Poker-Free Intermission (Vegas Trip Report Pt 4)
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Part 4 already and we aren't even done with Friday.
Once I realized that I was ditched at the MGM poker room, I took the opportunity to roam back to the hotel slowly. I hit the beautiful Nevada sun and took a minute to enjoy what little sunshine I'd see. I resolved then and there to wake up early on Saturday to get some time in the sun. I may be a pasty sonuvabitch, but I'd be damned if I came home to NY from Las Vegas even pastier.
Once inside I got the plan via text message. We were all heading to Freemont Street, and in the meanwhile some of the guys were heading to get some grub from the buffet. I had enough of the buffet action and joined Robbie and Randy Hole for some food at the cafe in Excalibur. I hadn't eaten since breakfast and it was fairly late by the time we ate dinner. I like me some food, but somehow poker can supplant that urge. If I'm hungry, I get up to eat...unless I'm playing poker.
Dinner was what dinner always is in these places. Perfectly adequate. We then went to play some tables, while I kept an eye on my Mets/Yankees bets. The Mets were ahead, but it looked like there was no way they were going to hit the 8.5 over, 3 to 2 in the bottom of the 7th. Meanwhile, we kept the drinks coming. We first attempted some Pai Gow Poker, but the table was shut down while a guy was getting a big payout. He had $9 on the bonus and was dealt 5 Aces, for 1,000 to 1 odds (for players unfamiliar with Pai Gow, there is one wild card that can be played to make a straight, flush or otherwise is just considered an Ace).
So off we went to Carribean Stud. What a waste of dough these things are. That said, I won back all of my table losses when I hit a full house for a $175 payout. I think I had maybe $15 on the table in bets, so I took the dough and joined the rest of the group, now hanging at the bar.
Somewhere before this, I had won part of my Mets/Yanks wagers. The Mets were able to win, but fell short of the 8.5 run over. That left me with a $18 win on my Mets to Win wager, but $30 in losses on my Over and Mets/Over parlay wagers. My ticket was for MGM, so I resolved to return there the next day. Meanwhile, I went over to the sportsbook to lay another wager. This time, I focused on the upcoming playoff game between the San Antonio Spurs and the Phoenix Suns. The Spurs were leading the series 3-1, so I decided to go with the team with momentum, placing two bets, for the Spurs to win and a Spurs/Over 200.5 parlay.
Roose had wanted to see more of Vegas, so me, Roose, Robbie Hole, Randy Hole and Scotty caught a cab downtown. Scotty peppered the driver with all sorts of questions regarding the bachelor party scene in Vegas. The driver seemed only slightly creeped out.
Upon arrival, we made our way down the street. Randy was underwhelmed by the Freemont Street Experience, a video screen that makes up a sorta roof over the entire block. Of course, at the time, there was no video playing, so its not much of a surprise that he was underwhelmed. We walked a bit until Robbie Hole stopped at an Oxygen Bar kiosk. If you've never seen one, its basically like a bar where you order scented Oxygen. You put on a tube under your nose and breathe away. I must admit that I was a bit shocked that Robbie chose to pay for air. I was enjoying the air for free and hoped to get more air comped back at the hotel for a late night breathing session! But while he settled in, I went to the Binion's poker room to check out the scene.
I had been to Binions once before. The carpet looked newer and the place was fairly clean, but there is an undeniable dirtiness to the whole thing. The poker room was buzzing, but the only NL game was an uncapped 1/2 game. Uncapped! Ridiculous. I'm not playing 1/2 NL with a guy buying in for $1000. I scoped out the tournament situation, but the only thing interesting was at 2pm on Saturday, and I knew I'd be doing something else by then.
I met up with some of the guys at the Binions bar. To my surprise, a few minutes later, Jack Roose (Dave's dad) and Kousin Kenny showed up. We had a couple of drinks and watched as the bucking bronco machine was ridden by a succession of cowboy-looking dudes. It was nothing like the picture of the bucking bronco posted by the entrance. At least that pic involved a hot broad in short shorts and a cropped top. Somehow, the cowboy dudes were a lot less interesting. I looked over at a monitor and saw that the Spurs won, and the score was well over 210, for a nice $50+ win. At least my sports bets were coming in.
When we left Binions, we bumped into Ilan the G-Lan and Justin. They had apparently also made their way down. Both were already drinking big beers in a football shaped plastic container. Roose got one too as we waited for the official Freemont Street Experience to begin. Meanwhile, a guy was setting up for a street performance. He was going to do 25 vocal signing impressions in 18 minutes. His assistant announced, "If you are a fan of Dean Martin, come get our new Dean Martin covers CD for just $10." Randy mumbled under his breath, "If you are a Dean Martin fan, wouldn't you just buy a Dean Martin CD?" Checkmate!
The Experience was...well, experienced. It was very uneventful. The visuals were interesting, but the show needs some sort of overarching theme or story. Instead its just a bunch of fucked up visuals.
Jumping ahead...
A couple of us wanted to head back to the hotel. We split up, with the club hoppers catching a limo. Jack, Kousin Kenny, Robbie Hole, me and maybe one other person, headed back to the hotel. It was late, after 3am easily, but I decided to play some more poker. To keep it easy, I chose to stay in Excalibur. That was my first mistake.
More to come, starting off with my late night poker session at the Excal. Until next time, make mine poker!
posted by Jordan @ 11:37 PM,
4 Comments:
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At 2:32 PM,
KajaPoker said...
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HoP, once again you have me shaking my head in dismay. For all your hardcore AC research looks like you didn't do the same for LV.
Anyone can tell you that the Freemont experience is a waste of time (as is most of downtown and The Gulch for sure). At least FREEmont was free.
Where are all the hot clubs (non-stripper)? The drunken girls? You can get a good grind from a drunk girl for free as well. And they probably not have the C-section scars. And they will probably tongue you till they feel your tonsils are intact.
Where's the awesome golf? The triple SoCo shots while holding on to the side of a runaway golf cart? -
At 2:41 PM,
Jordan said...
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Damn, Kaja, I didn't expect you to take things so personally. First off, I was on a trip with a bunch of people, so I went with the flow. I knew Freemont sucked, but I wanted to let my buddy see it first hand. This was his first time in Vegas and he wanted to see Freemont, so who am I to argue. Second, I'd prefer strippers to drunk girls. I'm married, so having a stripper sit on my lap = okay; having a drunk girl sit on my lap = not okay. Third, I don't play golf, but the other guys do. They still didn't arrange to pay though.
Does that answer your questions? I actually did a lot of research, but ultimately I had to go with the group and what was easiest. Frankly, all I care about is poker and hanging with my buds, so the other stuff, like strippers or clubbing or going fine dining, just wasn't that important to me. -
At 11:23 AM,
KajaPoker said...
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HoP, don't get your panties in a bunch. It's all good natured ribbing. Probably fueled by complete jealousy that you were in Vegas for a weekend and I was building playsets in the backyard at 100 degree heat and getting splinters.
And if you want to see a really lame bachelor party in Vegas you can head down the time machine to see me and 3 of my groomsmen who are not big gamblers, not big drinkers and have no idea what to do when a stripper pins her nipples to your ears.
I had 2 hours of sleep in 3 days, played 5am golf on my own (twice) and ended up playing poker at Circus Circus (don't ask).
Jealousy is the best form of flattery?
I actually really enjoy the trip reports. -
At 11:42 AM,
Jordan said...
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Haha. I get it, Kaja. Don't get me wrong, either. I wasn't insulted. Those were good points, though, so I wanted to address them.
