Thx 702guy + eobmtns

I use my phone as a hot spot when in Vegas and I have Verizon. Kinda weird that I get a 4G signal pretty much anywhere ground level on the strip but in the room it sometimes drops to 3G, even though I was getting a 4G signal the last time I was in the same room.

As long as you are using it to check email, general browsing, it's fine. Not sure I would trust it to stream a movie, but I'm in Vegas, so that's not an issue for me. The movie I am watching is playing out on the strip.

And 100 Rewards Credits (not Tier Credits) is worth ~$1.00 for food comps.

This is what I was looking for, should have clarified. Thanks.

It would be to check email and post on here if I felt so inclined, but it's Vegas so probably wouldn't be doing either one but it would be nice to have that option. But it is Vegas so would I really use that option?

If you are gold and if you are playing a 1X slot machine, it takes $5 to earn one reward credit I believe. So congratulations, you just ran $500 through the machine to earn $1 in food comp.

Doc, yes thats the thing many don't realize when bragging about the comps they get. If you are getting lots of comps it "usually" means you are losing lots and lots of money to the casino. (I say "usually", because there are some times some promotions and/or tricks that get you comps on the cheap.)

Can we update the LVL faq? Some of the hotels listed no longer exist (Sahara, Bill's)...does the OP have to edit?

Only mods can edit any posts after 30 mins.

Question about the players cards. If im only playing poker in vegas should i still be signing up for the TR and Mlife cards or are they only really worthwhile for pit/slots?

Also, am i expected to hand my card over to the dealer when joining a poker table?

Thanks to any replies. Not just to this but all questions i have asked in the past. 7 days till my trip, i shall return with a trip report

You can have the dealer swipe you in via your player's card at the table, and they'll eventually ask you if you have a card if you just sit down and don't present it to them. Depending on where and when you play you'll earn somewhere in the range of $1-$2 per hour (higher at some places during graveyard times) in food comps.

Most of the time these credits won't show up on your card via the website, but it'll be tracked within the specific poker room where you're playing. Ask the floor and they'll write you a comp slip for one of the casino restaurants or the buffet, or you can order food to your table.

Does anybody know about a social poker players get together in Vegas this upcoming weekend, March 6-9.
Also any advice to take advantage of the upcoming convention? Where to play- When to play?

Are you maybe thinking of ATLARGE (http://www.atlargepoker.com/)? It's on those dates but in AC.

Are they allowed to run private games in vegas, or shut out players? I remember merson tweeting something how he wasn't allowed to play. J/w cuz i saw a game at aria going on the other day and wasn't listed on bravo.

If things haven't changed since then, I remember reading in the book about the games with Beal that people couldn't be prevented from playing in games held in public areas of casinos if they had the money.

Now if someone is holding a private game in a non-public setting, then people can be excluded.

Was at aria a few weeks ago and JRB, Baldwin and some others were in Ivey's room, but wasn't listed either.
Thought it was strange since normally the big mix is listed.
Maybe an oversight since they probably don't bother swiping in.

people say this is true, and i think i even saw an article here about aria getting fined for trying to keep someone out of the high limit area who wanted to observe.

That said, i don't get it. can't they always tell you to gtfo if you try to play something they don't want you to play or go somewhere they don't want you to go? My understanding was that the casinos right to kick you out was absolute.

Isn't this what happens when you get flatted or backed off at blackjack.... the casino basically says "you can't play this game (or you cant play it a certain way) and if you try, well kick you out and not let you back in"

yeah usually the mix is listed, was JRB baldwin and some others idk who.

Also. I talked to some pit boss at Bellagio in the high stakes baccarat area and he said they are no longer allowed to have "private" games, just "reserved". I don't know if there is a difference between poker and a pit game in the law.

But what he did say was if a table is reserved it's only for that player and you can't sit down with them, before private games used to be held in a private area where nobody could watch.

What's the sign on the left pillar of the entrance to Aria's poker room say?

All gambling areas must be open to the public.... Or something like that?

Idk if you're being sarcastic, but they have to be visible to public, there are def tables where the public can't just sit down (pit games for sure, poker idk thats why I'm asking).

I wondered about that when I read that article. But it was two Gaming agents who hadn't identified themselves to the casino that were being rousted. How would this have gone if the two guys observing the game hadn't been Gaming agents and had persisted?

Issuing you a trespass order simply for exercising your right to observe would almost certainly land them neck-deep with Gaming. So I'm guessing the casino would aim to avoid that. And that article does suggest that's what they did.

In the article they stated when the still-unidentified-as-agents observers asked about the open-access law after being told to leave, the casino suit simply stated that they would surround the game with a ring of security guys to block the view if that's what was necessary. So they were sorta, barely, trying to play by the letter of the law while still making it a private game. Nope.

That remains for me a somewhat fuzzy topic. Some casino people believe they absolutely cannot offer a private game. Others believe they can. Others believe they can use tricks to keep unwanted players out (like proclaim the table is officially 7-handed, not 9).

Matt Moore has a post or two where he talks about the efforts the high limit guys go to trying to create private-ish games. From his posts, it sounds like most rooms believe the games have to be open. So the players themselves work hard to exclude the sharks they don't want filling the seats because the poker rooms will not do it. Having the room not put the game on the Bravo list, or to list it with the wrong limits, would be one such technique to try to hide it, and probably not something that'd tick off Gaming.

My own observations of such a thing were during the WSOP a couple years ago when a very large "private" NL game popped up in a corner of Mirage. People who even dared to go over to take a look were very rudely ordered to GTFO by players--they wanted nobody anywhere near them. One guy tried to sit and was more rudely told to GTFO--he had the minimum buy in and a seat was open... but he decided not to press the issue when the players basically relented and stated "fine--maybe we can't keep you out, but if you sit down we're breaking the game". After hearing how rude the players were, I was extremely tempted to go stand at the rail just to tick 'em off more. But, well... I had better things to do with my life. Mighta been worth it for the 5 minutes of entertainment that would come of having a couple PokerBiebers throw eggs at me.

You need an MLife card to play in any tournament at one of their properties, not sure about TR. Even if you're only playing cash it's worth it to sign up and takes no time at all. For TR at least you can join online before you travel then just take your passport to any TR desk and get your card.

mlife, tr V you need them for sure... tbh i can't remember if you do at the wynn or not.... im like leaning towards not though cause im pretty sure i didnt have mine the last time i played one there.

Does anyone know exactly what the special WSOP room rate is for people playing a tournament?

Are there any WEEKLY rentals near the Rio that are recommended? I'm thinking of a couple of one-week stays between May 27 to July 7 to grind the satellites. Instead of being all alone at the Rio hotel for 7 days, I'm hoping to find at least one friendly contact.

the only place i can think off hand is extended stay hotel accross the street, which offers weekly rates.