Tuesday, September 15, 2015

Seneca Buffalo Creek Casino

I walked through this casino the other day.
http://www.senecabuffalocreekcasino.com/


It is located in a great area that is pretty interesting now and with the planned development, will get even more interesting.  Buffalo is regaining its waterfront and using it as a tourist destination with everything from boat rides to ice hocky rinks.

The casino, like most local casinos was not very player friendly.
It was smokier than most that I visit.  I rarely detect smoke.  Here you could not miss it.
They do not comp alcohol.
There was no live poker room, one is planned in the spring, but locals tell me that is what they have been saying for a long while now and it keeps getting put off.

video poker below a dollar did not exist.  Pay tables on the few dollar machines I found were terrible except for Bonus Poker which did have an 8/5 Bonus Poker.  I can't imagine playing 8/5 JOB and getting short paid $5 everytime I won with a full house or flush.

They did have table games with normal house advantages.  I did not check the craps free odds allowed, but the tables were there.

The location in the summer is really nice.  Hotels are springing up.  A new Marriott looked very good.  Most parking is free, some is free with purchased food.  It is exciting to see all this in Buffalo. 
There is a huge Veterans Memorial area and a couple ships including the one named after the five brothers who all went down
 

Sunday, September 6, 2015

Odds of Peter hitting a club

Here is the way I figure it.
We are not counting my hand as a revealed hand.  I can’t remember if I held a club.


So after the flop there are 7 cards revealed, leaving 45 unrevealed.
Peter has the Ace of clubs.
Greg has two small clubs.
The flop has three clubs.
So there are 13 - 6 or only 7 clubs left to be revealed.
Peter has a 7 in 45 chance of seeing a club on the turn.


The odds that Peter will catch another club on the turn are about 15.6  percent
The turn is not a club, so Peter has 7 in 44 on the river or 15.9 percent


So, Peter’s odds of hitting just one club after the flop are 31.4 percent.
They could be a bit higher  if you consider that certainly no one who folded after the flop, folded two clubs. I don't remember who was in after the flop.  It may have been just me.   However, I don't think that does much to change the math.  
 
Peter is the clear underdog.
 
 




Wednesday, September 2, 2015

Greg's Game


Players: Greg, Ezzy, Gail, Charley, Peter, Dewey, Jim


This one was a killer for the Hill boys.  Our chips were absorbed all afternoon and then there was the final hand where Charlie took us completely out.
Dewey had A-K of hearts
Charlie had A-Q
Peter had A-J

The turn gave Charlie his pair of queens and that was that.

Peter was down about $100.  Dewey ended down $61.
Charlie had a grand collection of chips.

****************************************
High hand was contested for a while with Ezzy's full house beat by Peter's full house.  Dewey cinched the deal with four kings by about 1:30 and they held up.

Jim took the cracked Aces.

****************************************

The game celebrated Dewey's last game until October and Greg's last game until he turns 77.
Greg treated with some 7 up and Seagram's 7.  Perfect.

Jim had plenty of good music as always and good talk besides.  Dewey actually knew one fact, that Clapton's wife Pattie had been George Harrison's wife for many years while Clapton pined away for her and then finally married her when the Beatle divorced her.  He picked up with another woman later and had a son.  The song Layla was about Pattie. 

We talked politics until we enforced the no politics rule.
Too bad too.  I think we were close to making an endorsement. The consensus was one of these three fishermen.




It was pointed out that some of them were dead, but death for a politician is more an attribute than a liability.

Well, perhaps others can remember more hands than I do.  I'll try to add a few if I do.  I'll think about all the way to Vegas.

 OTHER VEGAS NEWS

The big event this week was the purchase of a peeing boy statue for the D in downtown. 

The event was a secret with some hype for a few days

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBXzeuRHgxA

And then it was time for true art to emerge:

http://lasvegassun.com/vegasdeluxe/2015/sep/01/what-relief-d-las-vegas-unveils-downtown-attractio/


http://www.brusselslife.be/en/article/the-legends-of-the-peeing-kid

Thursday, August 27, 2015

Greg's Game

Well, it was quite a day.  Great fun. 
John and his boy Ben showed up for just an hour or so.  There was no large splashing calls in the dark to get chips on the table, nor did the kid take his dad to the cleaners, but I think they both had fun.
I guess I was disappointed that there wasn't that moment where John was all in with Ben looking up and smiling that smile of pity, pushing to call, and the old novelist going down to the ground penniless.
Oh, well, next time Ben.

I had a tough time getting to the game at all, but Gregg took care of me and Peter, driving a good bit to get us to the game on time.  We had a good lunch too in the old Dragon buffet.  Ezzy sure missed another great time there.  We know you want to go, Ezzy, in spite of all those inspections of unrefrigerated meats in Chinese places.

My van is still unfixed waiting for parts although they promised to order them last week.  I hate dealers because they are so dysfunctional.
Elizabeth picked us up just after we played to seven.  It worked out well for her. She ended up in the area, but thanks Gail for the offer of the ride home. 
I felt a bit unsettled without my card protectors or my own trays, all of that in the van.  I brought a watch as card protector but the back kept coming off.  O le[t trying to hold it together with electrical tape.   The watch was a bit like my game.

Peter, after a couple of weeks of small losses, was on his game again, ending up with a profit of about $220 which will be parlayed in Vegas in September into millions.  He just could not be beat.
He destroyed me early in the game by going all-in with pocket kings after the flop when I had the famed 9-6  and it caught two pair.  Runner-runner sevens meant his two pair was higher.  I never got a decent bankroll back and in the end was down $60, forty of it in that one hand.

And Peter won at the Pineapple too.  We played that for a little over an hour.

I think Ed left with some money.  I'm not certain about Ezzy.

Jim got destroyed.  He could not catch any playable cards.  He was the folding king. The only thing he got out of poker this week was a full development of his arm muscle, the one used to toss in the cards.  The one hand I remember Jim winning was on so few chips that his "main pot" was a third the size of the "side" pots after his all-in.

The music was good again.  Plenty of old fifties music that clicks emotional memories of my youth listening to the jutebox across from the cottage at Lime Lake or slow dancing with a girl. Some Louie Prima and finally, finally to Jim's great relief came the ignored kitchen utensils singing.... something...... Jim's commentary was grand as well.  And he was quick on the draw to eliminate the rauchy song before it spoiled the ears of the your Ben.  "Hahahahahahaha.  Like that could happen,"   Ben said.

Gail too got slammed.  I talked her into going over her budget and playing $10 in Pineapple and that was very bad advice.  Added to her losses, she had the job of cleaning up the coffee I spilled on the rug, and she stayed a while to be our official dealer.  Thanks, Gail.  Then to add insult to injury some thoughtless one of us peed with the seat left down and left small droplets for her to clean before she sat.  Some of us know we did not do such a thing because we also sit.  Yes, old men sometimes sit so they don't pee on the seat or really so they don't dribble down the pantleg.  You will all know someday so quit your grinning.
Anyway Gail came back to the table and was Sgt. Gregory, chewing us out and threatening us with the firing squad if it happened again.  Of course, that wouldn't work because Gail would be left to clean up the blood after the shooting.

Jim had his own troubles when in honor of Chuckmonk he knocked over a tray of chips.  It just was not his day.

High hand went to me.  Ezzy tried his best to take it away with Aces full of Kings that showed on the river, but it was a river dealt only as "the rabbit" so that last Ace was not in the live part of the game and did not count. 

No one had cracked Aces but Gregg had winning Aces a few times.  Peter had them.  I never did, but I did pull three Aces once but never saw the fourth.  I saw a full house, however, and won a bit of money on the river.

