CardSharp

Well, it’s WSOP time again, and I flew out to Vegas for a weekend of mid-stakes action. In no particular order, here are some random observations:

• There’s actually PLO being spread during the series. For those that like PLO, this is a good thing. There were 5/5 games at the Rio, and a mixed PLO/NL holdem game at the Bellagio.
• Pot limit games with novice players are a total mess
• The limit holdem games get much better during the series
• Ballys is a good place for a poker player traveling on the cheap to stay. I got a basic room at a bargain basement rate, slipped the checkin clerk a $20, and ended up in a giant suite. The furnishings weren’t the best (except the bed, which was very nice), but I got way more than I paid for. Being just across the bridge from the Bellagio is a huge time saver. Staying at the Bellagio would have been even more convenient, but a poker rate basic room there would cost me about twice what my suite cost me at Ballys.
• Above the $1000 buyin point, I think the limit games are currently softer than the NL games.
• The Venitian has a great poker room. Too bad they have a hard time getting much non-tournament action.
• The WSOP action is not saving the Mirage limit games – they’re effectively dead. Bummer.
• Dealer quality at the Rio sucks during the series.
• The BBQ place in the Caesars food court is pretty tasty.
• The gap between mid and high limit holdem is very confused at the moment – no one’s sure what to spread. 50/100 with green chips seems like the best option, but Bellagio had 60/120 (didn’t see the chips) at one point. None of these games seem to go reliably, whereas 100/200 was totally reliably.
• The 1/2NL at Ballys (which I played while waiting to leave for my flight) is ridiculously easy. Anyone looking for a place to get started in NL would be wise to stop by Ballys.

Anyways, this may or may not be of interest to people. But those were the things that struck me.

Sorry about being delinquent in getting this up. I’ve been rather busy. My itinerary looked much like the last two trips: fly out cheap on Sunday & stay the first part of the week. This isn’t the best itinerary for getting action – staying the weekend would be better – but it is dirt cheap. Compared to the last two trips, a few notable things have changed Read the rest of this entry »

I got back from Las Vegas a couple of days ago. This trip was very similar to the last one – I stayed at the MGM and played primarily mid-stakes games. I really have very little to report because all the observations from last trip stayed unchanged. The 20-40 stud at the Bellagio is still the softest midstakes games in town but is fragile – it doesn’t seem to run through the whole day. It really surprises me that most of the time when it was running I didn’t see any competent players or indeed any regulars whatsoever. That’s pretty extraordinary for a game with stakes you could live on. Read the rest of this entry »

I just got back from Vegas last night after 5 profitable days of mid-stakes poker. I stayed at the MGM grand at a very reasonable price from travelocity. For the price, the room was excellent – clean, very comfortable bed, no evidence the room had ever been smoked in, and well cooled. The location was also reasonably good as the farthest north I intended to play was Caesar’s, although I did ended up walking up to the Mirage one night. Read the rest of this entry »