Leon,

Thanks. I don’t care about accuracy, just interesting to have a rough awareness of direction/magnitude to give some context to this whole tale. Looking forward to hearing the bankroll number at the end of this TR!

And yes, lol at casino w/l reports. Though I’m kinda surprised yours are so far off when you’re playing machines exclusively. Mine are always way off, but I just play table games. Some of yours is prob due to splitting action with your dad sometimes, but it sounds like it’s off way more than that. But like I said, exact numbers don’t matter for the story.

wishing you all the sun runs, and please don't hold back on the dinner trip report with Gobboboy 'cause that guy knows his Vegas food.

Not worried about Leon this trip. He is like a Timex...he takes a licking but keeps on ticking. Comeback forthcoming, feel it in my bones.

It would be nice to see him bink one of these promo contests with huge free play $. Seems to be running way below expectations on that.

Updates?

Day 2 part 1

Woke up pretty early relative to when I went to bed; still tired, but I rationalize I can take a nap basically whenever I want today. Only thing on the agenda other than gamble is dinner with Gobbo at SW Steakhouse at 6pm.

I head downstairs for a controlled AM session, and basically break even courtesy this random hit-



Which of course just gets me even for the day. I move over to spin, dump some money playing 12 lines (of course rationalizing the only way I'm going to get unstuck is to hit a bigger hand than normal), and make regular quads on the center line-



Of course, this being spin and multiple lines and all, that pays-



I think I finished up that pre-breakfast session "only" down 500. I head upstairs for a room service breakfast, forgot to take pics but I got eggs over easy, bacon, held all carbs.

I rent the new Predators and try and pass a little time cheaply. It was incredibly ridiculous, but clearly I watched the entire thing and enjoyed bc... predator. Afterwards, I head downstairs and keep at it.



Details of the prize structure. They usually get about 200 runners so chances aren't great.

I decide to give spin a break and hit my usual. It's ice cold, and I'm down almost 3k for this session before I hit-



At this point, I'm stuck 13k and I've basically been in town 12hrs. This is looking like a disaster trip. I've switched back to spin, and pick up a trip aces draw. I really need this to come in.

Result-


And so THAT'S worth-



Such a crazy game. To be stuck so much, and then just one amazing hit and I'm basically unstuck again! Of course at this point I've fallen in love with the game all over again. I play on, and proceed to dump back another 5k. I think that was probably the iciest patch of the entire trip so far- I probably lost 5k in 30 min flat. To force myself to take a break, I head over to hi limit and play some double super times pay.

FIRST hand out of the gate, I'm dealt an 8x multiplier... and then trips. Bink the quads right out of the gate!



Too bad not premium. Still, good start.

Continuing on... the machine is generally warm. Dealt trip 4s and-



Bah. So easy when it's double double, and there's no multiplier.

Continuing on... dealt trip aces. I hold the kicker even though it's marginally wrong in double double- bc what I really want is to smash the hand with a kicker, AND get a nice multiplier!

Result-


BAH! So easy when it's double double and there's no multiplier!!!

I think with that little DSTP run I won back 3k. I'm only stuck 3k for the day at this point. Need to grab some lunch...

To be continued...

Spin poker is fantastic. Ultimate X Spin Poker is the greatest thing ever.

I saw it at Cosmo last month and was instantly inthralled and terrified so I passed it up. Maybe will try it on VIdeoPoker.com first

I've looked at the 12k win like twenty times now and still can't fathom how you got there for that much money. Nicely done though!

Binked a $3200 jackpot on that last weekend at Parx.

I'm confused - after day 2 part 1 you're stuck 3k for the day, or the trip? If you're stuck 3k for the day then I'm just not seeing it what with the 12k hit plus the other small wins.

Do the large hits even excite you anymore or is it just part of the variance that you expect these days?

Takes some getting used to for sure. Center line, upper left corner to upper right in a "V", and lower left to lower right in an "inverted V".

Sorry, 3k overall.

Yes, and yes. I'm basically ONLY playing for those huge hits. I expect them to come a certain % of the time and they massively contribute to both the positive and negative variance (when they don't come). Think of how stuck I was before that 12k hit, for example.

At this point even if you are up or down $20k, it doesn’t guarantee a win or loss at the end of the trip if you still have couple days to go. Sick variance but since I started following your trip reports, I don’t think you had a big losing trip in Vegas. If you include the hotel and the food, you are doing really well. Congratulations and I hope it continues!

leon,

In honor of you I've started playing a little TDB on my trips to vegas, but only single-line 25c, and only $20 each trip, since a) the variance would probably make me go into monkey-tilt so I don't want to tempt myself, and b) I don't know the strategy 100%.

All told I've probably played about $100 worth so far with nothing to show for it, but on my latest trip I held a pair of 3's and out came the other 3's along with an ace! I hope this doesn't send me down a tdb death spiral now. I need to control myself.

were you playing 12 line still? depending on their lines, 20 line would maaaaasive. like 20k more at least. nice rostucko

in for some steak pics!

Played $100, nothing to show for it except a $500 hand.

Haha oops obv meant to say I'd played $100 before the big hit.

Beginning to look a lot like ....













Merry Holidays Leon....

Thanks Leon!

I’m not married and I’m about to move in with mom.

Are you saying that you don't track your results? Actual money spent vs. actual money won?

It's more that there's so much money going in and out that it's impossible to keep track. At least I don't bother. For instance, paying the nanny, money to wife/out for house expenses, occasional influx from parents, ATM, etc. I keep track for each trip/session, but not each and every iteration of what happens to the roll.