Ed caught quad jacks, but he had not played the bonus this week.  Thanks Ed for not playing.

**********************************************************************************

In other Gambling news, the 1-1 game at the Linq might be less a low roller game than I thought because the Max buy-in is $300.  That defeats the purpose of 1-1 in my opinion.  In Ocala the Max is $60 (Min $20)  and at Mohegan the Max is $100 (min$50)  The game might get filled with Min buy-in folks, but if not, I won't play it and go back to limit or 2-6 spread limit. 
This guy was hired to deal, however.  He is a bit of blog celebrity. 
The Tropper
https://www.youtube.com/user/TheTrooper97Vlog

Slots are reported to be reducing payouts across the country.  Here is one article on one area. 
http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bs-bz-slots-payouts-20150826-story.html

It is such a shame that in all this development of gambling the gambler gets no good deals.  If the state had not decided to tax this entertainment to death, thus getting their Tony Soprano "taste" of the action,  natural competition might have offered gamblers a better bang for the buck, but as it is now, we get screwed with bad games and then we have to pay taxes on top of that.  If the IRS has there way, we'll be filling out paperwork on every win of $600 or more.  When it is the governments interest to make the games bad, those of us who like to play lose.

Okay, write back your favorite or least favorite hands. 
See you next week, but after that, you won't have old Dewey to kick around any more until October.  I leave on the 9th for Vegas and the great 40th birthday of my middle boy.  Since I'm just barely over forty, I don't quite understand the math of it, but it should be a grand trip with all five boys in on the celebration. 
Oh, Peter thanks you for his Vegas bankroll and hopes you will all fold and catch lesser hands against him next week as well.



 

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Greg's Game

A much quieter game, but delightful just the same.
Dewey, Peter, Gail, Greg, Charlie, Jim
We played Hold em until Jim left and then an hour and a half of pineapple.

Jim banked and then Charlie banked and everyone came out even.  Thanks guys.  If I banked, I'd lose more at the banking than the game. 
Of course, we did not get into the gold rings this week.  John did not take us on that roller coaster.  Still, there were some huge pots and great shifts of money.  In each session Peter and I bought in multiple times. 

Peter had a tough day.   He lost about $40.  His magic has dwindled. 
One of the last hands had him with three queens, Charlie with two pair, and Greg with the winning straight.
Pineapple can be like that.  Better hands.  Larger pots.

Greg made some money.  I could not beat him,  He chickened out at just the right times all day. 
One time he took me for a huge all-in and then would not call the next hand.  I went all-in to see.  I had the nuts. 
Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck,  Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck, Cluck

Gail lost her bankroll and then became our official dealer.  It reminded me of the days of Jerry Silver.  Especially at the end of the game, when I am super tired, I very much appreciate a dealer.   Thanks, Gail. That was a delightful treat.  Feel free to lose your bankroll anytime.

I'm not sure how Charley or Jim did. Charley took a big hand toward the end. 
Sorry I don't remember hands like John remembers them. 
Okay, I actually don't remember hands as well as a live gorilla might remember them. 

Jim took the high hand with Ace's Full of Queens, established earlier and never overcome.  Oh, Jim remind me I have a dollar for you as you left before Gail hit the Cracked Aces. You can use it to buy into the next game bonus. 
Unlike last week, Jim did not leave $28 on the floor as he left.  I looked.  Last week some SOS fellow returned his money to him when he came back to see if he had dropped it.
Jim, when folks say that they "dropped" money at a poker game, they don't meal that literally.

Thanks for the music.  It was a fine mix of old time pleasures. 

I won $33.  I won with pocket Kings twice.  Greg had his cracked.  (We could do a kings cracked $1 bonus.)

Gail is trying to recruit a few of her friends to play because we are such a friendly bunch.  Nice,  especially because Peter and I won't be there for most of September unless Peter wins big in Vegas and can stake himself and so more players would be good for the game.

This game was a long one, ending at 6:46.  Thanks Greg.  That is perfect. 

Peter and I supped at the Golden Coral around the corner.  I could get food on my diet and it was nice, but I was too tired to be of much company.

Then, Jay, we went home and spray painted the number 3 on Peter's house.  He used the screw driver, I used the can of black paint, and now everything matches Jay's work on the front of Peter's house.  Nice job, Jay.  I hope you were not too hot working yesterday at other houses.  I thought of you and wondered how it was going.  Think of Jay if you need work done.  He does a good job and he needs the cash for poker.

I got a nice public thank you from author Jean Scott

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Scott_(author)

for helping her with her upcoming book Frugal 2, and so some congratulations from the discussion boards where I post daily. 
Here are the links I promised, Charlie.  The first is the Jean Scott blog.  The others are the two boards I most frequently visit.

http://jscott.lvablog.com/2015/08/17/frugal-resources/

http://www.vegasmessageboard.com/forums/showthread.php?123569-Jean-Scott-Gives-A-Shout-Out-To-Dewey

http://blonde4ever.yuku.com/topic/32919/Jean-Scotts-Frugal-Vegas-featuring-Dewey

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Other Vegas news includes big changes downtown.  The Downtown Grand is being sold and The Vegas Club is sold.

http://vitalvegas.com/downtown-grand-hotel-casino-will-announce-its-up-for-sale/

Derek Stevens bought The Vegas Club. He owns the D and Gateway and has brought each of those places up from huge slumps.  He will have three places when finished.  I doubt any will have poker rooms or full pay tables on VP although The Plaza and Main Street Station are right near the Vegas Club, and both have full pay.

http://vegasinc.com/business/gaming/2015/aug/18/drugstore-plan-spurred-casino-owner-las-vegas-club/

Finally, I think I have a political candidate that will win.  He is a fellow called "Deez Nuts" and he came in third in a North Carolina poll of voters, getting 9% of the vote.  Worth a look.
http://jezebel.com/breaking-deez-nuts-announces-candidacy-for-president-1720645540





 

Thursday, August 13, 2015

greg's Game

Well, John came today and that made it a very different game.
"I just want to announce that for the first four times around the table, I'll blind call any all-in bet."
And we took advantage, one of us going all-in almost every hand.

We took advantage while John took the luck.
He accomplished his purpose by getting lots of chips on the table, so the stakes were higher for the rest of the afternoon.  John won big, walking away with maybe $175?  I just know that he had all the gold rings.

He also announced after I told him of the high hand bonus.
"I never win the high hand."
And then, of course, he managed to assemble quad eights for a $20 bonus award.

At one point we had eleven playing: Greg, Gail, Ed, Peter, Dewey, Jay, John, Charley, Ezzy Jim,    Or was it ten?  If it was ten, then the high hand should have been $18, not $20 because Gail had not bought in.  Oh, well.  I'm missing a name somehow, perhaps.
John wins yet again!

Sorry, I forgot who took the cracked Aces.

I didn't.  I was up and down and ended up losing $10.  Peter lost $39.  Others lost more.

But there was action.
I took two of the preflop all-in giveaways and then tried to pay back by going all in with just 5-10.  But the board played and we chopped that one so I got my money back.
My big loss was to Charlie when my third Jack and his Broadway came on the turn.  I probably lost $30 on that hand.

I remember taking Peter for an extra $20 when the river gave me 10-J two pair and another river gave me 7-2 two pair.

I wish I could remember more hands.

I'm sorry I had to rush out.  As it was Elizabeth had thought the game ended at 5 and she was pretty tired after a full day from Casey and a little annoyed.

