Hey everyone,

I read on here all the time and figured it was time for my first post/thread. Will try and make it interesting and post pictures too. So here we go:

Drove out on Thursday night from southern CA to meet my dad and uncle for my dad's 60th birthday. Got a bit of a late start because I am starting this jumping program to improve my vertical leap. Chances of me doing the workout AFTER I got to Vegas - very slim. Been playing a ton of basketball the last 3 yrs, and figured it is time to be able to jump more than 3in off of the ground...I'm short, have short arms, and white. Not the best combo I understand. I played tennis in college and was ready for a change after playing tennis for 20+ straight years. Anyway, my dad and uncle flew in Wednesday night from NC. I met them at a sushi restaurant called Kabuki in Town Square, a couple miles south of Mandalay Bay. Really good sushi, prices were not too bad either.

After eating and catching up, we headed to the timeshare we are staying at, watched a little tv, and they were ready for bed. Bed?!?! Say what?! I just got here, c'mon now! Definitely not going to sleep before midnight...it was only 10pm, so I was ready to play some cards. Both my dad and uncle play poker as well...they like the smaller buy-in tournaments and 1/2 cash games. I do enjoy tournaments from time to time, but they take so much time...you can sit there for hours and hours and walk away with nothing. Used to play them all the time, and I like them for the competition factor.

Using the trusty Bravo app, I took a look to see what games were available with not much wait. I always play NLHE, usually 2/5. Venetian it is! Rarely have to wait long there if at all. Games may not be the best here, but I think this is my favorite room to play in.



This session was very uneventful, and I will not even waste your time with any hand analysis/discussion. Boring table, boring hands, I'm out. Won a little over $200 in 2.5hrs, so not a bad start.

I hit up the Denny's attached to our timeshare, got the GrandSlam breakfast, and was in bed by about 2am.

More to follow as it is now Sunday...have a few days to backlog here. Sorry if this is a little dry, but please bear with me. First post on here, so hopefully I am just warming up.

Welcome to the forums. Looking forward to reading more

Will post Day 2 shortly...about to go on a helicopter ride over the Grand Canyon!

Good start!

You in bed by 2am is = to 11pm Eastern. And your Dad is 60! Bed?!?

I think you've got your time zones confused.

Ok, here we go - Day 2 (Friday)

After some sleep, got up, and we all head to Aria for their 1pm tourney. My dad and uncle played the tourney, I jumped in 2/5. My dad busted early, all in with QQ vs 3 other ppl, and he was somehow ahead when it all went in on the turn, but river hit one of the draws. He bought back in, and busted in 30 something place out of 140ish, good showing. Uncle busted after a cpl hrs.

I was slowly bleeding, getting nothing. Was down about 400 when the following hand came up. I am just under 1k (always topping off when I go below 900 with a 100 chip), this chick has me covered. Aggro chick raising big pre (35-40 normal raise for her), opens on button to 35 after 1 limper, I wake up in SB with AA. I know if I make it anything less than 100 she will call...been playing with her for 1.5-2hrs. I make it 85, only she calls. Flop AJ3, I bet 110, she calls. Turn 7, I bet 230, she calls. I thought she may have diamonds or a big A after the flop, even though it is unlikely given I have 2 of the Aces. I put her on a big A after the turn when she hesitated for a bit before calling (prob AK). I saw her make a questionable call earlier in the session against someone else when she had AK on a very scary board, and she ended up being good. River 6s, I shove for over 500...I don't think she is folding if she has AK and she is definitely folding to any bet with missed diamonds. She calls, I show, she mutters "of course." 100% AK.

I then go on a tear setting JJ and 88 and getting paid off well on both. Have been playing for about 5hrs and we are getting hungry. End up +1530. Steak time!

We plan on going to Outback...however, we get sidetracked, park at New York New York, and end up eating at Gallagher's steakhouse which was awesome!



We got tickets the night before for Amy Schumer who was at the Mirage this Friday and Sat at 10pm. I watch her show on Comedy Central and am a big fan...she is raunchy and hilarious. We had an hr to kill before the show started, so what better way to pass the time than play 1/2 at Mirage! My dad, uncle and I all got seated when they opened up a new table. I chatted it up with the guy next to me who was in the Navy...I was in the navy for over 6 yrs, submarines. After 3 Blue Moons in an hr, I was down 50 bucks. Somewhat expensive beers, but I was good with it.



