I have some catching up to do, so I’m going to do my best. This was my longest poker session of the trip so most, if not all of this will be about poker. I know, ABOUT TIME, you’re probably thinking. I didn’t take any notes of anything so the fine details may be off a bit, but the main points/hands are what matter anyways.
Just a small recap to get started – My night didn’t start until about 7pm and that’s when I hit the slot for $200 and played poker for somewhere around 3 hours I think and had a decent session up $270. Total $420, because not all of the $200 from the slot was profit.
A couple different buddies staying at the Rio that had taken some beats to end their colossus run make their way to the V, so I cashed out so we could walk the strip a little and grab some drinks. One of the guys hadn’t ever been to Vegas so we wanted to check out the fountains, volcano, etc. We end up at the Bellagio and try to get on the 1-3 list, but it’s about 50 deep with only 5 tables running. I tell them the best place to get to play is the V, they agree and we start our hike back. By this time, my damn phone was dead for about 2-3 hours and as we walk out of the B poker room, we walk right by Jennifer Tilly and Phil Laak. Dead phone = no photo. Dang! Honestly I probably wouldn’t have even wanted a photo if I wasn’t doing this TR though. Would have just wanted to brag to y’all on here.
Make it back to the V. We get on the list for 1-2 and that list is also about 50 deep, but I’m guessing somewhere in the neighborhood of 15 tables, so we know it will go fast. About 5 minutes later, the floor is calling names for a new 1-2 game that’s starting. I keep watching the table and never see more than 3-4 players over at the table. Once I hear the last call from the floor, I just walk over and sit down. I text my buddy to do the same and the other guy also gets into another game at the same time.
As soon as we sit down and the table fills up, I look at my buddy and let him know this is going to be a great table. I’m in the 2 seat and my buddy’s in seat 3.
4 seat Don Johnson’s doppelganger minus a few gold pieces of jewelry. 50+ year old guy wearing a bright orange button up with the sleeves half rolled up. ACTION!! Comes to the game with $500 in red, I buy $200 off him.
5 seat Chubby kid who doesn’t look like he has seen a shower for a while. $150
The rest are somewhat irrelevant, but pretty easily pegged foreigners (some too tight, too lose, etc.)
It takes the floor over a half hour to get chips to the table and I think the only reason they finally helped us is that we flagged down a guy walking by with about $1500 and he put his racks on the table and started selling to everyone. Now the floor flies over screaming gaming violation BS and makes up give the chips back and they finally get the ones from the cage over to us.
On to one of the best games I have been in as far as Vegas 1-2 goes.
The very first hand by buddy raises UTG and Don calls. The flop is 9h10h 4x. Buddy checks, Don bets 15, Buddy raises to 35 and Don calls. Turn is a Q. Buddy bets 80, Don shoves and my buddy calls. Don has the nuts, my friend has A7hh. River blanks. Don $600, my man $0. Absolutely terrible play and for the record I think my friend is overall not very good, as I will elaborate on later.
About an orbit later, at this point I pulled a $100 bill out of my pocket to top off and get more chips, but obviously the floor never comes over and there are about 5 Benjamins on the table even though “cash doesn’t play”. Don limps somewhere near UTG and one of the foreign kids also limps. I’m in the cutoff with K5cc (probably not the best play, but whatev) and make it $16. Both call. Flop is QcTx9c. Checked to me and I bet $35 or 40, Don calls. Turn is a J. Don checks and I bet $70-80 and Don puts me pretty much in. I ‘m thinking we both have a King and I’m freerolling my flush draw. Wrong! Don has the nuts with AK and river is a blank. I make a joke about not having to pay him the cash and harass the dealing in a 100% joking way, but ship the bill over and rebuy. CASH PLAYS! ME $0, Don $900.
I rebuy and just tighten up and watch Don play about 85% of his hands for about an hour. This is when seat 4 gets ridiculously active and starts playing about 80% of his hands. They are either raising, limping, cold calling nearly every hand at this point as I am just waiting it all out.