We went up to the Alexis diner and had supper.  I had scallops and the others had decadent Italian meals.  Huge portions at the diner.  Nice place.

It was just grand to see so many at the game.  Keep coming.  Bring a friend. 

Thanks for banking, Jim.  I got a message from you but it was incomplete.  Hope the banking went well.

 

Thursday, August 6, 2015

Greg's game

Seven at the table this week. 
Ed, Jim, Ezzy, Greg, Charlie, dewey and Peter.
I brought two unwrapped new decks of cards.  Thank you, me.
I think it is a very different game with seven over out usual five.
The frustration goes up because there are more real contests, more close calls, more frustrating second best hands.
Peter socked me with one when he went all in on the river with a full house that beat my Ace high heart flush.

Jim seemed to get the brunt of frustration in this game.  Rivers were not good to him.  I can't remember all of them, but I was in one huge hand with him.  He had the nut hand, a straight.  The river counterfeited it and so I had it too.  There were plenty of chips by the river.  We split.

Peter had a similar hand with Ed.  A jack on the river gave him a straight.

Straddles were better challenged.  Ezzy used a few to his advantage with good bets that stole those large blinds.  It was much more rare to see head to head battles and more common for a good hand to be aggressively bet and push out the speculative blinds.   Ed picked up the straddle passion a few times, but in his position there was not an immediate double straddle. 
All straddles, and especially double straddles, are affectionately dedicated to the memory of John Blowers who used to be a poker player at Greg's games.  No, he didn't die.  He just faded away.

Along with more drama in the poker, we managed a bit more talk than usual.  There was talk of horses at Saratoga, including the recent upswing of anti-horse racing sentiment.  I saw an anti horse billboard on I -90.  1,000 horses die every year, it says.  I am curious where the horse meat goes.  In the UK it goes to market.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/feb/06/racehorse-slaughter-animal-welfare
The US exports to Mexico because we don't slaughter horses for meat.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/may/02/kentucky-derby-horsemeat-pipeline

I see new legislation in the pipeline
http://poststar.com/blogs/all_politics_is_local/legislation-to-ban-export-of-horse-meat-advances/article_9fd1de6f-9319-5e58-8393-7efb315e08e0.html

I know some of the meat used to go for dogfood but not so much for glue anymore.
http://www.slate.com/articles/life/explainer/2012/02/what_do_horses_have_to_do_with_glue_.html

 In Spain when they kill the bulls at the bullfight, the meat used  to go  orphanages.  However, recently it has become popular as a healthy, ecological food.
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/aug/20/fighting-bull-beef-most-ecological-meat-in-world

A related controversy over wild horses rounded up for meat.
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jan/09/eating-wild-horsemeat-America

There may be some issues with eating racing horses due to the chemicals that can be in their bodies.
http://www.americanhorsemeat.com/

I did hear an NPR special that suggested there was more of demand now for race horses as home horses or pets than was worked into the market system and that a system much like the one used to preserve the lives of greyhounds merely needed some interest in getting the horses to loving owners rather than the meat market.

Ezzy told some stories of interesting inspections where chickens or ducks hung unrefrigerated in the kitchen.  I don't think he is a fan of Chinese food customs.  However, he reassures us that our favorite Dragon buffet was fine for eating even with some issues on inspection.
I eat Chinese duck whenever I get a chance. 
And by the way, China has lots of duck races and we have at least one I've always wanted to attend in New Mexico
http://racingducks.com/

Hey Bill, how does one handicap a duck?

Most of the ducks sold in the US come from one place.  I can't seem to cook one right anymore.  Honest Weight has organic ducks, but they are $25 each.  Still, I might try again one of these days. 


There was some talk of Vegas.  A few jokes went around including the joke about marriage and cards. In the beginning all that is needed is two hearts and a diamond, but a couple decades into marriage, the players are looking for a club and a spade.

It was not a quiet game;  I like that.

After Ezzy left we played Pineapple.  Thanks Jim.  I'm not certain you wanted to accommodate us for that game.  I like it,  so it was a treat to me.  Not profitable, however.  Ed played it with Greg another time and he likes it.  We play a very conservative version with the third card discarded right away.  It is hardly any different than hold'em.  However, if anyone objects, we just keep with the classic hold em.
Greg has a million ideas for adding a variety of Pineapple mutant games, but I object.

At Turning Stone the Pineapple tournament on Sundays, the third card is held to after the flop. Crazy Pineapple. 
I thought it went well. There was some mild confusion, but we are often confused anyway, and sometimes we are even confused about how confused we are.

I did not like my own  need to rush at the end.  Peter and I wanted to make the Texas Steakhouse over near Wolfe Road and the early bird specials end at 6, so we were pushing and gambling on getting a seat in time. 
Usually we have to wait for a seat.
We just made it, but it all was a bit too frantic for me.
It made the end of the game too hectic for me.  I think we'll look for another place to eat next week, perhaps the Country Buffet. Anyone interested in joining us for supper  there or at another venue of your choice would be enjoyed. 

As a result of the rush I don't have everyone's scores, but some players must have donated to Peter's $70 win, including me.  I lost $20.  Very few playable hands for me.  I think Ed suffered hard this week. 

I took him in one hand where I flopped trip sevens, slow played in early position, called Ed's bets until the river where I check raised him with an all-in (not much left of my chips at that point) after it gave me a full house.  Since I showed no strength, he was understandably surprised.

I am sorry for the confusion on high hand payouts Greg.  I'm going to just pay out of my pocket and not have the little piles.  I'll collect and pocket the money at the beginning,  do the math a to how many players are in, keep record of the players, and then count the money out of my wallet in front of the winner.
Much easier with less chance of confusion. 
I did count three times, one dollar at a time, but if you did lose a buck or two, just think of it as your donation to the new playing cards.

Greg won the high hand with kings full of jacks.
Jim took the Aces cracked, his trip Aces beat by a straight.
Dewey caught quad sevens after 4 PM.

Just a review on the rules of the two bonuses.  We play the high hand until 4PM  each day unless we have a table of folks all staying until a later time who agree to extend the bonus. Then it can be extended, but the extension for that bonus needs to be made before the cards are dealt. Folks arriving late or leaving earlier than 4 PM do suffer some reduction in odds to hit it.  If you hold the high hand and have to leave before 4 PM, I'll pay you the following week if that hand  holds up until 4 PM, but if someone beats it before 4 PM, you lose.

Aces cracked is very different.  If it is not hit and anyone leaves, s/he gets a dollar back on the way out.  It can be extended for as long as the game lasts.
Also, once it is hit, we can start a new Aces cracked bonus if anyone is interested.  Charlie asked about that.  I'm happy to restart it because I hate the heavy losses of Aces cracked.

Both high hand and Aces Cracked are totally optional and no one needs to participate. Not even any peer pressure on those, Just a bit of a fun side bet.

Ezzy would have won high both high hand awards again after his two week in a row victory.  However, the good hands that would have qualified for the $$$  Ezzy overbet to push out the straddle and double straddle, and so they were not given the chance to develop.

Jerry "Goat" Silver.    SILVER!!!  was fondly remember for the shake of his head as he folded and his mournful, "What a shame!"

Oh, if there are any Elvis lovers out there who would like some old calendars or an old Elvis era photo, Greg has them in the sale section of SOS.  Email him for price and have him save them for you.

See you all next week.
Gail, we all expect you.
Great seeing you again Chuckmonk.  Try to keep your family from visiting, so they don't preclude the truly important things in your life.  Or bring them along. 

Jay.....you fink......

