The sixth in a handful of trip reports I am going to post. This one is going to cover Friday.

Overall Stats for the trip: +$1549 poker, even on other bets

Ok... I wake up to a shrieking alarm at 8:30am. My eyes burn as I reach over to turn off the alarm then turn on the light. I look around. No duck to be found... just my beautiful wife sharing the bed with me. I get up, shower and walk to Hard Rock.

My friend, Barry, is already seated at the table when I get there. I take a spot next time in Seat 2. We chat it up and decide to make a $10 last longer bet on the tourney. Barry does well at the cash game. He gets 88s to fold to his 99s and JJs to call his QQs. He ends up taking down a cool $284 in just an hour. I do ok and make a cool $70.

The tourney begins with only 20 players at two tables. A couple levels in and I am hurting with only 4000 in chips and blinds at 200/400. I go all in UTG with AJ and get two callers. Looks like I am done for. Players show K-10 and A-10 both suited. Maybe not. Board comes K-Q-9-A-7. I knock one player out and double up on the other. Meanwhile, I have shouted out to the other table that I will pay a $5 bounty to anyone who knocks Barry out. Nobody knows if this is a joke or not... including me.

I make it to the final table and get an excellent seat. I am to the left of Barry who has three times as many chips as I do. Barry wins a big hand and now has about seven times as many chips as I do. I decide to be fair. Jokingly, I offer him a chance to call off the bet while he can. The whole table laughs as he declines. I guess he thinks he can beat me (ha!).

Once again, I am down to about 10 times the big blind. I get dealt KKs UTG and decide to limp. We haven't seen a flop for a while so I expect someone to raise before I shove. Unfortunately, all 27 players at the table limp in and I am not happy. Ok, I lied. Only 5 players see the flop, but I still am not happy. Flop comes three hearts with an Ace so I check. I do have the K of hearts though. One player bets a tiny 1000 into the 7000 pot. Another player calls. Despite having only 9000 in chips I call hoping for a heart. Turn is a dead card. 1st player bets another 1000, other player calls and I call. River is dead. First player shows A-2. The other player shows A-10 and wins the pot. I wonder if A-10 would've called a pre-flop shove by me. Probably.
Anyways, I shove some junk and pick up some blinds. I then double up with QQs. We eventually get down to 3 players left. It is Barry, myself and some other boring player. Barry has about 40000 in chips and boring and I each have about 20000. We play a few boring hands. Of course, I have been pestering Barry that he should've accepted the chop earlier. I get dealt two 77s and shove all in. Barry calls with A3. My hand holds up and Barry is the short stack. A couple hands later Barry shoves all in. I call with AJ and Barry shows 55s. Flop comes K105. Turn comes a cruel J and the river is a blank. I knock Barry out. I snap my fingers and ask for the $10.

Heads up I have a 2-to-1 chip lead over boring. He's picking up some good hands while I am forced to steal the blinds. I pick up two JJs and raise to 3 times the big blind. He re-reraises all in for 14K more. I call and He shows K-6. Turn comes a K and he wins. He now has a 2 to 1 chip lead. I steal a few blinds here and there with junk. We are nearly even in chips when I get it all in with 77s. He shows AQ and wins the race. I get $250 for second. I give the dealer Barry's $10. I start to leave and go back to ask if I tipped enough. What's normal? I ask him to be honest. He say 5% is good. I give him another $10 anyways. After all it is only a $10 free roll.

I head back to the hotel and meet up with my wife who's been at the pool. We head up to the room. I open the door and a crazed duck flies out and scampers down the hallway. We take a nap and then decide to head out to MGM. For me, MGM is usually the easiest room to crack. Normally, you can find a table with several aggressive players who have been overserved and want to prove how good they are. my wife and I get seated at the same table. I look around and all I see is water bottles (Please see future strategy post that I haven't posted yet about when to change tables).

10 or so hands in, 4 people limp to me in the small blind. I look down at Q6 of spades and decide it is good enough to fire out $17 trying to take down the pot. Not a bad result as I only get one caller. Flop comes J,9,8 of hearts. I decide the three hearts are good enough cover to take a shot at the pot. I fire out $25 and get called. I decide I am now done with the hand and am willing to forfeit the $85 pot. However, turn card is a non-heart 10 and gives me a straight. I decide I am probably ahead now and willing to get all my chips in. I check to see if my opponent will now fire. He fires $50 into the pot. I take a little time and then re-raise him all in for $100 more. He thinks for a long time. I am happy. I figure I got him on a draw. He finally calls and shows K-Q with a Q of hearts. Ouch! I'm drawing dead on the river as he gets shipped the pot. I vow never to play Q6 of spades again... as far as you know.

