Let me start by saying I didn't even play poker a year ago. Back in my college days some 25 years ago, I was a pool hustler, my only job, no kidding. I always considered that a business, and thought guys playing cards were gambling. Then I saw the same TV shows that half the country seems to be watching now...the WSOP Tourneys. So eight books, and a hellofalot of online poker later, here we go. (Note to those who are internet junkies, play some live games at home before jumping into a casino, it will make your learning curve go a lot quicker...and man, live games are a piece of cake after playing online!)

I headed out with 2 friends who go to Vegas every two or three months. Poker only for the three of us. I spent a week at night researching this and other sites, and BOY did the info help!

We stayed at the Imperial Palace. Yep it's as ugly as you've read. But the comps are the best, and the rooms are inexpensive, just don't eat there. NO MATTER WHAT! The rooms are actually a great deal for poker players, once you've put some time in at their tables; about half price.

Poker at the IP is for those in need of training wheels. The first thing I learned is that the games at the IP would be better titled No Fold 'Em Hold Em. And the no limit variety will have a couple of locals willing to take you all in every hand. They don't mind losing a couple of hundred quick if it gives them a chip advantage by winning one eventually. They will talk smack while playing, and believe me from what I saw, it worked usually. I played and lost a hundred and figured out this wasn't going to be the place for me. (BTW, Yes they have stale lady finger style sandwiches and cookies. If you need to eat this stuff, you probably can't afford to be in Vegas to begin with. Just bad news.) My two friends on the other hand sat in the same limit games for hours (I'm being kind, it was actually days I think), happy and drinking. Looked like they had pretty healthy stacks by the time I left every day. Some people are going to be better limit players, others are going to be better no-limit players. Neither is smarter, or braver...but I think it has to do with what makes up your insides, if you know what I mean.

My next move was down to the Aladdin. Very good move. Nice room, great tables, attentive staff. Overall nice surroundings, and nice to be in an actual ROOM dedicated to poker. I stayed there for who knows how long. Left up a little north of $500. Had a couple of beers, but spent most of my time drinking Diet Mt Dew. Dealers were quick, knowledgeable, and in one instance where we had someone challenging a play on the table the dealer was quick to bring in the boss. Problem solved, players happy, and a friendlier game I didn't find anywhere in Vegas.

The next day, I decided that I wanted to try a couple of low buy in tourneys. When you're scared, say you're scared: and I didn't feel like I had gotten the rhythm of the city yet, and wasn't confident enough to drop $500 on one of the bigger daily tourneys just yet. I convinced my two friends to give the ones at the Luxor a shot. They run a couple every day that are pretty cheap to buy into. I finished 2nd in the first one, and nineth in the second one. Each paid 7 places as I recall. And each had about 90 players. Once again we had dealers that knew what they were doing, and didn't take any BS from any player who thought they knew more than the management. Polite, but firm; just the way it should be.

An important note about the Luxor mid week daily tourneys. AFTERWARDS they open up some very low buy-in no-limit games. $50. If you are going to play no-limit there, even if tourneys aren't your thing, make sure you get in when those tables first open. I did, and the chip advantage you get can be important as the night wears on. I can't tell you how many of the convention goers from Mandalay Bay come through there as the night progresses, only to buy in for $50, lose, re-buy for $50, and head off to the blackjack table. It's like an ATM machine with a revolving door for the guys who were early to the table. Ask the dealer to "chip you up" to bigger denominations so you don't look too intimidating. A lot of railbirds look around before deciding what they want to do, and they dont want to sit in a game where someone has got 18 stacks, 20 high, sitting in front of them.. You just don't want to miss this place! Total for the day, and yes I guess I never got out of there starting with the first tourney...about $2700.

Next day, I go down to the Imperial Palace poker room to see how my friends are doing. They loved this place and the limit games there. A tourney was about to start with about a $50 buy in. I couldn't resist, and I could talk to my friends a little while they played at the table behind me. Got 5th place and $195. Saw a guy get so mad at his A-K suited getting beat by a guy with 9-9 I thought they were going to have to restrain him...lol. No in between at the IP, either you know you're in poker hell, or you don't. Either way it's a brutal place to play if you know what you are doing. Looking around the room, you see the same bad players day and night, so I suspect most are staying there and just never walk out of the front door once they check in.