Please respond to this newsletter using the reply-all function.  It is meant to be discussion, not lecture.









 

Saturday, August 1, 2015

Gregg's draft

I have been working on my cartomancy skills in preparation for Wednesday's game.  I may have done something wrong however, when I focused the magic on Jay.


I keep inviting him to the games.  Maybe he'll show up.

See you all on Wednesday.  Bring a friend.  Keep the poker alive.

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Greg's Game

Greg missed my summary of last week, but my memory missed it as well.
So, I'll just write up today.
Players were Robin, Ezzy, Peter, Gregg and it was a fine game with perhaps less action than other weeks, but fun.  We had some good talk as well and I enjoyed that part.  I like some talk and some friendly banter. 
It was grand to see Robin.  For me that happens not often enough.  I think we met in 1965, so we've been friends for 50 years although as you probably have noticed, he is a good bit older than I am.  He left early to go up to see the Saratoga horses run.  Hope he caught some fast runners.  Maybe he ran into Wild Bill.

Peter was off his game or not in the luck of the day.  Once again he lost $46 dollars.  I took the most of the money so that by the end of the day I was up $45, but figuring in Peter's stakes, only up one dollar.
Ezzy took the Aces cracked and the high hand with kings full of nines beating out a king high straight that Greg took half way through the afternoon. 
For music Jim left us some fine CD's with easy listening and they worked just great.
I think Robin lost a little bit, but not much.
Greg lost.  But he did play one hand with great flourish, betting a full 20 when he had the nuts on the river and getting called by Peter.
I was lucky to twice on the river catch an inside draw to the wheel straight.  I also had trip tens a couple times.  I had pocket kings that lost and then had them again and they lost, by my pocket queens held up again Peter when I flopped a set and slow played them.  Peter bet into the slow play because he had pocket Aces.  So they were cracked but after the time when the bonus money was still in the pot.

Oh,  I'm sorry.  There are not "cracked Aces" at Greg's games now.  If you lose with pocket Aces, your Aces were cocked.  "Cocked Aces" is the correct term.

We cashed in and started fresh for the second session, the pineapple part of the day, Peter won back $27.  So he made some pocket money.

We missed many of you.  It was a hot, hot day but very comfortable in the poker room.  I guess we expected that more of you would show up to escape the heat.  Why hunker down in your own pad watching Turner Classic Movies when you could be in the action?  Consider coming back and bringing a friend.

There was new art in the room, a product of one of those painting classes we wrote about. 
Also, Greg is trying for a Friday night game.  Interested?  Contact him for details.

*******************************************
Sunday at the last minute I bought a Yankee Trail ticket to Turning Stone and who do you think hopped on the bus? 
Slink!!!
That ole Son of a Gun!!

 So, we caught up and had a good time telling stories and catching up until his study of German lured him away from conversation.


One good old German proverb applies often to the game of poker
Die dümmsten Bauern ernten die dicksten Kartoffeln.
You can use it in Munich if you can find a game, but I fear
Es gibt keine Poker Spiele in München.

He told me about the Crazy Pineapple tournament and it was great fun, but I was eliminated very quickly.  The Pineapple we sometimes play at Greg's does not change the game much, but in Crazy Pineapple the third card is discarded after the flop.  Twice I split up pocket Aces because the flop gave me trips on the other card.  Slink played a long while but he did not cash.  I thought the competition was very hard and I also thought that the 1-2 tables were easier because the better players were in the tournament.

I played the rest of the day at 1-2 tables and felt very comfortable.  I'll do that again.  I sat at a 2-4 but it was terrible.  Just 5 old rocks.  We all broke the table and turned it into a 1-2 game. 

Slink and I had a nice buffet and he told more of his gambling adventures.  He plays some blackjack and some table game Texas Hold em.  I watched him play that for a while and it was good fun. 
Both of us took the $25 we got as part of the bus package and got our money back or better.  He ran his through the blackjack.  I played a double double bonus poker.

I also ran into a former student on the bus.  That was fun.  In the end I lost money, but I think I will go again sometime. 

******************************************************************************************
I will have an updated "resort and other fee article" in the 2016 edition of American Casino Guide and I was also asked if I'd like to do a video about resort fees.  Then I got a note from Jean Scott, famous for her books on Frugal gambling.   She asked me to help her with her next book and I sent in some suggestions and information and thanked me when I did.  That was pretty awesome for me!!
She really inspired my frugal approach to Vegas and introduced me to video poker, the only machine game that is sometimes in the player's favor.

*******************************************************************************************
Some of you were asking about the Riviera.  Well, today the die is cast.  It will get blown up and as soon as possible.
http://www.reviewjournal.com/business/lvcva-committee-votes-demolish-Riviera

******************************************************************************************
Meanwhile, Ron is off to Maine for his vacation with Laura and Minte.  He will get some much cooler weather and some wilderness and some sea air. 

Now, catch this.  Sometimes law just gets too nuts about card games.  This is really ridiculous.

Seniors who play Euchre
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/indiana-agency-forces-senior-center-change-game-32575757



 

Thursday, July 16, 2015

Greg's game

Thursday, July 16, 2015

Greg's game

Well, the Hill boys rocked this week.  Peter took $42 and Dewey took $69.   That was most of the profit from the table.  Ezzy left with some, I think.  I know he left with both bonus pays, the high hand and the cracked Aces.  He had the high hand on the second dealt hand, quad Aces with king kicker.   

Gregg started off with huge wins and had almost three trays, much of it won on all-in hands.  One of those was my loss. 
He was happy................
for a while. 

 Gradually, his early and substantial lead  was ground down. 
I helped with luck on the turn one hand and on the river another.  Both of them took my pocket sevens and made them into winners.  Once the turn gave me trips and another time the river gave me a full house.  It was a hard to put me on these cards, so I got plenty of callers.

 I made three buy-ins before my luck took off.  Peter made two.
I'd say my wins had more to do with luck than skill.
Peter's still often have to do with aggression at the right time. 

Certainly, my taking Peter down on the river was all luck against the odds. 
We were all-in.  Peter had trips.  I needed a Jack for an inside straight.  I called for it, and it came.

Gail Gregory joined us this week and livened up this circle of old men (and Peter) with banter and story.  She seemed to take quite a few pots in the beginning, always because she had a respectable kicker.  But in the end her bankroll drained away.

Add in hands that stick in your minds, please.  I mostly remember the ones that affected my bankroll and not even all of those.

Jim played the music mix we liked last week and will again next week since we have not heard but only a fraction of the whole mix.  There was a good bit of music trivia discussion again this week.  Gail added to much of that, hearing in the mix many songs she knew and remembered, and perhaps a few she hated.

The art is still up.  There are some opportunies to learn from this particular artist.  Talk to Greg about those if you are interested.  Her art was praised at the game.
  
I'm not sure what happens to me next week.  I'll try to get there and the odds are good, but I have to have my car serviced that morning by the dealer.  Who knows what that may entail.  I go in early in the morning, so perhaps there is a chance I'll be done.  Or if I have to leave it overnight, perhaps Pete and I will take the Central Ave. bus and walk from that 155 corner.  If Elizabeth will pick me up at the end of the game.
It will all be last minute planning.

