I won $820 in Vegas and counting…

We got to Vegas at lunchtime and ate at Mon Ami Gabi, the Parisian cafe that overlooks the Bellagio fountains. Nothing like dining in France and viewing Lago di Como…only in Vegas. Teh food was excellent. We checked in and quickly made it to the Alladin for some $1/$2 NL (which is the only game I played). The game was very easy and I picked up $275 without much effort. The best players were not very good. No pros. We went and ate sushi and then played a little BJ while I waited for a spot in the poker game at Bally’s. I won a little at BJ and finally got in the game. It was nuts.

They usually don’t put the NL game near the passers-by because the rubbernecking causes traffic jams. However, when the game started that afternoon, it was the only table left. We had a hug crowd watching us. It was like being on the WPT. Money was flying around like nobody’s business, with pots regularly exceeding $100. Somehow I got the table image of tight experienced guy. That happens when the other guys have never played before. I got up $250 by waiting for monster hands and milking the chips out of 2nd best hands. (On a side note, this is a new skill I have developed that deserves its own post. I used to bet my boats too heavily, but now I think I have mastered the art of betting just enough to get a reluctant call).

A smart person would have either cashed out or stayed sober. I am not a smart person, so I did neither. I found myself caught up in the bright lights and the attention that my $450 stack was receiving from the crowd. So, I did what I always do when excited – drink heavily.

I am not sure if the drinking was the cause or not, but there were two hands that made me lose all $450 + another $200 buyin.

Hand#1

Flop was 6-8-10 and I held AT. The only other guy in the pot was the tightest guy at the table. He always raised preflop with premium hands and limped with very good hands. He had limped, so I doubted he had AA, KK, QQ or JJ. I was hoping he had KT, QT, JT or maybe 99 or 77, all of which may call or may fold. Either way, I was going to be ahead. I made a huge bet for half his stack and he re-raised. Hmmmm…a tight guy check raised me. I would have to assume he has the straight, but he NEVER played crap like 79. Call. He had 79.

Hand#2

I floped the King high flush. He flopped the Ace high flush. When I flop the King high flush, I tend to bet huge to force out the Ace looking for the 4th of the suit.

I bought in again and played from midnight to 6:30am to get back all but $90 of my losses.

The next day I got a $80 cup of coffee (rather than paying $2, I played Roullette to get a ‘freee’ cup, which ended up costing $80), made some bets at the sportsbook, met David for lunch and then we went and played more poker at Bally’s. The competition was hideous and David got a kick in the nuts when the worst player called David’s big all-in bet with a gutshot draw. Guess what happened?

I had better luck. There were two hands in particular that helped me out:

Hand #3

I was dealt KJs and called a raise from the utg. I had position and had been winning a lot with hands like KJs. The reason that these hands were so profitable was that although I threw away a lot of cash pre-flop, I ALWAYS got a call when I hit the straight, sometimes 2 calls. The flop came Jxx. He bets something decent like $70. I am almost certain he has QQ, KK, AA. If so, I am beat. Well, there is one way to win this hand….”I’m all in. $160.” He had that “oh shit” look on his face. He did all of his thinking out loud and after a couple minutes concluded that I had JJ. He folded and I won a big pot.

The number one reason I bet that bet was that I noticed that he was a pretty solid player but not much of a risk taker. My assessment was correct and paid off. It was at this point that I reflected upon my hand the night before when I lost to the flopped straight. My greatest strength is puttung a man on a hand. I think that booze impedes that ability more than any other ability. So, when I drink, I take away my biggest strength and give myself little opportuinty to win. OK, no more beer.

Hand #4

This was a thing of beauty. I played Q4s. I can see John grimace as he reads this, but you have to understand, nobody ever raised pre-flop. We had 7+ players seeing every flop. I got multiple callers when I would hit a big hand. It would have been stupid to not give myself every opportunity possible. Starting hand requirements droppped to include “but they were sooooooted hands, too”. Flop comes QQA. Bets, raises and calls build a big pot. The turn is a Q and I am money. Only if a A comes on the river and someone had AA could I lose. Bet, Raise, I call. Turn is a 4. Bet, raise, I re-reaise and the BOTH call with an A to make Q’s ful of A. I show the Q and scoop about $300 in profit.