The show was great, and there is really not a bad seat in the place (Terry Fator theater). The guy who opened up for her was really good, I need to look up who that was.

After the show I headed to Venetian to play the better part of the morning, 1am to 7am. The sun may or may not have been up when I left the place. It was a roller coaster of a night, ended up +180 for the night. There were some interesting hands throughout the course of the night, so I will give you the most interesting:

Loose, not very good player (villain) limps utg (I had him covered - about 800 effective), 2 callers, I call on button with 69o, blinds come along for the ride. Flop is 7, 5, 4 rainbow. Villain bets 10, 1 guy calls, I call, all others fold. Turn is the beautiful 8, making a complete rainbow board and me the nuts. Villain bets 10 again, guy calls, I make it 60, both call. River 8...we will see how this goes. Villain bets 100...I thought it was a block bet, although this is kinda big to be a block bet with the pot around 230. I also thought he might bet more with a full house because it looks like the other guy and myself have a 6. Other guy calls, I make it 200 total trying to get a call from just a 6. It might be a questionable play, but I think I can definitely make this raise here if I can fold to a 3bet. Looking back, I really should make it 150-200 more because a 6 will probably still call there as well. Anyway, villain takes about 3 seconds and shoves for about 500 more...gross. Other guy folds, I complain and moan for a few seconds, show the dude next to me, and fold. Another guy asks what I had, dude said, and villain then flips over 63o for the flopped straight. I mean, what normal fish shoves the river in that spot with that hand? There is no way he was thinking deep enough to get me off a chop...I know I don't have any full houses in my range and he does, but that play seemed pretty crazy. Whatever...villain then bleeds away his stack of 1200+ in about 3hrs, $50-100 at a time. I left shortly after he busted...sucks.

I head to Denny's again, get the French toast slam, then go directly to bed. Day 3 to follow...

Good stuff. Keep it coming!

When dad went to bed at 11pm Pacific it was = to 2am Eastern. ;-)

Good luck to you all Crimedog!

Big fan of Amy Schumer too after listening to her on O&A. Glad to hear she is out of that ****hole Riviera. Good luck on the tables to you and your pops.

She even joked about the ****hole Riviera and thanking God she isn't there anymore. I can't believe that place is still standing.

with all the great eateries in vegas, why do you keeping going to terrible chains like denny's?

Laziness...mostly bc it is attached to our timeshare. Easiest place to go early in the AM this trip. I usually head to Hash House in the Quad for late night meals when I stay anywhere on the strip...their portions are enormous. Any other late night recommendations?

earl of sandwich in PHo

Peppermill, if it's still open.

Oh that's right! Haven't been there in while. Been there once and liked it.

Alright, Day 3 (Saturday) -

I really have trouble getting good sleep when I stay up until 8am. Weird. So I roll around the couch from 1-3pm trying to get more sleep, but it is not happening. I give up. I get up, get a shower, and grab some food we have in our fridge before heading to meet my dad and uncle at Venetian.

I get there around 4:30, and they are seated at different 1/2 tables grinding away. They had been playing for a few hrs and are starting to get hungry. My uncle is up a couple hundred after hitting 2 big hands, and my dad isn't getting much of anything and down 100. We decide to get food at the Grand Lux Cafe in Palazzo. There is one in Venetian, but I really like the one in Palazzo…the service is great, menu is huge, and the food is tasty and reasonably priced. A little quieter over there too. It is one of my favorite places to eat in Vegas, always go there once a trip.

We finish up at 6pm and decid to go to the new movie Monuments Men with George Clooney and Matt Damon. They are tasked with getting a team together to save art the Germans stole during WWII from various European countries. I did not know anything about this story, and the movie is really good. My uncle had read the book and fills us in on some of the details after the movie. Guess I will have to read the book!

My uncle had enough cards for the day, but my dad and I are ready to play some cards. He had been pretty card dead most of the trip at the cash games, so he really wants to get back out there. Again looking at the Bravo app for a good spot to play, we head to Bellagio. I have been going to Vegas for years, but I only recently started playing at Bellagio a few months ago. I don't know why I never played there, but I took the plunge in Oct 2013 for the first time. They had just rearranged the poker room and took out some tables, making it easier to move around. I had only read on 2+2 how cramped it was before this change…never having known the old layout, I really liked the room. Easy to move around, and it is always one of the busiest rooms in Vegas with tons of games. My dad likes Bellagio as well because the last time we were here in Nov, he played 1/3 and won $400 in 2 hrs. Maybe it is his time to get some cards!