We discussed "The Day the Music Died" and no on could remember the fellow who was saved because he gave up his seat.  Someone said Bob Dylan, but this made little sense to me.  Waylon Jennings is the correct answer.  Interesting is that the whole crash is being investigated again as to its cause.  It may not have been pilot error after all
http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/04/entertainment/buddy-holly-plane-crash-reexamined/



Since he has not come to tell any jokes, I thought I'd include one of Bill's latest jokes.
         Mickey O'Flynn worked in an
Irish pickle factory. For many years he had a powerful
desire to put his penis in the pickle
slicer.  Unable to stand it any longer, he
sought professional help from the factory psychologist.
After six months, the therapist gave up.   He advised Mickey to go ahead and
do it or he would probably never have any peace of
mind.  The next day he came home from
work very early. His wife, Mary, became alarmed and wanted
to know what had happened.
Mickey tearfully confessed his
tormenting desire to put his penis in the pickle
slicer. He went on to explain that today
he finally went ahead and did it, and he was immediately
fired.   Mary gasped and ran over to her
husband. She quickly yanked down his pants and shorts only
to find a normal, completely intact penis.
She looked up and said, "I
don't understand. What about the pickle
slicer?"     Mickey replied, "I think she
got fired too."

Which reminds me of this helpful technique I recently discovered:

http://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/how-to-slash-a-hot-dog-to-make-it-extra-crispy-article?mbid=social_facebook

Have a good week. 

Thursday, July 9, 2015

Greg's game

Another sparse showing of just four of us, but a good bit of action nonetheless.  I can't talk anyone into playing Pineapple to increase the action a bit. 
But it sure was fun this week.
I ended up with most of the profit after five buy-ins, all depleted by all-in scenarios. 
I never had a full house or better all afternoon, but I managed to do well anyway.  I beat Peter on his huge 40 chip bluff with just my Queen and got out of two other similar situations when he held full houses. 
Perhaps I am getting that Malcome Gladwell Blink sense of things.
http://gladwell.com/blink/
Or perhaps I just got lucky.

Greg ended down with some comeback.  Peter made $7.  Jim broke about even.
 While the poker was great, it was like playing in an old folks home.  My back cramped and spasmed all day.  I even had Peter drive as much as I could.  So I used the vidow viper gizmo and refused to reach.  Both Greg and Jim had different sorts of dizziness problems with Jim wondering if he could drive home, but then thinking he could and making it.  Good none of us were drinking.

Jim's music was actually the best from my perspective.  He had 17 hours of stuffed that shuffled and most of it clicked on very old emotional memories of mine from early adolescence making me remember my days at Lime Lake and girls I loved in 8th grade.  Amazing, really.  And then Ray Charles, Sinatra, or some delightful but unknown singer would pop up.  My kinda music.  He may play that again next week.

Greg's new art is very nice.  Scenes mostly and very pleasant.  And we played until 6 PM which is my vote although I was getting mighty hungry.  It meant that my drive home even with all the damned construction on the bridge and closed roads to avoid was very easy and well after the rush hour. 


Peter won the cracked Aces and Jim had them afterwards at least twice, winning with them.  I think Greg had them as well.  Looking at my cards I would always look for them, thinking, "Yeah, they are those cards with the symbol that seems like a little A frame house, right?"  The few times I got them they avoided being twins, opting more to the principle that opposites attract.

Still I won $60.

Jim hit the high hand which ended at 4 again. Early on he had Aces full of 2's and it held up.  Had we gone with the bonus until 6 Greg would have gotten it with his pocket tens that flopped trips.  I had K-J of clubs and we went all-in.
"I just need a club, Greg."
Then up popped the case ten and Greg smiled and smiled.
Otherwise I'd have won $86 dollars.

Lots of good talk.  I mentioned this NPR report on "upspeak" which was really a report on "Do I Sound Gay?"  (http://www.npr.org/2015/07/07/420627143/filmmaker-and-speech-pathologist-weigh-in-on-what-it-means-to-sound-gay)  but featured this speech pathologist and she mentioned this voice pattern.
 http://www.sankinspeechimprovement.com/are-you-asking-me-or-telling-me-speech-pattern/

Gregg had us illustrate. He wondered if he was doing that when he bet with a question.  I don't really think so.  There it is really a question.  Will you call this?  Can I win with this?

Here is true upspeak.  Traditionally, it was  connected with young women
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tj4EIGje4dA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjKMNyZ2oTc

So few variations in English actually annoy me, but these do.  

As usual, our poker games are part poker and part university class.  And part sports, but not this week because none of the Delmar boys attended.  And a good part gardening, but not this week because Charley was off cultivating better friends.

Sorry I can't remember more hands.  There were some exciting rivers.  Even without a switch to Pineapple, we seem to create action at the small games.  It is not shuffle, collect three chips, and then shuffle again.

But then we don't have Greg, who goes all in on 6-2 against Peter.  And on the flop comes a 6 and then a 2.

At least this did not happen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SA6vbyPqqdg

Peter and I went to TJ's near Peter's house on Central.  He had garlic chicken wings and I tried the prime rib.  We like it there.  Anyone wanting to talk down the game and join us feel invited and well welcomed. They are very accommodating.  It is a popular place.

Well, perhaps next week we'll see some of you again.






 

Mohegan Sun

On the way down to Mohegan Sun, I stopped in East Hartford to try the Pho restaurant that Westie had recommended and found it fairly uncrowded. 
https://www.google.com/search?q=east+hartford+pho#q=PHO+501+East+Hartford,+CT&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAGOovnz8BQMDQyUHm5SQmYWlgamFpZGhgampkZmZibG5EhYxL-aCjPwg3tTE4hKFjMSikrT8opQoQRSuAlDFIUZVgwoLy1QzU-O0NHOz5BRzwzRLK6CQhXlaknEa0FyT5KSUpMSvbzsEXto6CPl_nPyV5bp7n_bmleoAQUrAH5YAAAA&rlst=n
No lines.  Plenty of parking.  It was about 10AM on July 5, a Sunday when everything was closed in the city. That probably helped.
I had rice noodles, but next time I'll ask for no noodles and just have the bean sprouts and so reduce the carbs. 
I added all the extras, the mint, the small hot peppers, the bean spouts. 
Everything was good.  $12 including tip.
The old gruff fellow taking my order had an air force cap. I could not see where it had come from.  I wondered if it were Tan Son Nhut Air Base.  I should have asked.

It dawns on me that with all the chicken soup base I cook myself from left over roasted chicken/turkey I should be able to make this Pho.  I grow my own mint.  I always have some sort of hot pepper.  I should buy some spices and experiment. 

Useful too was a Bank of America ATM just down the road where I could gather my bank account for the trip.
This is a nice little break as it is a bit beyond half way. 
 
I don't much enjoy the driving these days, but I did rearrange my CD's and have a huge selection now.  I took one of those old plastic towers and set it down between the front seats.  It makes a great caddy, and the tower easily sits up when I want to arrange the stow and go van seats.  I like it.  I just need a bit of velcro on the bottom. 
I used to like having the CD's on the visors, but I found over time they go scratched.  Keeping them in unmarked cases lets me take out one and put the one I just played in that case.  This seems to keep them in pretty good shape. 
I have used the Crosby record player to make CD copies of old swing records.  I'm pretty old school in technology.  I loved having these for the trip. Some great mixes of Big Band era music and not the old chestnuts we hear over and over. More obscure pieces, some I have never heard.  I also have a good bit of Sinatra, but I'm mostly playing Big Band between NPR reports of the Greek election on Euro Zone issues and other news. 
DAY ONE
I played at the casino and did really terrible, getting close to $300 down at live poker, moving between the 1-1 NL and the 2-4 limit games.  Then things go better and by the end of the day I was down just $111 on the poker, but lost more on the VP.

