After finally getting to sleep around 5 a.m., I was up, showered, and ready to go at 11 a.m. I used a $25 restaurant credit at MGM for a quick lunch at the Grand Wok and then hopped on the Deuce to the Venetian. I felt pretty lousy when I woke up, and by the time that I got to the Venetian I felt awful. I made a mental note to take it easy on the White Russians--it must have been lactose intolerance.

I was fourth on the waiting list for 1-2 nl, and after about a 10-minute wait they opened a new game. We started with eight players, and I think that I was the only one who didn't buy in for $300 ($200). I played super tight, and didn't see the flop except for when in my blinds for over an hour. After about 30 minutes, I decided to break the ice and ordered a White Russian. Four more followed, until a very nice lady from Colorado convinced me to try a new drink, which I've already forgotten. The table was somewhat tight. Generally there were two or three players to the flop and at least half of the hands ended on the flop. My first significant hand involved me limping from early position with A-10 unsuited and calling a raise to $12. Three of us to the flop which came A-10-7 rainbow. I checked, and the pre-flop raiser, who had me covered, bet $30. The big blind folded, and I raised to $75. leaving me with about $75 more. Without hesitation he put me all-in, and I called. My two pair held up against his A-J. After this hand, I loosened up a little bit, fell back to just above $300, and decided that I would wait for the blinds to reach me and then leave. Two hands before I was ready to leave, I was dealt 10-10. I raised to $12 and decided that I was done with this hand unless I hit the flop hard. The flop came 10-7-7. Pretty hard. I bet out 20 and got one caller. I forget what the turn was but I bet 40 and got a call. After an Ace on the river the other player folded to my 75 bet. I decided to play one more orbit and ended up winning almost $50 more to end the session up ~ +250.

My next stop was Wynn. It was around 3:00 p.m., and I got on the list for a 1-3 nl game. The room was super crowded and very lively. After a couple of minutes, a seat in a 4-8 limit game opened up and I gave up my no limit plans and was seated immediately. I was dealt pocket aces on my second hand. Of course, they were cracked by a guy catching two pair on the turn. The 4-8 game was very similar to any 2-4 game that I've played on the strip. A lot of limping and at least five players to the flop. After losing nearly $30 on my first hand, I won back $20 to finish the session down $10. Despite the crowded room, the drink service was fantastic. The waitress forgot my order one time and compensated by bringing me two drinks the next time she came around.

It was nearly 5:00 p.m. when I made it to my next stop: the Riviera. There's a scene in the movie Swingers in which Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau go to Vegas and pretend to be high rollers. After losing big at $100 table, they end up at a $5 table. Well, that's exactly how it felt going from Wynn to the Riviera. I was immediately seated at a 2-4 table, which was evenly split between octogenarians and a group of conventioners in town for a body suspension jewelry trade show. I'm not making this up. Anyway, it was a fun table full of very nice people. Although I didn't play many hands, I learned a lot about body suspension, i.e., people being suspended from their nipples and such. I had a couple of drinks and left after about an hour down $20.

After a quick stop at the New Frontier for one drink and some pai gow poker (won $10 but I really just wanted to get a chip in case this place is imploded before my next visit) I hit Caesar's. The only game without a wait was a 3-6 game with a half kill. Just as I was seated, the bachelor party crew called to tell me that they just landed so I only had an hour to play. The game was very loose and I didn't win a hand that wasn't called down to the river by at least one person. I must have been spraying chips pretty freely myself because despite winning several decent pots, I cashed out for only a $30 profit. The drink service was spotty at Caesar's. I ordered a White Russian and a water. In addition to having to wait 15 minutes or more, I couldn't drink the White Russian, which tasted like it had been made with gin. When I opened the bottle of water it felt like they had simply filled an empty bottled and loosely screwed the cap back on. I wish I could say that stopped me from drinking the water, but I've probably had worse.

That pretty much ended my poker playing for the weekend. I had one more hour-long session at MGM (+$25) and two hours at Mandalay Bay, where I won $20 and played with SNL's Seth Meyers. The rest of the trip was spent drinking and playing table games, where I gave back most of my poker winnings. Thanks to AVP we had a surprisingly good steak at Ellis Island. I would say that it was cheap, but I lost playing blackjack so it ended up costing me $65. Sadly, no karaoke for me.

All in all, I had a great trip and can't wait to get back. Although hitting many rooms in a short trip is not necessarily terribly profitable, I highly recommend doing it if you have the time.