FR
Like others have pointed out, the poker room at the MGM is right next to a bar and near the Studio 54 night club so expect a lot of noise and music while youre playing. I didn't mind at all since it attracted some drunken fish to the tables and I tend to tune it out.
Easily one of the more profitable rooms on the strip, probably due to the high traffic location of the room it attracts uninformed and/or drunken players. I played mainly 1/2 NL and had a couple of sessions here (I stayed at the hotel) where the same 1 or 2 players would be ATMs for the rest of the table and I was fortunate enough to get action from them when I hit. That's not to say you won't find decent players here, I didnt run into anyone that seemed like local sharks but there were 1 or 2 players that clearly knew what they were doing and some that played very aggressively. Overall in a 10 person table youd find 2 decent players, 2 ATMS, 1 or 2 really good/aggressive players, and the rest being weak-tight or passive players that fold easily or sit down with $40 and end up losing it fairly quickly because they don't know what they're doing. Expect to get called down a lot at 1/2 so if you dont want the flush and straight draws coming along for the ride pay attention and bet big. On that same token, if you hit a monster you'll still get called down by people that are drawing dead and get paid off when they hit their draw. I doubled up a couple of times because the other player couldnt lay down 2-pair or TPTK when I boated up, where more skilled players would notice the board and your betting and know when they're beat. With the exception of getting sucked out on a couple of hands by calling stations, I made the most money on my trip here.
I played here a lot since I stayed at the MGM so I probably sat down with most of the dealers. Overall they were quick and knew what they were doing and handled the pots, betting, and change pretty easily. Not all of them were very chatty but I'd say about 25% of them made the table more entertaining by commenting on the hands and bets and participating in conversations.
The waitresses seemed like they were in their late 30s but they were somewhat attractive. Not the fastest in getting the drinks over to you but they never messed up or gave attitude when you asked for a drink when they had been at the table asking recently. Overall they were pretty friendly which is not always the case.
Even when the list seemed long they had enough tables going that I didn't have to wait more than 5 minutes to sit down and play. The chip runners come over right away and you can have money behind until you get your chips so theres no downtime between sitting down and getting involved in the game. The staff was pretty friendly and a table change was handled without attitude and fairly quickly.
Never picked up the players club card so I'm not familiar with the comps. However I'll still give them a 5 since they dont run jackpots and therefore keep the rake low.