Hands I remember:

A-K   Two Aces flop and there is a K on the turn.  I don't bet because they are betting in to me, but I am not in good position.  On the river I sense I had better bet.  I toss in $25 and of the two players, one calls.  it was a nice pot.
Oddly, I had bet just the same way when I had nothing earlier with the same opponent.  That time he thought for quite a while and finally folded. 

"You must have had me beat." he said.
"Well, you never know," I answered and the table chuckled.
Perhaps this time he had to see it.
He was a friendly fellow with a very slight Scadinavian accent.  He was a good player and there all day.  I left, checked in to the room, came back and sat to his right again.

Pocket Aces on the 2-4 and pretty good betting.  It slows down so I senses I was in good shape.  I bet the river, have two callers and win.
A of spaces with X.  I catch the flush on the river.  The fellow right afterwards had K-X.  He just called the river.

The 1-1 was fairly full of regulars.  Louie was talkative and he got into it with a young fellow when Louis pointed out a string bet made by a young girl.  The young fellow gave up the verbal battle and on we went. 
Louie is doggedly narcissistic.

Moses and Julius played on the 2-4.  There were also two fellows there who were very funny, bull of banter and jokes and teases and even a some bits of song lyrics.  I had a good time with them.
And there was a woman from Oklahoma.

I liked the last 2-4 table.  I drank a good bit of the Copper Canyon cabernet wine and it was more of the kind of a party a 2-4 often is in Vegas.  I had good cards and won some money.

Generally, I move tables when the 1-1 is down to only a few players and they are all rocks so the pot is a few dollars.  Or when I've been there long enough that when I bet out, everyone folds.
I like 2-4 when it is full of passive callers and that is what happened at Mohegan Sun.  I can do my preflop button raises with suited connectors or with flop straight o flush draws and be fairly certain of not getting raised and getting a free card as well as confusing everyone when I raise after the flop, check when they wait for me to bet the turn, and the reraise them if I catch on the river.  Sometimes that $2 raise preflop will let me see two free cards.  A player who might have bet his/her high pair after the flop will wait until the river and by then I'm out.
I am not certain chasing straights and flushes or both in late position is the best play, but it is fun to be in that action.  And when I'm lucky, I generally get paid.

Raising and then folding also breaks up my otherwise fairly tight play, so my table image is not as a rock.

I went to find the 9/6 JOB that a poster on one of the boards had mentioned.  I thought it was at the Bow and Arrow bar, and so I found my way to that end of the casino.  It was not at the bar, but it was in that area.  This was fine as I did not want to play at the bar, or drink anymore, but to sober up so that I could drive to the hotel with no issues if stopped.

I had the worst hand I ever remember.

I was playing 8/5 Bonus and dealt A-K-Q of diamonds and another Q.  The correct strategy is to hold the pair of Q's.  I did that. The next two cards were 10-J of diamonds.  Had I played the incorrect strategy, I'd have hit the royal.

I ended up down $80 and so down $191 for the day.  Not a good day, but it was a long day, so not terrible.  I am not certain if this earns any points of any sort.  It does not earn what they call Momentum Dollars but it might earn something.  The little signs are too hard to read in the dark.

I did like the feel of the casino late at night on Sunday, the end of the holiday weekend.  Plenty of pretty girls and interesting colors and shapes.  There was not much live music offered over these couple days.

The Super 8 room

This was still the rock bottom cheapest I could find.  July 5-6 for a total of $103 booked on booking.com so that I could have cancelation without penalty.  Super 8 booked at their site often offers no chance of cancelation.

I don't think booking on booking.com always gets me the Wyndam points, but instead of asking, I just gave them the Wyndam card with my credit card and they punched in my number. So perhaps I will get points.

I like the position of this casino because late at night it is easy to find without traffic.  I leave Mohegan, go straight to 2East, turn right on 12 and go directly there.  In the middle of the day I got twisted up and went 2West and my GPS got me there eventually but with highway traffic and a roundabout route.  I need to remember just to go the easy way. 

The clerk remembered my complaint about the broken light last trip, and I asked her that if she knew of a room where everything worked, that was the one I wanted.
She gave me a nice end room and the second floor 227.  I'll ask for that room by number next trip.

Of the three lights, one is missing a blub.
However, I don't need it and everything else does work.  The room is comfortable, clean, and quiet.
I did not go down for breakfast as I'm making tea and chicken soup in the room and hoping to go back for a short nap before heading out today. 

I like having the microwave and heating up my home made chicken soup.  I can't remember and did not make note of whether I had that last trip. 
This time I have a king bed and slept well, but had some tough dreams probably based on eating just before going to bed.

The hotel is underbooked this trip.  There were more people on my last visit.  

The television worked well to entertain while I had food even though it did not carry Turner Classic Movies.
I did not go down for the breakfast at all the first morning but made tea and soup in my room.


********************************
DAY TWO

I slept quite well here.  I had some strange dreams, and of course I woke up at the same early time, but I felt rested and as it turned out I gambled from about 11 until midnight at one thing or another.

I was bought in for $200 almost immediately.  I start with only 60, but there were a few tough hands.  In one I held a small flush on the turn that needed a five of hearts for the straight flush and a potential high hand award of several hundred dollars.
My opponent bet $20 on a river king of hearts.  He had the Ace along with the five I hoped to catch.  I should have folded, but I had not played long enough with this fellow to know that he did not bluff.
For those of you used to no limit games, that might seem like a very small bet.  Actually, it is a substantial bet in this game. 
The rest of my losses were all bleeding.  Did I play too loose?  Maybe.
However, I soon got all that back and made a profit in spite of drinking 5 glasses of the Copper Ridge cabernet. 
I know it is not good to be tipsy and play no limit, but in this 1-1 game it matters less than in a high stakes game.  There is less bluffing to read. 
Sometimes I think being a bit drunk helps my table image.  In limit it loosens up my opponents and tightens me because along with the wine I become quite talkative and so the dull wait between playable cards is diminished.  Either that, or I just rationalize.
But for me the experience is not at all about winning big money and not always about the poker.  I like the interaction with strangers, the banter, the joking, the stories.  At this table I get to tell my newest joke:

"What do you call a prisoner who looks down on everyone as he walks down a staircase."
"A condescending con..........descending."

Then when there are groans I can follow with,
"Yeah you groan now, but you'll be telling it all week."

When my pocket jacks flop trips and I slow play them and even get a $12 call on the river, and everyone talks about how much they hate jacks, I get to say:

"Well, there are four ways to play pocket jacks...............................................
and they are all wrong."

At a 1-1 game of strangers I have the right audience.  These guys are not quoting Dan Harrington or figuring pot odds to the dollar.  They will talk a bit about the death of Andy Griffith and repeat a few old scenes.  They talk a bit about Trump's speech.

And my old jokes are often new to them.

At any rate, if I am going to drink, it has to be in the afternoon.  Unlike Vegas, where I can stumble on a bus, here I have to leave and drive sober, so the drinking is before the buffet. 
And that fits my diet as well.  Red wine will lower my blood sugar if I over indulge in the buffet.
I went to the buffet just before the price went up at 4 PM.  They had a Facebook special discount (M to F you say Facebook or Twitter...a verbal coupon, my favorite kind.)   With my points, or Momentum dollars, or whatever builds on the card,  I ended up paying under $5.
I am still not certain if that is all live poker or if the full pay VP adds value to my meals.