So my next move/mistake/actofGod is to go next door to Harrahs. When I walked out of the IP I heard some live music and turned right to investigate. Actual real live women, and I don't mean hookers, I mean the kind the Vegas commercials promised. But then as luck would have it, just to the back left of the outdoor bar, I saw the poker room sign. Well off I go again. I sign up for a new no-limit table, $100 min-$200 max. After about 20 mins the poker room boss started reading off names, and we all sat down. The first thing I noticed was everyone seemed very friendly. I like friendly games. I mean these guys are even kidding the female dealer about who she left with after some party the night before. After about 20 minutes (OK, so I am a little slow) I realize that at this table, there are 10 players and one dealer. Of the eleven people sitting, one is from Richmond, VA, the other ten live in Vegas. Of the ten, nine deal poker either at Harrahs, or one of the other poker rooms on the strip. If I have learned one thing from reading all of these books, and web sites...it's that you don't sit at a table, any table, where you know you are likely outmatched, or even equally matched. (I am fighting of the instinct to bring up philisophical elemnets of Musashi's Book Of Five Rings here.)There are just too many games going on in Vegas. I was reaching back for a plastic chip rack when I got the monster starter A-A in late position. Now a professional poker player (or eight from the looks of this particular table) is going to notice someone thinking about getting up, so when I raised the blind 3x, I got some action form the table I frankly didn't expect. They raised into me, and the guy in front of me goes all in. Mind you this is all pre flop. Obvioulsy I called, and suprisingly so did 2 others. Long story short, no bad beat, I took down a monster pot, biggest single pot of my 4 days in Vegas by a WIDE margin, and stood up and announced to the dealer I was out. Kinda funny how she tries to get me to stay because as she reminded me the blinds were still half way around the table and I could look at some cards for free. Yes she was friends with everyone at this table but me, and no I didn't look at another card, even though she dealt them after I told her I was going. In fact, I didn't even touch them. I was busy finding some more racks laying around.

So here are the lessons I larned from the locals, who I ran into later at the Aladdin and were surprisingly cordial. Don't play at Harrahs unless it's either very early in the day or you just dont care about your bankroll. For some reason, tourists fall in there all day every day, and at night, the ones to don't "hook up" outside a the bar come in to try their luck at hold em. This place has the largest number of professional low limit players on the strip from what I could gather, all eager to have you sit in for a few hands. Impress them and you get respect, some inside info about rooms and times to play on the strip, and maybe even a couple of dare you call them new friends.

Speaking of the Aladdin, I went back there about 11:00 that night. {{SPECIAL NOTE: pay attention to the time! I got this place and time from the pros I ran into from harrah's}} Got on a list, was seated within minutes. $100-$200 buy-in no-limit table. Stayed until 7:00 the next morning. Eight hours, and worth every minute of it. excellent hourly rate if you are keeping track of that sort of thing. Lots of drunks wandering in all night and morning. They have monitors set up all over the room where you can watch the band and people dancing upstairs. We were fortunate to have an Elaine Venice (Sienfeld Show fame) wanna be, dancing and the camera guy couldn't get enough of her. Hilarious. We even gave the waitress a BIG tip from our table to take a giant drink upstairs to her. The whole room was in histerics. But I digress. The poker room is just a solid place to play. None of the big rollers, not too many locals, and the games were mostly played on an advanced level. Nobody crying about bad beats, or poorly played cards by competitors. Overall, my absolute favorite room to actually play in.

I went to the Bellagio on my last day. I had really been fortunate in my other games (except for the first hundred at the IP, LOL) and I figured it was time for me to get called up to the big leagues. My bankroll was set large with OPM and I felt good about my brick and mortar game at this point. Wow what a set up! My friends went into the sports book next to the poker room. I say poker room, it's really a roped off section of a casino, but at the Bellagio, it's first class no matter where you look. I was casing a couple of games as I had read to do on these web sites, and I finally picked one. Got on the list and waited. And waited. And did I mention it's freaking Wed. Morning and I'm still waiting...LOL. Short story here is I was never seated before I got bored and left. But before I went, let me tell you, this is the real money room where even the hookers (no exageration what so ever) are pulling out $4,000 to $10,000 to get started. And these guys dont buy these chips for show, they are moving them around that table like they don't care. Probably because they don't. Money is relative. From what I could see, you better have your A Game the day you sit at the Bellagio.

Quick tip about the Bellagio tourneys that I sure as the devil wish someone had clued me in about before I got to Vegas. They are big money. The winners get huge payouts, and there is a cheap way to get in, that apparently is a secret. Here it goes. They have satellites every morning of their tourneys to win a seat into the bigger afternoon events. I watched some tables play as I waited to play myself, and let me tell you, there are a lot more average players than you can believe playing these satellites! I dont think the big time cash players screw with these things. So here's the tip of the day. If you are a decent tourney type player, check out the Bellagio Satellites in the mornings before their big afternoon events...I won't miss that one again, not on your life!

By the way, on our way out of the IP my friends checked their comps. They racked up an impressive amount that basically took care of our room, and while not pretty, is a decent place to stay for a cheap price mid-strip. Kind of figured I owed them at least that much after I have ripped their poker room apart.

I will be back. And if I could get away from it, I wouldn't play internet poker again. Live games in brick and mortar is absolutley the way to go. For the internet players out there thinking about a trip to Vegas, trust me when I tell you, the thousands and thousands of hands you have played online gives you most of the skills you are going to need. Read Caro's Book on Tells, and have at it!