Finally I hit a crusher and it’s not even against these 2 dimwits. UTG+2-3 frenchy makes it $12 to go, one caller, I call with 99 in the highjack and obviously Don and seat 4 call. 5 players to the beautiful flop of Qs9x3s. Don and seat 4 check, PFR bets somewhere around 2/3, gets a call and I bump it around 3x, Don and seat 4 fold. PFR shoves and first caller shoves, I’m just hoping to fade spades and also that PFR isn’t coolering me with QQ. I get it in obviously and the board runs out 44 giving me the boat and the win. The other 2 just mucked and didn’t say anything that gave me info on what they had, but **** it I just want the money anyways. $780 to me, back up $180.
From this point on Don and seat 4 pretty much just play every hand against each other for the most part until my buddy gets owned again by seat 4 this time. Basically there is like a 4 bet all-in and seat 4 says he has to call because it’s his favorite hand. $500ish pot AIPF, my buddy tables AQss, seat 4 doesn’t show until the board runs out rags with a 9 on the river, seat 4 tables 94hh. LOL. My poor friend.
He has one more rebuy left and gives that to Don on this hand after he moves seats: My friend is UTG+3 and makes it $15 with 45ss, WTF?!?!? Only Don calls, flop is 45J with 2 hearts. Buddy bets, Don calls. Turn is a non heart 7. They end up getting it in as my buddy table the 45, river is the 2 of hearts and Don tables T3hh. The goods! Buddy is on suicide watch, and leaves out of money for the trip (here till Monday, ouch!), but flight D of the colossus to play, so good luck today my man.
By now Don is the best 85-95 VPIP player I have ever seen, LOL, and he has between $15 and $1800 with about $800 in Benjamins (cash doesn’t play???). Also at this time, super active and ****ty seat 4 has around $600 from his $150 buyin, the second best 85-95 VPIP player I have ever seen.
Seat 4’s friend comes over at this time and he announced this will be his last hand of the night. Damn! Gimme something awesome I say to myself. He limps UTG, one other limps and I make it $16 with KJcc around highjack. Only seat 4 calls. Flop is T35ccc. BINGO! How to extract??? He checks, I bet somewhere around $35 and he calls. We are going back and forth verbally as well, as the game had the whole night so I think this helped my greatly. Turn is a blank and he checks again, I honestly think he is probably drawing dead. I bet around $80 and we both give a few speeches, “what do you have, blah, blah BS”. He calls. At this point he has like $450 or so and I cover and I know I have the winner when the blank hits the river. He checks and I tank for about 15 seconds and end up putting in like $180. He calls and mucks. SHIP IT!!! Not sure if I could have done anything better there, but who knows, he’s so bad might have called off everything there. But I’ll take it.
He leaves and Don is packing up to go. Really disappointed I never got a good spot to crush Don, but can’t win all the money. Table breaks and I head to a new one with about $1020. By now, it’s about 430am and I’m just going to fill out this new table and probably leave in about 10 minutes is the plan.
Although this table was nowhere near as good as the last, it didn’t take me long to see lots of opportunities to win. Much tighter table and easy to push around is my feel.
I’m up about $80-100 just by playing pretty much ABC around 40 minutes in when UTG+2 makes it $7 to go. $7.?.? One caller, I call and a blind calls. Flop is Kc3x5c. Checks to me and I overbet to $30, hoping the PFR has a big one pair and stacks off. Fold to him and he makes it $70. PERFECT! I make it $180 and he shoves it in for maybe another $40-$60, not 100%. I table 33 and he jumps up nearly ripping his cards, hating his life… So I know it’s Aces. Board runs out 55. NOOOOOOOO! Then he smugly throws is cards down and basically taunts me with his tounge out shaking his head in awesomeness, rips all the chips off the felt, high fives his friend and runs off with my loot. LMAO. I stayed super calm, no emotion at all on the outside, like it’s happened 1000 times (probably more like 100) while I wanted to throw him through the glass windows on the inside. Haha.
I play about 20 more minutes and leave the table with $800. Long, fun session with a huge missed opportunity, but I’ll take the $200 profit.
Wholly ****! That is a lot of words. (1800ish)
Today’s plan – More 1/2 at the V and cousins are supposed to come party on the strip later.
Thanks for reading.