There seemed to be even more things on my diet there.  One medley of peppers and onions was just great.  I put the meatballs and sauce on that.  I had a slice of the end of beef, all crunchy and full of the spices they use.  I had a tiny piece of the fried chicken. The sugar free cheese cake and the mousse were there again and very good.  Next time I'll ask immediately for a carafe of coffee as that is about two cups and then I don't have to wait. Service was fine, but still not like having the coffee right there. 
I carry in my own Truvia.  Once my Truvia and Stevia are depleted, I may be carrying in leaves of the two Stevia plants I pot planted this last week. I can't do sugar and I won't do these carcinogenic substitutes whenever I can remember the more natural sweetener. 
My sister-in-law has a new sweetener for me to try.  And I'm going to try Yacon Syrup as well.
I tasted a few fried clams and shrimp.  The clams I mixed with roasted cauliflower and a bit of Frank's hot sauce and that was a very good combination.

After supper I wanted to let the last of the wine play out, so I slowly played a bit more of video poker and lost $40 and then went back in the early evening for poker. 
 
First I was on a 2-4 table, but I did not like the ambiance there.  I won the one and only hand I played with most of the table in,  but when they called me for a new 1-1, I went to that table. 
These were very friendly and easy players, but more skilled than the earlier games.  And two to my right was a young fellow whose style was erratically aggressive on purpose. 
I could not put him on hands, and so did not know what to do. 
He left for a while, and that made the table easier.  He then came back. 
Two poor players had by this time lost all their money.
One was a really sad call.  He held the 7 for a straight but could get beat by 7-J or J-Q and it was crystal clear that one of the two opponents pushing all-in had one of those hands. Last to act on the river he called over $50.
He asked about the hand and the table was kind, but he wanted to know.  I explained to him how in the best case scenario he would split the pot three ways, and in the best guess, he had lost. 
Too bad.  He was a friendly kid.

 I was tired, the table now was a totally tough group, and I figured everyone had my tight style down, so I went to play more video poker. 
I had made almost $100 at that table before I left. 
I like having the flexibility here to move from a 1-1 to a 2-4 and now to some VP.  I'm convinced that table selection in these low games is key to everything.

I think overall I did well in the poker because in all my play during the first two days, I can't remember having a full house or better.  Much of my winning was lucky river. 
Take this hand.
I have K-J and a J X X flops. The J stays high on the turn and nothing else connects.  I make small bets and they are called. On the river comes my K and I make a large bet.  It too is called.  My main opponent held A-J and had me right up until the K hit. 
Here too my tight table image helped me.  He never tried a raise, figuring if I were betting, I had more than top pair.

My rivers were like that. 

One good hand I played A-9.  I caught two pair on the turn after calling small bets.  I still just called.  On the river both of my opponents checked.  I bet $25.  They both called.  Each had two pair smaller than mine.   One had K-8 and another A-3.  I know that $25 does not seem like very much to NL players, but in this game it was a large bet.  I made that river bet only a few times this week.  I won each time, one time stealing a pot with nothing. 

I then played VP for about 3 hours on $100, went up and down and in the end I was up $5.   That 2 pair payout really helped me grind from quad to quad.  I'm hoping I get some points or something for all that coin in.  In Vegas I'd be getting room offers. 
I played so long because I found a fine full pay, new game in the smoke free area (with the help from a board friend) and it was just a very comfortable game.  I like to use the buttons rather than touch the screen and all these buttons worked.  I really liked it.  Earlier it was dominated by some regular who gave me bad looks when he saw me checking pay tables in that area. 
Drink service was slow.  Otherwise it was great.
Max Coins on these machines is 25 quarters. I play just 5, but  there is one button near the deal button that says, "Bet Max" 
At one point some pretty girls came around the machines bantering with their fellows, and I got a little distracted.  I was watching them and listening to their banter. 
All of a sudden I noticed that there was a leap in my dollar amount when I hit two pair.  Apparently I had by mistake hit the Max Coin and then whenever I hit the Deal button, I was betting 25 coins. 
I was lucky.  I won a bit and pulled myself out of a losing slump with that error.

After I was too tired to play any sort of game, I walked over and watched the roulette for a while.  It is such a colorful game and the wheel is just such a graceful machine.  I love it.  I never bet it, however.  Too much house advantage.  But I love to watch.  This one was particularly clean.  It looked very new.  The colors were all very intense.
I played $20 in assorted slot, but was not impressed with them.  Some I played just a few pennies.  There would be no hits at all.  In Vegas I can be in this mood and play a game like Texas Tea at the El Cortez and it will hit here and there for a few cents and give me that entertainment.  I ended on an old reel machine taking 2 quarters and just paying the top hand 5.000 quarters.  I was up and down.  But I lost my $20.

Part of me wanted to stay later, but the rest of me was overtired.  One of my earlier opponents in a very colorful shirt came and shook my hand.  He had lost the tournament and was getting it back on the blackjack.  He seemed new to poker. 

On the way out I noticed the large dome of a light just before the elevators.  It is really wonderfully colorful.  I don't think the newer casinos coming in Schenectady or Springfield will have the ambiance of this casino where décor is unique and well considered.
 

 LAST DAY

This last day really put a sour spoil on the trip for me. 
I lost all my bankroll, down about $600.  I got a bit grumpy.  The dealer misheard me say "Call" when I tossed a $5 chip and counted it as a raise which was reraised.   I got grumpier.   I should have just used a quiet one chip rule.  I'll not play without some ones again so I can put in the pot exactly what I want to put, and I'll check what I say with the dealer's perception before I push. 
Then I had pocket 3's and a fellow turned his cards over on the fold preflop.  One was a 3. I was big blind, but there was a raise to $3 and so I folded.
A 3 flopped.  It would have won.
After the hand someone said something about more 3's and I said there were not more because I had folded pocket 3's.  A fellow next to me said sarcastically, " I really doubt that."
I now this is poker, but why would I lie and being called a liar twice in a row, really broiled my beans and I said so.
Then another fellow had something wise to say a bit later after he showed cards that I missed and I just asked what he had.  Perhaps he just wanted to rattle me. In any case, I just picked up my chips and left.  What I had left over I put through the double bonus VP.  No mirables, so I went home.
I played a bit more video poker and nothing.
The drive home was fine, however.  No traffic. Easy roads.  I was not so tired.  I wave very glad to see my quiet old house and the calm lake and make a cheese sandwich.  I slept very well.

It will be while now before I go again.
I have to reserve my bankroll for Vegas.
I got $60 back at the home game the next day.  That was good. 

Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Gregg's game reviewed

It was a very sparse group at Greg's this week.  Only four of us.  Jim returned. 
I was up and down and ended up $27 ahead.
Jim made a few dollars even with some banking troubles
Greg won some money this week.  Did very well on just one buy-in
Peter was the big loser.  $94 down.

I felt comfortable going all in with J-J, only Jim had Q-Q  and Greg had K-K.  Nothing developed and Greg took a very good pot.
Greg got me again when I went all in after the turn.  I had flopped a Q high heart flush.  Greg had flopped the K high flush. 
Greg took the high hand with Aces full of Jack's and it held up.  I took a nice pot from Jim with Aces full of 10's when he had Broadway.  He called a healthy bet, putting me on a bluff.  
I won the last hand with 2-3 offsuit.  My pair of 3's held up.  Small winnings, but fine way to end the day.

New art was up.  Very interesting.  You must come and see it.
NO  pole dancer this week.

The music was very nice, interesting and low key.  Jim had background on the groups as always.

We missed the rest of you .  Four is not my favorite game. 
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OTHER GAMBLING CHATTER

This fellow entered the wrong tournament and did not know it until the first 5 cards were dealt.  However, in the end he won.

http://www.newser.com/story/208283/guy-enters-pro-poker-event-by-mistake-wins-81k.html

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Those of you wondering about Phil.  Here is a Father's Day photo.  Hi, Phil.  Come play with us.    Bring the youngster.