Meanwhile, my wife gets stacked after someone hits their gutshot straight on the river. She rebuys and gets stacked again when her AAs lose to QQs after a Q hits the flop. She has lost $400 and I am down $195 so we decide to move to another table (please see future strategy post that I haven't posted yet about when to change tables). We sit down at a table with open spots. Someone is getting my wife chips when the poker floor boss says we can't change tables. I tell her we are getting killed at the other table and need a new table. She says we have to sit down at the same table then ask for a seat change and wait to be moved. I don't disagree. We decide to leave MGM instead.

We head over to Planet Hollywood. We get seated at a very amusing table. A couple good players and a crazy Englishman who is raising many pots (but plays well post flop). Everyone else at the table appears to be weak. Pretty good table. I am mostly card dead during this session so no exciting hands to share. However, what happens at the table is quite amusing. Two Arabic or Greek looking guys (not sure) join the table. One in seat 1 and the other in Seat 9. Seat 9 is either on drugs, wasted or just insane. He is talking trash and mostly not making a lot of sense. The Englishman pushes him around on a couple flops.

There is a lot of profanity being thrown back and forth, but play continues. Meanwhile, the English guy is sometimes sharing his hands with his side of the table. He gets into a hand with Seat 9 and eventually pushes him all in. English guy is sharing his non-made hand with his side of the table (a straight draw). Seat 9 is trying to decide. I am in seat 7 (I don't know what English guy has), but I see Seat 1 nodding to his buddy to call. Seat 9 calls after Seat 1 who saw the hand tells him to. This really pisses me off. However, justice is served as the turn makes the English guy's hand and he wins.

Fast-forward 10 minutes... Seat 9 is a belligerent ass. He gets a warning from the poker room. I don't mind him sitting there because he is horrible and spewing money (just not to me). All of a sudden Seat 9's brother shows up behind him. Wow! I thought there was only one jerk in the world who looked like this guy. Apparently, he has a brother who looks and acts just like him. His brother starts giving the dealer shit from a distance. The dealer tells his brother to step away and leave. Seat 9 tells the dealer not to tell his brother what to do. Dealer tells Seat 9 to shut up and play cards. Seat 9 leans over and grabs the dealer by the arm and says he is sorry. Dealer says, "you can't touch me. Sit down." Seat 9 says "F you!". Floor gets called over.

Anyways, no punches are thrown and the brothers both get escorted out. Everyone is a little shocked (not that they got kicked out. We are shocked at what occurred). Game pauses for a little while when UTG says let's play poker, deal the cards. What is taking so long. UTG then decides to straddle. Action gets back to him and as he looks at his cards, I immediately yell, "Clock". Everybody laughs. We carry on and play more cards.

Seat 1 remains, but leaves about 10 minutes later. I was waiting to catch the Englishman in the bathroom to tell him what I saw. However, since the Arabic guys are all gone I go ahead and share it with the table. I apologize for not telling him right away, but didn't see a good opportunity.

A new player sits down on my left and buys in for only $70. He bets $10 and gets re-raised by the button for the rest of his stack. He calls. I look on intently expecting a couple huge hands to be shown. Button flips over AK. New guy shows 6-3 offsuit. Interesting. New Guy loses and rebuys. He proceeds to lose another $70 while I get dealt powerful hands like 8-3, 9-4 and K-2. I almost play the K-2, but instead watch as New Guy loses his money. It's getting late and I want to get up for the Free Roll so we finally decide to call it a night.

Room is eerily quiet... No duck, no feathers, just a leprechaun hat. My wife thinks the room smells a little bit, but I don't notice. We crash hard and get some sleep.

Day 7 Stats:
+$70 Hard Rock cash game (1 hour)
+$230 Hard Rock Free tourney
-$195 MGM cash game
-$20 Planet Hollwood cash game

Overall Stats for the day: +$85 poker, no other bets
Overall Stats for the trip: +$1634 poker, even on other bets

Next up. Final Full Day in Vegas... My week of training finally pays off... too bad it is not in poker!