” I simply smiled. Jose announced he was checking in the dark and the flop came all rags. I of course had nothing but bet out $80. Jose then folded KK face up & I didn’t show. That was of course my favorite hand of the trip and it reinforced for me the importance of image and that just because someone is playing LAG doesn’t mean they are a crazy player who isn’t paying attention.

Friday night I took my wife to a murder mystery dinner show called Marriage Can Be Murder at the Egg & I on Sahara. It was a very good time and much different then your typical strip big name show. My wife had been wanting to see one of these shows for years and it was very enjoyable and casual. If you are looking for something different you should give it a try.

Friday night after the show I played a short NL session at TI. I got to see one of the AVP regulars mixed games going on with mountains of blue chips on the table. I said hello to Las Vegas Michael and he introduced me to Yappy Dave and a few others. It looked like a wild game. After playing for a little while we took our wives for a drink and called it a night around 3:30.

Saturday Morning I woke up and headed town to the TI room at around 7:30, I can never sleep in Vegas and yes later today that would become my downfall. This early morning session was interesting. As seems to be typical when I play early morning at TI there tends to be one NL table going comprised of hold outs from the night before. Michael (if you’re reading this) it must have been while you were taking your break as you came back shortly after I got in the game. Anyway I had an interesting hand while you were gone and I’m wondering if you knew my opponent (he was in seat 3) My third hand I’m dealt 4’s in mid position and call $15 it’s four to the flop and I hit my set. My opponent, a young guy who I knew I played against last March pushed ahead of me; I instacalled, all others folded and he asked if I flopped a set. I replied yes and he went on a tirade about what a bad player he was. I was then certain I remembered him from my March trip. I told him this and he didn’t seem to believe me until a few hands later when he bet a Jack high flop and took it down. I asked him if he was betting his favorite hand J-9. He jumped out of his seat and asked how I knew that. I told him how he went on and on the last time I played him about, “J-9 being worth your time.” That seemed to really get in his head and he left shortly after. Stayed at the table a little while longer and was joined by Jose and my friend. I gave Jose back a few chips calling him down with second pair when he had top pair. Michael, you came back around this time. Left the session up and headed to the Peppermill for breakfast. Not as good as it used to be but still had good biscuits and gravy.

The wives went off for an afternoon at the spa and we went to Imperial Palace to go fishing. The table was unbelievable tight you could steal blinds but it was a complete grind. At one point we were playing with a guy named Mathew who had played at TI with us on Friday. The four of us at our end straddled every time and this still didn’t loosen the game up. This was much different from my last trip when IP was filled with drunken frat boys and bachelor party groups. One interesting situation came up when a player at our table won a high hand jackpot for quad kings. It paid +/- $213 which someone from the floor brought over to him in chips. At the time he had about $180 and the table had a max buy-in of $200. The winner added all $213 to his stack and play continued. I asked the dealer if this was allowed or if he could only keep in play from the jackpot an amount that brought him up to the max buy-in as this is how I thought other rooms handled such jackpots. Well I just about got my head taken off by the winner who said he was a regular in the room and this was allowed. The dealer backed him up and said if I needed the floor could come explain it to me. I told them no need it was just different then the way I thought it was handled at other places. I left shortly there after and when cashing out I explained the situation to the floor manager and he said I was correct and that he would put out a memo to clarify it for the dealers. I suggested he might want to let the table know (ok I was looking for some validation) He then walked towards the table with me and when I said to one of the players who had argued with me that the floor agreed with me the floor stated, I’m not going to get into it now; I told you I would put out a memo. WTF?

Saturday night was a great meal at Delmonico and I left there in a food coma. I should have realized I was not in condition to play cards but it’s my last night and I have to play right? I go to the TI room at around midnight, it was hopping but I found and open seat at NL. At least I was smart/dumb enough to buy in for only $250. After a couple rotations and playing a few hands I look down at A 10s on the button. Only one person had limped in mid position. I had about $200 and made it 15 to go and mid position was my only caller. The flop came A, K, x and was checked to me I bet $40 hopping to take it down; and then it starts, I am check raised to $80 and in a bone-in rib eye served Oscar style induced coma I make the call. The turn comes another K with a check to me, in what now seems like my greatest donkey move of the trip I bet $50; you know it, I’m instantly raised all in. At this point I know I’m dead to his king but I have to call off my last 55. Just to make it worse then I thought he shows AK for kings full and the river brings his case king for quads. Yes, my last hand of the trip and I am down in flames. I learned it takes more of a man then me to eat at Delmonico’s and then play TI NL on a Saturday night after 3 days with 8 hours sleep.

In summary, it was a great trip with lots of fun. Again, TI stood out as my favorite room for level of play, atmosphere, management, and all around fun. Excalibur had the easiest game if you catch cards but it is just a grind and Imperial Palace was no fun at all. Sorry for the long report but I only get out to Vegas a few times a year so I have to cling to my memories. Hello to all of you who I met and hopefully I’ll see some of you again in March.

Mark