Headed to Vegas for the first weekend of March Madness. It was crazy crowded. Because my friends were staying at Bally's that's where we did most of our gambling.

I've been playing low limit hold 'em for about a year now. Combination in home games and the California casinos (The Bike).

First stop was Bally's, I was surprised to see how small the poker room actually was. My friends and I put our names down and waited for about 15-25 minutes before we were seated. We were all sat at different tables.

There were about 3 drunk guys at my table and they seemed to be raising everything pre-flop. Unfortunately, I wasn't catching any cards to take advantage of this situation. After an hour and a half of play, I was down $60. I was frustrated because the 2 or 3 dealers I had at that table were more interested in participating in the "good times" at the table instead of running a proper game. So therefore play moved very slowly (which I'm not used to). There were also a few beginners at the table who slowed it down as well.

My friend walked away up about $50, and my other friend, who had only played online, was down about $60 as well.

We returned to the poker room later that evening. I put name on the list for 2/4 and the 4/8 game as well. After 15 minutes or so, I got a seat in the 2/4 game. My first hand I get dealt pocket 10's. I make a set after the flop. A young woman in seat 9 bets, I raise, she re-raises and we cap with about three or four other callers. The board pairs up with fives on the turn - giving me a full house. I bet, the woman in seat 9 raises. Everyone folds except me, the guy sitting next to me and the woman in seat 9. The river is garbage and I bet and the other two players left call - no raises. Seat 9 has a 9-5 off suit, giving her a smaller full house. I don't know what the guy sitting next to me was playing with. I won over $90 on one hand and immediately get moved to a 4/8 game.

The 4/8 game had more experience players. Would have liked to have kept the game going but the table broke up, and I ended up $180 for the night.

Next day, my friends and I walked over to Harrah's. Love the room - even though I lost $60, TV's everywhere so I could keep track of my sports bets. Located adjacent to the sports book. The list is on computer and displayed so that everyone can keep track of where they stand. At the time they didn't have a 2/4 table, so I sat down at a 3/6 table. Found the players were more experienced than at Bally's. My last hand I had pocket 10's. The board had four clubs, ended up losing to a guy who also had pocket 10's but he had the ten of clubs. Would have liked to play their again, but never got back.

My last day, I decided to try no-limit at Bally's. Played right before dinner. Table was friendly, everyone's chip stacks were pretty equal. Since I have never played no-limit(in a casino environment) before, I found myself playing tighter than usual. Didn't win one hand, but left the table to meet my friends for dinner only down $30.

Came back later that evening, but the dynamic of the table had changed. There were about 3-4 locals there. One was a dealer at another casino. I was the smallest stack with about $100. Everyone else seemed to have at least $250 in front of them. A couple of the guys had close to a grand. Won a couple of nice pots. One with pocket Aces, went all in after the turn with $55, got one caller. He flipped over pocket Kings and could only laugh when I showed him my AA. Called it a night around 6am - the table was breaking up and I was getting really tired. Ended winning back the money I had lost earlier plus another $20. Really enjoyed no-limit because you don't have as many chasers.

Both Bally's and Harrah's are nice places to play. The Bally's room is a little cramped. Others on this website have complained about the noise from the casino, but I found it didn't really bother me. Next time I would definitely like to spend more time at Harrah's. Also looking forward to checking out Wynn's place as well as the MGM's new room.

BTW, March Madness in Vegas is incredible. All those games!!! My friends and I are already talking about going back next year.