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I like the Bravo Poker phone app, but it is not accurate.  It says it is 107 miles to Turning Stone from my house.  Goggle says 125 miles.  It ways 108 miles to Mohegan Sun.  Goggle says 147. 
Still, I was surprised how the trip is really a toss up.  I like Mohegan so much better and it is just 22 miles farther.  It always feels longer, especially going home, but I think my mind considers Albany my destination and from Turning Stone Albany merely gets me off the super highways for another 30 minutes.
 
Now I am wondering if I can trust the Bravo Poker numbers on tables currently playing and waiting lists.  I hope it is accurate for Vegas games.
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MY SEPTEMBER VEGAS TRIP FINALLY FULLY BOOKED

The more I think about getting this settled, the better I feel.  My trip starts with a 40th birthday party for my son and so a meetup of 5 sons and assorted friends.   That will go just three days with everyone and then my wife, who rarely joins me, will stay out the week.  We cash booked the Gold Coast for all that time. The heated pool is a draw.  Inexpensive food as well.  We may have a car for some of it as the boys are planning a family trip out to Red Rock Canyon. 
I often book the Gold Coast for the days of the trip I won't gamble.  Prices are good.  And in spite of not gambling there, they often toss me a couple free nights in an outreach mailer.  And at least one buffet there is free, the ACG coupon with 250 points earned.
This week a mailing from the Gold Coast saved me $150 by cutting the weekend price in half.  Nice.  Especially since I give them practically no action.

I then have two freebies at the Orleans, over a Young at Heart Day, so I'll eat there for free and get a good taste of my favorite Nite Kings in the lounge.  The Young at Heart promos are now extended into the evening, and that will give more flexibility to my day, especially if I get a good multiplier on the swipe promo or win so I can keep playing.  There I just play the triple nickel progressives.  Good fun and not very expensive,  just 75 cents a pull.  9/7 DB is enhanced by the Royal progressives for each line and a huge one were I to get a dealt royal.

Then I do the Excalibur for one day and use up MyVegas points at the Aria buffet, so those meals will be free.

Then I stay at a  B and B on a small street just off Maryland near Flamingo. This will give me a chance to do laundry, relax if I want with no casinos.  Walk down to a local inexpensive show at the Onyx Theater.  Relax in a Jacuzzi.  I get a room with a private bath for $50 a night and so cover the expense of a weekend with no gambling.  This is a new experience for me.

I'll probably head up to Sam's Town for the afternoon free show and then over to Eastside Cannery for a free buffet and wine.  I may play poker in either place.   I probably will give the full pay nickel Deuces a run if there is a seat.  I understand they reduced them to just two machines.
Then Palace Station where I can do a buffet a day on MyVegas points and seed my play in dimes to see if that will generate any mailings or not.
Then Two nights at the D on a 2 for 1 rates, but higher than in the past because of the Life is Beautiful and the new policy of charging resort fee on the one paid night.  Coupons usually come with the rooms there and they get me a light free breakfast.  8/5 progressive Bonus will be the draw there with Golden Nugget live poker after 2 AM when the high hand awards double.
Poker vouchers with 4 hours of play  get me a cheap Golden Nugget buffet.
And finally 4 nights at the 4 Queens at casino rate, but with one night already paid by comp dollars from the last trip and a second probably can be reached by a mailer, in spite of the weekend being that Life is Beautiful festival.
This was not expected to be a frugal trip, especially with the rather pricey Gold Coast booking.  But now all the planning does seem to have generated a very affordable trip.
Now if I can just win when I gamble.

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Thursday, June 25, 2015

Gregg's Game I got sick

Poker players at Gregg's games.
YOU MAKE ME SICK!!


Or perhaps it was something I ate earlier.
For the entire game, this migraine built a pot in my brain.
By the time I left, I was sweating and very, very uncomfortable.
Peter drove to his house.
I drove from there.
Well,
I got as far as Burden Lake road before my stomach decided to go all-in. I was happy not to have "pushed" earlier, say in heavy traffic.
I won $42 at poker and after I pay for the van to be detailed, I'll only be down about $100.  Not bad.

Elizabeth certainly enjoyed taking the hose to the van  interior, filling the washing machine with my clothes, fixing hot towels for my head.
She was very sweet about it.
It was the only bit of sweetness in my afternoon and evening.
I slept.
I still have a bit of a headache, but it is passing.
I haven't checked yet, but I'm betting that I lowered my blood sugar today.


****************************
The game was sparsely attended:   Charlie, Gregg, Dewey, Peter, Ezzy with only four of us in the last hour.
Charlie splashed the pot with pepper and basil plants.  Thanks, Charlie.  Charlie banked and brought music and was kind enough to give me a bit of quiet for my headache during the last half hour of the game.

I suggested that we extend the high hand award until 4:30 this week.  At the time I was the high hand with some weak jack high flush.  Peter hit a fine full house, but at 4:25 I hit Jacks full of sevens, calling Peter's bluff off bet and taking the $10 high hand award.  As a result, Peter ended down $4.

Gregg just gave away money all afternoon again and was a good sport about it. 
Ezzy did well, but I don't know if he showed a profit.
Charlie showed a profit and better yet his banking came out right to the quarter.

There was no new museum art up as promised   There were some arches of white flowing fabric.
"Are we going to have a dance?" Charlie asked.

Gregg is thinking of getting a pole dancer for the next game.

I had great cards, but I can't remember sh$$t .
Vomit I can remember, but not sh$$t

Except flopping broadway to Peter's flopped lower straight from the nine.

See more of you next week, I hope.  Just now I'm going back to bed.
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OTHER GAMBLING CHATTER


I like this site for 1-2 and maybe 1-1 information.  Most poker books and information just don't stay with me, but some of the simplistic arguments here make sense.  They probably don't fit Gregg's game.  The most surprising was the advice not to play K-J  Q- 10 and I'm thinking about it.

Meanwhile kid Frank sent me for Father's Day a great book on poker.  I reviewed it here


Atlantic City (Revel) sent me two free nights in June, but it took me all this month to decide to book it for the end of June and they are all sold out.  It was through Mohegan Sun somehow.  Probably good for me just to hang by the water and fish, saving bankroll for the real trips.

After almost depleting MyVegas points when I bought the Station rooms, I am back to 188,000 which is more than enough for some free food or perhaps a show ticket if Elizabeth wants to see one in September or October.  I will stay in November at Excalibur for a week, so I can eat at Aria three times if I want.  To use the freebies at Mlife casinos, I have to be staying at one of them.
I only play for less than 20 minutes every week or so, starting at a point where a new game starts and ending at a point where I know they will begin to bleed away my playing chips.  However, everytime I'm on computer I collect chips and spin for chips once a day so that I can start my 20 minute sessions well bankrolled with a million or two playing chips.
My next trip I have 3 nights totally free at Palace Station and one at Exalibur and in November 2 nights at Red Rock and one at Excalibur.  Station casinos use a lot of chips, but cover the resort fees as well.  Excalibur was $22 for resort fee but it has gone up to $28.  ridiculous really.

Going just once a year, the chips that can be redeemed will build up nicely for me. 

Here is an interesting thread based on a guy who went to Vegas and was very disappointed.  The comments afterward give some good retorts to his sour experience.

The forum itself is great for Vegas discussion and information with the boards divided by topic for ease in skimming.  Folks who post generally know what they are talking about and interpersonal abuse is just not tolerated by the Board Moderator and so very rare and short lived