I was in Vegas from Tuesday to Saturday. I'd been card dead for a couple months back home and needed a change of scenery.

Tuesday - Stayed at the MGM. Great poker room for 1-2 and 2-5. After wandering the strip and grabbing lunch at NYNY plus a massive jug of coke from the coke store I made it to the MGM poker room for 7pm. Bought in for $200 at 1-2. Played perfect poker for 4 hours straight and made $5. Couldn't get a starting hand. The best pocket cards I saw the entire time was K-9 off.

Wednesday - Played the $65 morning tournament. I usually only play cash games but thought I'd try my hand. A good mix of players. There was 104 players total after the buy in period. Most were tourists that just wanted to play in a cheap tourney. With QJ suited (my fav hand) I flopped the nuts straight and doubled up early. I flopped top two pair and couldn't bet a guy off his flush draw, which he rivered. After 30 minutes of boring hands and increasing blinds I flopped a set and busted the largest woman I have ever seen at a poker table. With the blinds and antes getting high lots of inexperienced players got chipped out and the tables began to merge. I picked up AK suited in the big blind. There had been a bet and a call, I moved all in, one folded, and the guy that had rivered me earlier called with a pair of fours. Ugh. I don't seem to win any coin flips. Busted. This was a very well run tournament. Highly recomend playing any tournament that MGM offers.

I'd heard that the players at Bally's were weak so I headed there next. Got there around 2pm. Old old old guys in a smokey old poker area. The cocktail servers were ancient but surprisingly quick. This was the tightest preflop table I've ever played at. Bought in for $200 at the 1-2. Picked off the blinds and the limpers for a while and was up $30. The players at the table seemed confused by reraises and the fact that I was a tourist and not just looking to pick up the bonuses. After about an hour and a half of discussing oil rigging and a road trip that happened 30 years ago, I picked up A-9 hearts on the button. Raised to $10 and got five callers. Biggest preflop pot I'd seen there. Flop came A-9-K one heart. I've got aces up, checked around to me and I bet $40, one old caller in mid position, everyone else folds. Pot is now $140 and I've got about $180 behind. Turn is 4 of hearts. Board is A-9-K-4 two hearts, so I have aces up and nuts flush draw. Old guy bets $40, I move all in and he insta calls. I'm crushing his A-J off until he rivers the Jack and busts me.
Bally's is not a nice room. It's very smokey and the tables and chairs and not the cleanest. Probably lots of terrible players there at night and senior grinders in the day.

I make my way to Caesars. This is a beautiful room. No smoke. Good atmosphere. Comfy chairs. I bought into the 1-3 for $300. One of the guys at my table had won the MGM nightly tourney back to back nights and was betting almost every hand. Two players at the table spoke very broken english and had never played in a casino before. There was a couple really solid players at the table and a few cluesless tourists. I didn't pick up many hands and had to leave after only a couple hours down $160.

So down $360 in cash games and $65 on the tourney before my second night. Not too pleased.

Sat down in the MGM poker room at 8pm wednesday night. played 1-2 for $200 Lot's to look at. Good music coming from the bar. Very lively atmosphere and prompt cocktails make this room really fun. When I got to the table most players were up at least 200-300 hundred. The player to my right was a local grinder that didn't say a word unless he was in the pot. The guy in seat 1 looks like he hasn't seen the sun or a treadmill since 99. The local grinder was making great plays and reads and controlled every pot he was in, but as the night went on he was downing the free beers like a madman. I won a pot of $250 off him with pocket kings. I raised preflop to $15 and he reraised from the BB to $45. I called and he said he "respects my call" and "good defense." The flop is 10-8-3 and grabs from his stack and slams the chips down on the felt without counting them and trys to stare me down. the bet turns out to be $55. I immediately move all in. He stops to think about it so I pull my good luck charm, a 2.5 inch lead Superman out of my pocket and place it on my cards, facing him. He tells me he won't be intimidated and calls. I flip over my kings and he shuts his mouth. Brick brick and I double up. The fat albino had some very obvious betting patterns of always betting when check to him. And always betting the turn if no one bets the flop. He has about $400 in front of him and raises it UTG. I have QQ so I reraise triple his bet to $45. He calls and one other player calls. Pot is about $150. Flop come Q-7-3. Chubs bets $20. Other guy folds. I raise to $75 and Biggie moves all in. I call and say, show me the aces big guy! he flips over two aces and I show him my set of queens. No aces come and I bust him. I'm up around $700. Play my blinds and look down at KK on the button. New player raises and I reraise him $100 all in. He has jacks but flops a set and I lose $100. Call it a night.