In other words, I can tell you how much I have now, but not how it got there.

Gonna try and get more up tomorrow.

I'm just the opposite. I know how much is gone, but I have no idea where it went!

Day 2 part 2

I head over to the new section of the Wynn, where they've made a shopping gallery from where the Ferrari store used to be. I'm supposed to get a 750$ shopping gift card from the host, so I want to check out the options for my wife. Also getting hungry and need to grab some lunch.









While I have no interest in the shops, I have to admit the Wynn has done things up in their usual classy way. It's a nice stroll, and all the shops aren't even open yet. There's also a new Italian place Cipriani or something like that that I decide to make myself a lunch reservation for tomorrow. Gotta try new places when on offer. That being taken care of, I head to Red8 bc it's easy and reliable.



I get a table right by the rail; this is the bar/entrance to the Tower Suites where I typically stay.







I keep it reasonable and only get the shu mai and crispy pork belly. Haven't had the pork belly in a while, they've been out of it the last few times I've tried to order.

The death patch, part 1

Hoo boy. Even now thinking about this part hurts. So after lunch I'm actually getting a second wind. Thought about taking a nap, but I've got hours before I need to register for this tournament, then meet Gobbo for dinner. So of course I decide to play and I just get PUMMELED. Perhaps the clearest indication of how crappy the session was is that I have ZERO pics to show. It was just pure, straight ice, and of course I found a way to lose more than intended as well. I can't recall exactly but I think I lost 7k this session, which put me back at -10k overall.

Totally crushed, I head upstairs to grab that nap. Really should have just done that instead but hindsight is 20/20. I sleep well (get ass-raped will do that), then head over to XS to register.

In my younger days, I would hit clubs with friends and the wife occasionally. Was never super into the scene, but there was a time I understood the appeal. These days, I have zero interest. I'd never see the inside of a place like XS except in a situation like now, so I suppose I ought to grab some pics.



Just past the main entrance. The outdoors stage/pool is beyond the registration desk.



View of the main entrance.



I register for the 11:30am slot. Hope it's lucky! That taken care of, I have about 30 min before dinner at SW. Just enough time to make some money back...



Ugh. Other than that 12k hit earlier today, I'm just running SO BADLY.

SW w/ Gobbo

I arrive a bit early and get seated in the back. This meet up has been a long time coming- I'm a pretty private person, but Gobbo and I have established contact from afar and hey, he's a 2+2 celeb. We've been trying to get this going for a while, but it's always fallen through due to me- either bc family is in town as well, or bc it hasn't worked out.



Gobbo arrives and we instantly hit it off (at least IMO, I'll let him comment if he feels otherwise We have a lot in common, including (obv) poker and gambling in general, but also MTG. Plus we basically see eye to eye on a host of issues and despite my introverted-ness it's a very easy, free flowing conversation. As I'm still trying to keep the food side reasonable, and Gobbo is picking up the tip, I don't order that much food.



Some special steak they had on offer. Basically Kobe but I think they fed the cow something special for the last few months of its life- honestly can't remember. I only got 4oz which was still more than enough, even sharing with Gobbo. Couldn't tell the difference between this and normal Kobe. 8/10.



Gobbo gets the tomahawk ribeye. Very flavorful and just as good as the Kobe in its own way. 8/10



We split a side of broccolini and truffle creamed corn. Broccolini a solid 7/10, creamed corn at least an 8/10 (only had a couple of bites, I could have eaten the entire thing).



I skip dessert, Gobbo gets the coconut cream pie. I had a bite- 7/10 (it was good but I'm not a fan of coconut).

After that solid meal, it's time to hit the machines. Gobbo sweats me while I play. I had explained to him how I was just getting crushed this trip and I was willing to fire a 2k bullet at this venture. I'm not in for much, when we see a lightning strike!



With that in the bag, I set a new stop loss and we play on. Pretty soon after, I get to prove to Gobbo that I really am the king of dealt non-premium quads.



I set a new stop loss, and we keep going. Just as I'm getting down to my last bit, the seemingly standard rescue comes in!



So weird. I was telling Gobbo you really can't make this stuff up. I've lost track of the number of times I think I'm done, and the machine just finds a way to hook you back in.

There was also some spin poker in there that didn't generate anything, as well as a couple of trip aces draws- I let Gobbo draw at one of them, but he screwed it all up, of course Finally I hit my stop loss and I head upstairs intending to turn in early. Say my goodbyes to Gobbo and we part ways. I can't remember exactly how the session ended but I think +4k- that sounds about right. So I'm Only stuck 8k for the trip now.

So... I get upstairs and toss and turn for a bit. It's only 9pm or so. MUST SLEEP!!!!

No good. Give up and head back downstairs. I hope I don't regret this decision. My first move is to change it up a bit, get some of my run bad out cheaply. That means...



True to expectation, I run bad. I only got one bonus game with no shot at the jackpot. Zero other features. I dump 300 and then head back to VP.

The death run, part 2

It's funny how everything lined up here. Was running well with Gobbo; stop with the best of intentions to lock in a recovery and get some much-needed sleep. Can't sleep, head downstairs. And... get pummeled. Again. I lost another 7k this session, which puts me at -15k overall. Again no pics to show. Such a ridiculous, demoralizing streak of run bad. I ended up not even going to bed that late- before midnight I believe. So I've been here 24hrs, am stuck 15k and that is with a 12k hit in there. This sucks. I really need a score in this tournament...

Day 2 result- -6k
Overall- -15k

Day 3 coming soon...

Ah hell, just bink the tourney Leon. You're a winner life my friend.

Get em