Hello

Questions about the las vegas lifestyle for low limit grinders

What is a typical week like?

Do you regret the decision to grind gfull time in las vegas?

Fav casino to play at and why?

What is Aria 2/5 like?

Casino with the best/worst players?

I havewatched vloggers before but just want more insight on the typical vegas grind

Why play at like the Wynn or Bellagio over flamingo/Bally's?

Good questions. Not being a Vegas grinder, I can't provide any answers. In fact, I am what the Vegas grinders grind.

Wake up, drink a shake, browse through Bravo, read about all the promos going on and start planning out your hours allocation.
"Ok, this month I'm gonna grind all the promos on Bravo at 1/2 and 1/3 NL" you say to yourself.
Lets see what they are. Flamingo, play 15 hours in a week to qualify for a $12k freeroll with about 80 entrants. BAM! about $150 in equity off the freeroll. Harrahs, play 13 hours for a 10k freeroll that usually has 60 entrants, BAM! another $160 in equity. Ballys, 10 hours in a week for a $17K freroll that usually gets 80 entrants, but you get more chips for more hours. Lets go for 15 hours AND you get buffet vouchers for every 4 hours you play? Thats basically about $250 in equity (vouchers @ $15 each)

Lets say you make $10/hr in these games. with 43 hours of play at these 3 casinos, we're looking to make about $430 + $160 + $150 + $250 almost $1000 for 43 hours of cash + whatever time the tournament takes. Easy life.


You arrive at Ballys early afternoon to find two tables of 1/2 NL going. After 30 minutes of waiting (cos all the damn diamond members keep cutting you on the list) You sit and play and realize the game is awful. Its all a bunch of nit regs who grind the same promos week after week. Their strategy is to limp everything and nut peddle to get hours. You keep looking at your phone to see how long you've been playing. Pretty sure you've been here 2 hours but the clock says you've been here 20 minutes.

"Hey do you chop?" asks the promo reg on your right as you look up from your phone and realized this is the 3rd fold around to the blinds this orbit.

"Yea I always chop" you say.
The reg takes his dollar back and you frown as you look down at QQ in the big blind.

Old man coffee limps UTG and you make it 15 in the SB the next hand with AJdd. He calls.

Flop comes J33r. You bet 20, and OMC shoves $100 since thats what the average promo grinder buys in for in the game. You call off and lose to his KK. He was just making sure an A didn't come.

You tell the dealer to deal you out and you rack up and leave.

Back home, you crash into your chair on your computer as you type your user login and PW.

"Just wasn't feeling it today...I'll go back tommorow" you tell yourself.

You play fortnite for a week.

Dear diary...

You should log the day in the life of a 1/3 NL grinder more often. I was entertained.

A lot of the grinders probably aren’t even making $5 an hour.

Sounds like an average Trooper day.

Does it much differ not grinding the promos and playing in the evenings?

Then you see the rake at 1/2 is $5 and $2 promo

Are people actually making money when they grind those promos? Seems like the terrible game quality and high rake would more than make up for whatever they would earn from the promos.

If you sit in these games, many of the regs will be sure to tell you how successful at life they are and how much money they're worth. They're just "splashing around" in Harrahs on a Wednesday afternoon before they head to Bobby's Room later that night.

This is as close to an accurate description as you're going to get. Well, minus the video games for me. Instead, I mainly sit around and contemplate all the missed opportunities and mistakes I've made in life to where I'm playing 1/2 at these nit fests.

Now I'm off to the poker room to start a new month off with a great attitude after playing a grand total of 6 sessions last month. It's gonna get better, I just know it.....

Having done quite a bit of these promos myself as well as a roommate of mine, I can tell you these games are definitely beatable for a good hourly after factoring in promos but I'd consider both of us top 1% of the 1/2 live NL regular player pool.

Grinding noon through afternoon is usually pretty awful but evening games can get pretty decent with random tourists and recs taking a few seats.

+1

Go to the gym.

Not to workout but for free showers and fruit +EV types they are

+2. Couple good laughs and lots of truth.

IMO, the two most important characteristics of a successful 1/2 grinder are low expectations and a positive attitude. You start out with big dreams and at some point realize you aren’t going to make it. That hurts, but is something that happens to a lot of people in regular jobs, too. If you have been working as a Walmart cashier for 3 years and see others around you getting promoted while you still get crappy shifts, you either quit and do something different or stay positive and think that your life isn’t that bad and at one point they’ll increase your minimum wage to $15.

Disclaimer: I am not a pro; see above; I am not desiring to do the grind; I am just curious;

This question is for 'Zefa', and asked with all due respect:
If you and your roommate are both in the top 1%, are the two of you still grinding the 1/2-3 live games? How long have you been doing this? Just meeting living expenses, but not building a bankroll for 2/5?
Thanks, in advance, for replying, konoki;

I play live 2/5 and ocassionally 5/10 nl and id consider my current main game 2/5/10 plo at aria. Most of my life, ive been primarily an online grinder though so live is a more fresh environment for me since I moved to vegas 2 years ago.

I just like variety and so I go through phases when Im in the mood to do different grinds. For example, earlier this year, I did nothing but grind plo cash games on global poker and never went to the strip, some times ill just play online mtts til i burn out on that, july and august i put in about 300 hours strictly at aria plo and playing nowhere else, and last month i ended up doing live promos while mixing in live plo sessions. Im 65% through diamond on Total rewards so right now Im looking do mix in more promo grinds at caesars properties while grinding on wsop.com on my tablet for points to renew my status before the year ends.

Omg how tough is 2/5/10 PLO at aria? Haha sounds insane!

Haa... Kudos

I moved to Vegas 12 weeks ago to grind 2/5. Usually wake up anywhere between 10am-3pm, depending on previous day's grinding. Do some typical "morning" routine, some study on poker or my CFA exam, some light work out. Go grab a meal and head to casino. Typical session length is around 7 hrs a day, feeling exhausted after 10 hrs session. Guess I need more cardio.

Personally I like the Encore most, because of the clean environment, best management team on the strip, deeper structure, and best looking waitresses lol.

Aria 2/5 can have decent regs and crazy rec players, who are very unpredictable. And I found morning shift is pretty soft.

For your last question, I think there is no traffic for 2/5 at all at smaller room?

I got tired just reading this. Also makes me realize I really need to put in a lot more hours.

THIS IS GOLD lol

In Vegas now and Wynn is far and away my favorite casino. Mostly friendly players at 1/3 (2/5 can be saturated with regs/pros), beautiful room/property, and great food. 1/3 is definitely beatable. Even spreads PLO, although the games have been short-handed.

If promos are essential to you, Wynn isn't your room. No BBJ or high hands. Cocktail waitresses are the best looking by a mile too, if that's important. Pays $1.50/hr. comps, 50 cents less than other area casinos.

At Wynn they pay the cocktail waitresses an extra couple $/hr so they can classify them as models. That means they can fire them if they put on a few pounds, etc.

At Caesars properties they have dinosaurs still working as cocktail girls.

I feel you bro :'(

Hey but they're nice people...