I park at Aria bc I miss the turn for Bellagio as cars and people are everywhere on Fri night. This gave me a chance to walk through the Cosmopolitan and see this gem - Liberace's car! Haha



Also a nice view on my walk from Aria to Bellagio:



He jumps in a 1/3 while I jump in a 2/5…start the session at 10pm. The 2/5 plays shallow here, the max buy-in only $500. It really should limit preflop calling ranges until you get deeper, but that means other players would need to be actually thinking when they are playing…yeah, we know how that goes! I have had success the few times I played here. The competition may be slightly weaker here than most other, deeper 2/5 games, but it is really all about getting a good table wherever you play. My dad gets down a bit early, almost 100, but then goes on an absolute tear and hits some mad hands. He flopped a straight 2 times with 65 suited, and won a nice pot with a set of ducks, and turning a boat when the other guy rivered a flush. He cashs out at 2am up $600…way to go pops!

I didn't start out too well, going down a quick 100 with JJ…raised pre, c-bet, and folded to a lead into 2 people (one of them being me) on the turn. Oh well, I tack on a $100 chip. I spew away $500 pre when I raise AKo from mid-position to $25 over 1 limper, Asian kid behind me 3-bets to $65, I 4-bet to $180 (fully intending to go with it), he thinks for 10 seconds and shoves, I call. I will tell you, AK does lose to AA most of the time, and this time was no different. In a deeper game, I would either call or 4-bet and fold to a 5-bet. I have done both before…depends on the player, dynamics, and position. So, $600 in the hole 1 hr in…this could be a rough one. My table isn't the best, but there is 1 very loose, older Asian player to my left. I talk with him a bit, and he plays a lot at Pechanga in Temecula, CA. I play there from time to time, so we chat about that for a bit. Table gets better as the night went along.

My comeback starts against the Asian player to my left. I raise to 20 on the button with AK, Asian guy calls in the SB, BB folds. Flop Q87. He peels super light all the time, so I check behind after he checks. Turn 7, he bets 40. I notice he bets bigger (at least on flop and turn) when he did not want a call. So I call. River 4, and he bet 70. There is no way this guy is good enough to value bet a Q when the flush comes in, so I think he is very polarized here to a 7, flush, or straight. I really feel he has nothing here bc he bets the river so quickly when the 3rd fell, so I call. He flips over A10o, I flip over my AK and take it down. Some people take notice of this one, so it helps my image as the night goes on.

I hit a monster when a straddle is on, raising to 40 over 1 limper with 88 from EP, BB and limper call. Flop 876, check, check, I bet 105, BB calls, limper thinks and folds. Turn 6, BB shoves for 220, I call obviously. River 4, he says straight, I flip over the 8's and he gets up and leaves. Now I am only down a couple hundred.

I hit a cpl small hands here and there, take 1 away from a kid on a scary board, and am up 100 when my dad is ready to leave at 2am. There are about 3 spots at my table, so I want to stay a bit longer…we drove separately knowing I might stay later. Always gotta have a plan! As he stops by my table as he is headed out, I pick up AA and win a pot against one of the spots on a 743, J board, when he folds on the turn. About 2 orbits later, I pick up 1010. Asian guy calls behind me and one spot, who had called earlier when I had AA, calls from the SB. Flop 743…wow, does that look familiar?! Check, I bet 45, guy behind me folds, spot shoves for 260 total. I really feel he is on a draw, probably some sort of combo draw. It is funny bc I am up 100 before the hand starts, and I am thinking, "Man, this would stink if I lose this one after working hard to get back up." I usually don't think like this, so I snap back to some useful thinking, study the guy a bit and think through some of this guy's ranges and make the call. He instantly flips over 85 like he has the nuts. Turn 2 (more outs for him!), river 9, and I win. Nice!