I cash out up $313 and Jane and I go back for a nap. The 2.5 hours sleep from the night before weren’t doing me any good. We checked out Bellagio and the place was a circus. The waiting list was long and I didnt want to strand Jane. We played video poker and drank a pint while we watched football. We went to Tiffany’s and saw a pair of earrings she liked but we couldn’t afford. Then I faced the decision of playing at Bellagio or Alladin. Jane could hang out with David while Kim and I played, so we went there.

We got to the Alladin for some more poker. Kim was already playing and I sat down at a table they created after I made the waiting list 10 long. The crowd included 7 undergrads. They had all seen Rounders and the WPT on TV and had the lingo down. However, they failed to pick up much strategy. We only played for about 1.5 hours and I picked up $95. This was easily the worst quality players so far and it was very hard to get up and leave, but we had dinner and show reservations.

While I waited for the 3 others to change I played craps and won $200. My only goal was to score a free beer, but the $200 was nice. We ate at the same sushi restaurant, Ah Sin, and made our way to the Luxor for Blue Man Group. I won $5 at BJ while waiting and then we saw the show. Fantastic. Absolutely beautiful. And the music was great. My main comment afterwards was “I really didn’t smoke enough crack before the show…” If you have seen the show, you understand. I knew that if I played I would be up all night, so I crashed.

I played the next day and occilated around +50 and -50. I won a bluff on my last hand to win $6. I put it all on #23 at a nearby roullette table and lost.

Seeing as how I just won enough to cover the entire trip, I went back to Tiffany’s and bought those earrings. I felt like Jim McManus getting that bracelet for his wife. I met Jane, David and Kim in the mall and we eventually made our way to the airport.

I won $820. That’s $200 on craps, and $620 on cards. I only had one real losing session at anything, save the $6 roullette bet. We got back to Dallas and watched the Texas Tech v the money line (+$350) and Tech v the spread come through. Now, if Tennessee beats A&M, the total will grow to closer to a grand.

Overall, the competion was soft. They weren’t the crack addicts on Party Poker that call and make a 2-outer to win. They are smart enough to fold when they should, which makes bluffing a more profitable play. But they hang onto pocket pairs all the way to the river and call too many bets on the river. They also tend to give away the strength of their hand too often. I think the competition at the Bellagio (from what other players told me) are much much much better. Add in the presence of a few Party Poker crack addict types and accusations of collusion and I don’t think I would have had much/any luch at Bellagio.

Let’s go Rocky Top. The Cotton Bowl is a 10-15 minute drive from my house, so I may sneak in tomorrow morning to start off the new year.

Happy New Years, guys.

To answer some of the comments below:

- While poker does require a larger level of skill than other gambling games, there is an element of chance that is inherent even in poker that does not reasonably exist in darts or pool or golf. Ergo, poker is considered a gambling game and is illegal in public places, including bars, while these activities are not and the analogy of a poker tournament being “the same thing” as a tournament in one of these other activities does not stand up. It is not the same thing, at all, and the argument is weak. Yes, the structure is similar, but the game is not, and this argument completely misses the point. If you disagree, ask yourself if there ever was a Chris Moneymaker of pool or golf. Luck goes a lot further in poker than in these other actvities. It is not the same thing.

- Argue first why poker should be legal in a public place, then you can argue as to why bar tournaments should be allowed. I would venture a guess that public places require government regulation while private places do not, and by their nature of requiring a good deal less skill than do pool or darts, gambling games need a stricter form of regulation (eg the Nevada Gaming Commission) than do pool tables or dart boards. It is easier to catch a cheater at pool than at cards. This is why poker is legal in your home and not at the Yorkshire pub, because, theoretically, your friends won’t cheat you and you don’t need the government to make sure of that.