I'm up $175 for the trip.

Thursday - My buddy tries to teach me the finer points of Black Jack at a $15 min table at MGM. There was a drunk french cat in a nice suit in the anchor seat playing $200 a hand. My buddy doesn't hit on 16 and Mr. French busts and the dealer busts. French stands up and starts telling us off and calling us idiots. I stand up 6'3 to his 5'9 and tell him in French to have a good evening. He then strings together a most impressive line of obscenities covering everything from my mother to the church and storms off. I end up making $15.
We head to the Luxor at 10pm for some poker. The poker area is outdated and not very nice. The dealers and managers were all friendly. The table was about half hotel guests and half locals. Very boring game with little to no action and everyone is chasing to hit the high hand of the hour bonus. I lose $60 after a couple hours and my friend wins $450 on a penny slot machine so we bounce.

Friday - MGM poker at 3pm. Room is packed and I have to wait for a table, longest wait at the MGM, 4 minutes. At a table of tourists and one local. There is a woman that keeps thinking she has a straight with four cards and an ugly dude that has a really hot girlfriend that is waiting patiently. The four-card-straight lady is easy picking but somehow keeps winning hands. One player mucked his cards after she declared she had a straight, 6-7-8-9-4? But the dealer and pit boss said his cards were mucked so his two pair lost. I waited patiently for 2 hours and turned the nuts straight and busted the lady. On the river she calls my all in and with her trade mark yell she says straight!! Before she turns her cards I say you've got nothing and it doesn't matter cause I've got the nuts. 2 hands later I slowplay my set and turn a fullhouse and the dude with hottie GF bluffs all in on the river. She gives me a thank you smile as they head off to shop. I cash out up $500
Later that night back at MGM.(Did I mention I love MGM?) I played four hands in 2 hours and was up $100. I called a $10 raise on the button with 6 players in already with J-7 spades. I flop a jack and a gut shot straight flush draw. I call a $25 bet on the flop and a $50 on the turn. The river is my money card, the 10 of spades. The pot is about $200 and the bettor bets $50. I min raise for value and he thinks about it for a long time. People at the table tell me to call the clock on him and he calls. I show him the immortal nuts and the old guy from New Jersey on my left gives me props. Too bad MGM doesn't have any bonuses for big hands. Oh well. Nothing too eventful after that and I end up making $425 for the session.

I'm up $1120 for the trip.

Friday - I play another evening session and lose 2 buy-ins. Saw the weirdest call ever. I have A-10 diamonds on the button and call a $15 raise. Flop comes 10-10-J, two clubs. Really tight player was the one that raised preflop so I figure him for a big pocket pair or maybe AK suited. He bets $20, I make it $50, he makes it $100 and I go all in for $200. He thinks for a bit and then calls. Asks me if I have the 10. Of course I do. He has pocket nines and says "yeah I was pretty sure you had a ten." Turn is a 9 and river is a nine. No more poker today.

Up $720

Saturday is the last day, need to be at the airport for 930pm. We've been in every casino, ate at nice places and saw a couple shows but all I want is to play some more poker. I squeezed in for 3 hours but was rushing it and lost $60.

So I made $660 my first trip to Vegas. Most of which I spend at the MMA store at Hooters. I love hoodies! I didn't play my best game and didn't get to have enough long sessions. I was always thinking about the next day's events and what not.
I'm looking to get back to Vegas this winter and play poker the whole time.