I'm back from Atlantic City, got back Saturday night after a long wait to get a bus due to the weather in the Northeast.

I promise to write a real trip report and summary of everything that went down. It was awesome being there, and sort of bittersweet to be back. Right now I'm contemplating how much it sucked that I failed my Diff EQs test and my Physics quiz and how I didn't do any work over spring break. Oops.

Highlights of the trip included
- finishing 6th in the $50+10 with $50 addon morning tournament at the Borgata for ~$1445
- playing 3/6 Omaha H/L Stud H/L (OE or 2-Way as they call it) for a while at the Taj
- straddling (no straddle in AC, so technically a blind raise) in my last hand in the Trop pink chip game and capping it, squeezing out 2 paint cards on the QTxx turn and finding KK during the showdown to take down a huge pot
- my awesome room and setup at the Trop.

Lowlights included
- the chip leader denying a 6 way chop for $3.5k-ish and then me busting in a IMO must push situation with 87s on the button with about 8 big blinds left and the chip leader picking up JJ and missing my outs on a 7-high inside straight draw flop
- going card dead in the $250+30 Friday morning tournament I decided to play at the Borgata because of the awesome structure and the wad in my pocket
- losing over $350 in no-limit right before I left due to the buses being cancelled at a horrible (read: juicy) table, going finally broke when a guy called my $75 allin bet on an A564 board with 24 and cracked my AK
- losing my KNK player of the year chip protector at the Trop after getting up when the pink chip game got bad (read: players who had my number), and the Trop not caring even after I talked to the floor people about it more than three times.

Sooo back to the grind in real life and away from the poker table. It was fun being there but I'm glad to be back to normalcy, I think.

Tags: atlantic city, life, poker
Current Mood: tired

So far Atlantic City is dope.

When I got my room, I started walking down the hall and found that it was all the way at the end of the hall, but had two numbers in front of the door. Hmm, maybe I have roommates? I open the door and it's a small room with two separate doors/rooms. Interesting. Makes me feel like I have my own little private suite. Open the door to my room and the room is quite nice. Lots of furnishings, big king size bed, two bed size chairs and a table, large bathroom and mirror to put my makeup on at (hehe). It's a lot better than that motel I stayed at with Bill. It's also very nice to be able to walk up to your hotel room after playing poker till 5am.

The games have been interesting. I hadn't got much sleep the night before, and napped a tiny bit on the bus but not much, probably about 4 hours total, so I was fairly tired but didn't feel it till much later, and by then I had a few cokes in me so I didn't feel it. I started playing 4/8 down at the Trop, and got raped, down $140 in about an hour. That's not supposed to happen, it's only 4/8 limit! I was paying off way too much, especially when I could call out the guys cards on the turn. I kind of knew it but just wanted to see it to make sure "my reads were right".

Then that game broke, they started an Omaha at the same table five minutes later and that was a lot of fun until the tournament started. $40+10 with a $40 addon, I didn't get anywhere or get many hands, busted with AK v 99 with a little more than 10 big blinds at 3/6/75. Their structure isn't that good, they have a 75/150 but go from that to 100/200/25 and without a 150/300 level. I might not play too many more tournaments at the Trop, but might try to play a Taj/Borgata/Hilton tournament if I get a chance.

After busting I think I mosied around until the pink chip, 7.50/15 game started, we played pretty much shorthanded for a while, this one asian chick who apparently deals at the Taj was playing, it started off slow (no rake when it started), but as the pit boss said he had a feeling. I was doing really well, and I believe it was after I had played Omaha for 30 minutes in between that I switched back to the pink chip game and went on a huge rush. I hit more than a few sets and got paid off, etc. Started with about $400 and was up to $700+ at some points, which is not only a lot of money but a lot of chips, when one stack of 20 is only $50. I was having fun building a castle.

The game went on for a while, mainly 4 and 5 handed, from about 2-5. There was a huge old fish who didn't seem to know what he was doing playing before than, but there were some okay seeming but loose players playing as well. There was one guy who seemed to have my number, a middle-aged asian guy who didn't ever crack a smile even after I tried playing around and getting him to talk. There are some people at a poker table who you just can't get to talk. 

And then some who talk too much, like the two guys who sat down at about 4am. These two got into a verbal poker pissing match of sorts without being too aggressive, and decided to play 10/20 Half Omaha/Half Stud H/L after I left and the game broke up. Not surprisingly, the stolid Asian didn't seem to enjoy their antics and decided not to play. I went down to the room after waking up at about 1pm and they are still playing the game. If they were playing 5/10 I'd probably play but I'm dead money in Stud H/L.

I think I'm going to go back down to the Trop (I'm at a cyber cafe about a block down from the Trop), and play there again since the room was a bit busier than yesterday, and maybe go somewhere else later in the week. I do need some breakfast though.

Anyways, 
games are good, 
send money, 
love Ryan.

Tags: atlantic city, poker
Current Location: AC Cyber Cafe

It's official. I'm going down to Atlantic City for spring break. Staying at the Tropicana, got the poker room rate for four nights, Monday through Thursday at $55 per + tax. Should be a little more than $200 total. Taking Greyhound down again for $65 total. Going by myself (as of now).

Wheeeeee!

Tags: atlantic city, fun, life, poker
Current Mood: cheerful
Current Music: Matt Nathanson - Little Victories > America

So, I'm going to write a "short" poker post to tie up some loose ends. There's a big post about college stuff I want to write, but I don't want a post filled with poker junk to be a post sitting on here for a few weeks.