- As far as the argument that poor people will “just waste their money anyway” if they don’t have the option of playing the lottery or slot machines, I cannot offer any evidence to disagree. But I don’t need any evidence because my argument does not rely on the availability of these funds or the willingness of the players to give their money away. Whether or not a person engages in self-destructive behavior is his own business and is protected by one’s right to privacy and is likely not affected by the existence of a government-sponsored gambling. My argument is simply that the government should not be in the business of encouraging destructive behavior and as a society we should use the power of our government to find ways to educate or encourage citizens on avoiding destructive behaviors rather than encouraging these people to waste their money and pushing to the front of the line to take it. This is why I am not necessarily a pure libertarian, because I don’t think the government should be entirely value-neutral.

- Let’s all admit that poker is indeed legal, even in Texas. I think the main thing that people are clamoring for is increasing the availability of games; the problem is that the only legal games are private non-profit affairs and that aren’t easily organized at a moment’s notice, and it’s the type of games that are always available that are illegal and thus that people are clamoring to legalize.

- Now as far getting making more legal games available, I think there is a case to be made for somehow making games a little more public, or otherwise available, without criminalizing them. For instance, I think that the case currently in front of the Supreme Court about the legality of interstate wine sales, Swedenburg v. Kelly, could have a lot to do with the legality of online gambling because any state objection based on local gambling laws would be quite diminished if it could be decided that private economic transactions across state lines are not strictly subject to local laws, although I will admit that state laws aren’t the only obstacle to truly legal online gambling (For example there are federal laws governing bookmaking and gambling using interstate communications wires.) Eventually, however, online poker in one’s own home could thus be defined as just another economic transaction taking place beyond the reach of local regulators. Similarly, I think a slight adjustment to the current gambling laws would enable legal private poker clubs to exist, provided those clubs were truly private and selective within whatever scope the updated law would dictate. I would like to flesh this out further, but I just don’t have time right now.

Have a happy new year!

Blogger now provides integrated comments for all blogs on Blogspot. As such, I think that the turn of the new year gives me an excuse to turn off the “Trackback” comments. This means that all of the comments from old posts will no longer be accessible or viewable from the archives, so if you need to catch up on what Tenacious has to say about one of Junell’s PL hands or my whining about pokerstars, you’ll need to do it sometime today because those comments will possibly be gone by Sunday and definitely by this time on Monday morning.

Since I just got back from Vegas, I obviously owe a very long post. Let me first catch up on some recent newes on the blog:

- I can’t believe my very far right leaning friend John Greene posted such strong support for regulation of any sort, especially in an area that uber-conservatives consider to be paternal. Well, as a flag-burning, communist, troop hating, puppy-killing Democrat, I agree with many of John’s points (althought I disagree on some minor points) in his post. And I guess that this reminds me of one of the reasons I like John – he is complex enough to surprise me with his ideas constantly. He doesn’t blindly subscribe to a set of ideas handed to him from the right or the left.

- I play KT utg in limit typically, but it depends on the table. If I can count on a family pot that that is unraised…you bet I’ll play it.

- Junell’s house was insane last week. In $1 – $2 NL, there were several players with wins/losses > $500. Several. And more than a few > $1,000. And there musta been 40 people there over the course of the night. I was deal crap all night long. When I made a hand, I ran into the wrong hand. KK v 99 pre flop…bet bet bet….he flops a 9. And so on. Horrible night. Junior was drawn out on 5 different hands where he was not only ahead, he had a dominating hand. It was frustrating to sit in such a juicy game and never get a shot at winning anything.

I’ll get that Vegas post together tomorrow…

Straight from the TABC:

Poker Tournaments

Recently a number of establishments licensed to sell alcoholic beverages have begun to offer poker tournaments for the entertainment of their patrons, either by the licensee or by a third party working on the licensed premises. This has led to a number of questions to this agency as to the legality of this practice.

All alcoholic beverage license or permits are subject to suspension, imposition of a civil fine or cancellation if they are operated in a “place or manner that warrants the cancellation or suspension of the permit based on the general welfare, health, peace, morals and safety of the people and on the public sense of decency.” Alcoholic Beverage Code §11.61(b)(7); 61.71(a)(17). By rule, the Alcoholic Beverage Commission has defined this statute to mean that a permittee violates the above-cited statutes if the permittee violates, or knowing or negligently allows another to violate, certain penal statutes on the licensed premises. Among those penal statutes are the Penal Code provisions prohibiting gambling in Texas. 16 Tex. Admin. C §35.31 (c)(14). These gambling statutes are contained in Chapter 47 of the Texas Penal Code.

