Friday 24 September 2010

Long Overdue Update - Vegas trip report + a bit of pre + online (Part 1)

So I got back from Vegas about 2 sundays ago. It was my first ever trip there and I absolutely loved it. In some ways it was everything I imagined and in other ways it was completely different to my expectations. One thing's for sure, I can't wait to go back.

The run up was pretty turbulent in truth, I'd put a few K to one side as soon as Vegas was booked and invested it with my then backer. Little did I know that he was scamming half the poker community and the £2.5k I'd invested (aswell as the £5k i'd got my dad to invest). Luckily his family paid everyone back (and quite quickly too) and the money I'd earmarked to blow, could now be blown. I wish him well for the future, genuinely.

Because I have a job and ridic small living costs I live pretty comfortably and can spend money freely (a lot of the time too freely - I should probably save more) and this in turn meant I was never really treating poker as seriously as I should be. If I wanted to take a shot in a big game, I would. If I lost lots in a particular month, I didn't care as a paycheck is never far away. In the last 8 months or so, this has really changed imo. I've taken poker a lot more seriously and grinded small when I've needed to. This led to me binking a $3.5k score and a $16k score (+ a few others) before Vegas which is pretty good for me considering I really don't play many tournaments. I followed these scores up with good results in cash games, grinding the £2/5NL at the Vic and $1/2 and $2/4 PLO on full tilt. In fact, I had very few losing sessions. I was also pleased with the fact that I'd shaken any desire to actually gamble. Hadn't played blackjack or roulette at all apart from in the same way a recreational player might (e.g. £100 on a one off, once or twice).

Fast forward to Vegas and I was going with a bigger bankroll online and offline than I'd anticipated. This didn't deter my plan to only take $5k with me (plus my card +£1500 just incase!).

In retrospect this was a mistake because knowing I had more money to pull up meant I was always likely to do so and didn't have to budget as I think it's correct to do so in Vegas. Fast forward to the day of leaving and I win the breakfast flip at the airport, $120ish in Chinese on the plane and then followed this up by fading the flip for the cab to the hotel and just about every other flip with the lads for the first few days.

Before Vegas, I'd told myself I was going to allow $1k as a gambling budget, as it would be unrealistic to go to Vegas and not play house games at all. I also wanted to try out craps.

Upon arriving and checking in to our hotel (Planet Hollywood) we went for a few drinks in the hotel bar and then for a walk down the strip. After a drinks stop and a quick venture into a games arcade we plodded into the MGM and delved into a cash game. Me, Mitch and Jakally put ourselves down on $2/5 and were all seated on the same table. The other boys were playing on tables nearby. The drinks were flowing and I was happily getting drunk whilst playing in a ridic soft game. I was playing very lag and up around $700 though I'd definitely had too much to drink. Because of my lag style (I'm the value) the players at the table wanted me there and when I wasn't happy that they didn't have orange juice to mix with my vodka, only orange soda, one guy got up, said nothing and came back 10 mins later having been to a shop and got me a carton of orange juice. lol! I'd been 3-betting a fair amount and opening even more so to find AA to a Jakally raise and about 4 calls it looked like the perfect squeeze, which I did to about $120ish. Neil (Jakally) moves in and I snap it off and tell him I have aces. Neil does a massive sigh (think it was a 1.2k pot) and the board rolls off J4392 so I turn my hand and Neil taps the table doing a sigh. As the dealer is gearing up to push the pot in my direction, Neil turns over JJ! SKLJDHGSDGHSDG. Gotta admit though it was a class slowroll and set a really high benchmark for slowrolls for the rest of the trip.

I then decided to bluff some young american kid (obv a $2/5 reg grinder there) in a spot where I 3-bet pre, airballed the flop, picked up the miracle double gutshot and fd on the turn, barrelled that too and barrelled the brick river when, if sober, I mostly likely would have just given up. I just couldn't help it, this kid was about 4 foot tall, looked like a cross between a kiddy fiddler, computer programmer and an outright dick and he perma had a toothpick in his mouth.

I play another 20 mins, just folding and drinking. I'm now around $300 down and get up to go play blackjack where I knock in around $700 before the boys come and find me to drag me to dinner. By this point I was annihilated and literally couldn't see. I got to the restaurant, ordered my food and then fell asleep. The guys, (mostly Neil) pretty much carried me home whilst I just kept grunting because of how sick I felt. The last I remember of that day was telling Stu not to leave me as I was going to die and quickly falling asleep/passing out.

9 comments:

Fenix35 said...

Hahah great trip report, looking forward to the next part!

Anonymous said...

drinkings fun eh...Not.

Alcohell The drug the brainwashes the masses into thinking they need it to enjoy themselves...so sad.

amateur said...

"Some guys just can't handle Vegas" :)

Cracking read Cos, now get on with the next installment

Anonymous said...

Quality how someone went to the shop for orange juice just to keep you in the game!

Unknown said...

Just got around to reading this. Cool report man, more please!

Unknown said...

+ lollll @ orange juice

rubbish said...

Shape up Cos and sort this and the IPO trip out.

Anonymous said...

Give it 2 years you'll be a Online star raping durrrr at his own challenge (one to look out for)

Great meet ya cos!! till next time Keep that run going i'll will be watching you like a hawk!!!

Gl greek

Anonymous said...

Sounds like you had a blast.
Adam @ Correct Poker