If you hadn't guessed, no I didn't win a WPT seat that day. It was totally insane at Foxwoods that day though, being one of the first days of the events started. The ladies event was playing in one of the ballrooms, and the tournament area was apparently being used for Act's and they even had tables upstairs where the slots/pit is for the Act III. It was a madhouse, the line for the tournament area was huge and confusing, and the games were packed. Supposedly the 1/2 NL list was like 40 people deep at one point.

So they had to bring in new tables upstairs in the slot area. The lighting was horrible, which isn't a problem for me but many of the old guys were complaining about it. It was very dim and felt strange. The tables also didn't have shuffle machines, but the dealers I had weren't that bad. The decks were different too, Gemaco's but index sized, with a strange flourescent kind of color on the back. At least they weren't getting marked like the other ridiculous decks they have for the other tournaments.

The tournament went horrible, I was in seat 1 and quite uncomfortable. No drink holder, tables seemed smaller. I kept losing my notebook and my Eeyore card capper and eventually just ditched Eeyore and starting holding on to my cards. There weren't too many eventful hands.

I got minraised once with TT, flop came Jack high and I folded like a pussy. Against the same guy though I made a move after he raised my BB and I had J9s, the flop came undercards and I check-raised and bet the turn with nothing. Very risky but I felt like getting aggressive.

Then at 100/200 with AK I got a called in late position and the big blind who seemed tight/agg but was playing hands strangely. The BB took a while to call, I think with a marginal hand based on pot oods and the flop came J99. The guy in late position had like 1550 left and I decided to bet 1500, figuring he has something like KQ and will fold. He goes all-in and the other guy folds and the late position has AA. *puke* Oops. I don't know if the continuation bet is horrible just because he has AA here (I think he has a hand like KQ, AQ, AT, 77, a lot more often here), but I was at least correct that the BB didn't hit.

Then with like 2k ish left I find JJ and push after a late position raised my SB and he calls with K9 and hits a K in the window and a 9 on the flop. Blarg.

After that, I played the 1/2 NL, stacked the same guy twice with KK and AA or something or other, playing a big pot with JJ when I raised in early and got reraised after 2 people called by a guy making it 23. I wasn't sure what to do but I knew I at least had to call, probably raising was a better move, but I didn't want to be making it 100 pre-flop and running into a big decision. I had just sat down. I called, we were 4 to a flop and it came 986 2 clubs and I made it 100. The girl to my left called and Ace came on the turn. I checked she checked, and the river missed the club draw. At this point I was pretty sure the girl didn't have an Ace and had missed her club draw. I checked to her, she bet 75 and I called and she had Kx of clubs. A lot of people felt it was a good call but I think it was automatic. If she goes all-in on the turn I'm fucked though and probably fold.

I should of been up like $200 but I made a bunch of stupid retarded bluffs. Once I decided to make a move with overs and a guy went all-in instantly, said he had a set. At least 3 bluffs/plays at a pot failed. I met a guy I've played with a few times in the Providence/Johnston game, Jeremy, and there were a few poorly played hands of mine against him. Bluffed into him once and he only called with something like the 4th nuts to be nice. I dumped off $60 or so there, and then I folded when there was a straight on the board, I had checked behind him on the flop blind and flopped two pair but the turn was some stupidly horrible card for me that made a 4-card straight and the board put the King high straight on the board and he bet with nada and I folded the board, figuring he had an Ace.


So, I'm going to Atlantic City with Bill from the Friday night poker game. We had been planning a trip since what, August/September, but being the procrastinator I am, I was lazy to work on finishing trip specifics, where we'd be staying, if we'd drive or find another way (the biggest problem, because my car won't make it and my parents ended up deregistering the two cars I could take). X was planning on going but because we/I was lazy he had bills to pay and so couldn't go.

We settled on taking Greyhound from Providence > NY > AC. It was only $130 combined for the Casino fare, and supposedly we get some coupon from Bally's, so that's actually a quite good setup. I've said I would prefer to drive but being able to just "relax" on the bus isn't bad either. It takes about 2-3 hours more, probably smells bad, and costs sort of more, with more logistical variables, but it's not a bad deal.

We're staying at the Crown Motel, some dump next to the Taj Mahal. It was about $290 including some stupid $40 surcharge for booking from some site online. Hopefully everything just goes smoothly in that area. All the casino rooms were booked and super expensive anyway, although if we had booked earlier we could of got a decent room for like $160 each or something or other.

We're planning on trying to play at atleast the Borgata, the Taj, and the Tropicana, the three big poker rooms in the city. Bill is more a tournament player and doesn't play cash games much so we're going to try to play at least 3 tournaments together, although I'm going to try to play some of the 5/10, 6/12, maybe the 7.50/15 pink chip game at the Trop in between, while he plays some penny slots I guess, and tries out some of the good buffets.

Hopefully things go smoothly, and we don't get mugged, as one of the guys I play with on Saturday's warned me about. I'm optimistic, I have to think that the chance of getting in big trouble is slim, like getting a 1-outer or 2-outer at most. He was telling me at night it is really shady, and maybe thinking about opening a hotel account or Western Unioning money back if I win big.


Anyways, it's certainly going to be interesting. My bankroll has shrank. My total life bankroll. It's only less than 6k right now. I haven't played a lot of poker online since all the stupid legislation crap and playing at Foxwoods has definitely hurt. Playing those satellites was truly a bad idea, given that I probably couldn't have even sold $1k of myself if I had won. I just hope I don't run super bad at Atlantic City because I don't know if I could recover in such a short time span, especially since I'm on a trip with the intention of playing poker.

Tags: atlantic city, foxwoods, money, poker