In summary then, an alcoholic beverage licensee/permittee violates the Alcoholic Beverage Code if he/she engages in illegal gambling on the licensed premises or allows another to do so.

Unfortunately, we cannot offer general or hypothetical opinions as to whether certain programs or ways of conducting tournaments violate the Texas Penal Code. Rather, we must make those determinations in the context of the specific facts as they happen to occur on licensed premises. We advise any licensee/permittee or unlicensed company planning to conduct poker tournaments to consult the Penal Code provisions relating to gambling and, if possible, obtain private legal counsel.

Prosecutions of illegal gambling activity are conducted by local district or county attorneys who may be able to provide advice as to particular conduct that will or will not be prosecuted in their particular jurisdiction.

Wanna know how to build a $1,400 pot in a friendly little $2-$5 pot-limit game? I’ll tell you how.

Disclaimer: “A bad beat with a happy ending.”

In the small blind I’m dealt 66.

I have $270 in chips.

Middle position (”Calling Station”) calls $5.

Middle position (”Agressive Idiot”) raises to $15.

Late position (”Lucky Bastard”) smooth calls the $15

I smooth call in small blind.

Big Blind folds

Calling station smooth calls.

Pot is $65 preflop (with 4 players).

Flop is J 6 8 rainbow, giving me a set of 6’s.

I check (waiting to trap).

“Calling Station” leads out with a $40 bet.

“Aggressive Idiot” smooth calls $40

“Lucky Bastard” smooth calls $40.

Holy shit! This couldn’t have worked out better. Now I can make some real money on this baby! I correctly raise the pot (First I call the $40 and then raise another $185). I now only have $30 left.

“Calling Station” calls the $185.

“Aggressive Idiot” calls the $185.

“Lucky Bastard” calls the $185.

What the fuck is going on here??

Pot is now $925

Turn is a King. Board is now [J 8 6 K]

I go all in for $30.

“Calling Station” calls the $30.

“Aggressive Idiot” calls the $30.

“Lucky Bastard” calls the $30 and goes all-in for another $225.

“Calling Station” smooth calls the $225

“Aggressive Idiot” Folds

Main pot is $1045. Side pot is $450.

We flip the cards over and I am shocked.

“Calling Station” has a J7. A pair of Jacks. No kicker, no draw.

“Aggressive Idiot” had a J8 (top two pair).

“Lucky Bastard” had KK (turned a set).

“Lucky Bastard” called $185 with an overpair, and caught his 2-outer on the turn. Any other card, and I win $1,045.

Okay, that’s the bad beat part of the story. Now for the happy ending. Before dealing the river card, we start talking about making some kind of deal. I have 1 out (a 6). We discuss options for 5 minutes, and I really don’t suggest anything, because I know I’m just plain beat. Already pulling my wallet out to reload.

I’m shocked when the now, “Very Nice Lucky Bastard” tells me he’ll give me $200 back, and he’ll take the rest….if that’s okay with me. Okay with me??? He’s offering to simply give me $200 of the $270 I put into the pot!!! Okay with me??? Does the Pope shit in the woods???

Thank you kind sir! You’re a gentlemen and a scholar! The table freaked out and berated him for giving me $200. “Are you crazy??? He has one out!!” “I would never have done that!” “Man, you’re a fool!!”

He just smiled and said that he didn’t want to bust me out in the 1st 10 minutes, and “we’re all just having fun, and came here to play.” Besides he was very satisfied with his $1,200 pot.

And I was very satisfied that I didn’t have to reload.

His good deed was rewarded with good karma, and he cashed out a few hours later with a $1,400 profit. I promised to repay the favor one day: not by giving him free money, but I may deal him 2 river cards

Daniel, I won’t forget it.