Last hand I pick up AA, get 3 callers on a 20 raise. Villain in hand was in SB (also 1 of the spots in the game sitting with 430 to start the hand). Flop KJ3, check, I bet 60, only villain calls. Turn 6, villain checks, I bet 120, he calls again. River Q, he checks. Interesting card. I think about checking, but really feel he might call me with a weak K or even a Q if he had Q10. Kx is definitely in his range, and you would think he gets in his last 230 by shoving the river if he hit 2 pair or a straight (A10, 109). He has 230 behind on the river, and I don't think he calls an all-in with 1 pair here on a scaryish board. So I bet 100, he mutters something which no one can understand (he was drinking) and calls. I show and am good. I get up shortly after this as the table is about to break at 3am. Even after donking off 500 with the AK, end the session up +750…definitely will take that!



(Those are 2 $25 chips under the $100 chip by the way - wish they were also $100s)

Yet again, head to Denny's, and get the Ultimate skillet - it is actually awesome, who would have known they have something this good at Denny's??? In bed by 4:30am, really tired. Short day for me…guess that happens when you don't wake up until 3pm. I know Sunday we are planning on a helicopter ride over the Grand Canyon but haven't reserved anything…Day 4 to follow

Great TR. Pics and detailed hand histories, well done.

great TR, sorely needed in the threads these days...

must be a better quality Denny's b/c the ones around here aren't fit for my dog

I'm really enjoying this trip report.

The best one I have read in a while.

Keep up the good work!

It's Nobu's little brother, Denny Matsu****a.

Last day - Sunday (Day 4)

I barely wake up at 10am as my dad and uncle are leaving for breakfast to tell me they reserved a helicopter ride over the Grand Canyon at 2:30pm. This is one of those things on my dad's bucket list, so no better time than 1 day before his 60th!

I rustle myself off the couch around 12:30, get a shower, and we are outta there by 1:30pm. The helo company is called 5 Star Helicopter tours in Boulder City, about 25mi from our timeshare. Overall, they were great and cheaper than any other helo tour we looked into, $320 on a Sunday for the sunset tour. I have been in helicopters before (in the Navy), although nothing which had big windows on the side like this:



We watch a safety video, and we are on our way when the helo comes back from the previous trip. Our pilot/tour guide explains everything very well during the flight (we all are wearing headsets), and we see the Hover Dam, the new overpass running across the Hoover Dam, Lake Mead, Grand Canyon and Colorado river, the Skywalk, etc.





We are obviously pretty hungry by this point, total trip being 2 hrs long. Feeling Thai food and head toward my favorite Thai place just off the strip. I think it is called Spices Thai, off Flamingo just past Palms and Palms Place. However, when we arrive, lights are off with no one inside…closed on Sunday. Crap. There is another Thai place a couple blocks away called Krung. Never been here before, but it's open and we are hungry.

We start with the Tom Kha soup with chicken…if you have never had this, it is amazing. It is a coconut based soup - extremely tasty. I get the cashew chicken entree, spicy level 4 out of 5. I usually get a 3, but feeling some spice tonight. It is a little hotter than I am used to…but the taste was awesome. Getting near the end of our meal, an older Thai gentleman gets up on a stage they have in the restaurant…of course they have a stage in the restaurant, right? He starts singing and playing the guitar…not too bad! He had a good voice which I would not have expected to come out of this older guy. My uncle also keeps us entertained with some jokes and stories…he was in the Navy for 26 years, so he has plenty of them.

I seriously think about heading out to play one last session…check the Bravo app, although not really feeling any particular place. I really want to play at the Wynn bc I haven't played there yet this trip…I really like their room. Heard the games can be good after the clubs get out around 2-3am on Fri and Sat. I have played 20 hrs over the past 3 days and feeling beat down. Didn't get the best sleep either on the couch each night. I bag the idea and watch some tv with uncle and pops. Up over 2.6k for the trip, and about 2k in profit taking out food, show, helicopter ride, etc. We had wanted to see Beatles Love over at the Mirage, but didn't quite find the time. My dad has been once already, but we will all be heading back to Vegas in May…pops has a timeshare near South Point for a week. We have had the week timeshare in May for the last 4-5 yrs, always a good time.

So until my next Vegas trip, good luck to everyone at the tables! Looking forward to coming back soon...also, please let me know if I should add more pictures, more or less hands, more or less analysis, or anything else you can think of. Thanks for the help!

Enjoyed the TR, very well done IMO, and congrats on the profit

Nice tr