blonde poker forum

Day 1 - Wednesday 6th Jul 2005

The Vegas experience begins before even leaving the UK. 9am at Gatwick in the departure lounge for flight VS43 it becomes obvious that a significant proportion of the passengers are WSOP bound. I spot Ashley Blue Square Revell  the guy who last year sold all his worldly belongings, including his surname (wonder which daft marketing manager did that deal  it wasnt me btw) and flew to Vegas to risk it all on the spin of a wheel. He won his bet and now tells me hes spent the last year living off the proceeds and playing poker. Nice work if you can get it. Fellow media nutter Ashley Hames is also on the flight. Interestingly they both claim to have been newsbunny in a previous existence. Im not convinced that its anything more than a self-publicising tactic but it seems to be working for them. Ill tell you about my brief stint as newsbunny some other time.

Also on the flight are Irish Denis, who is trying to get a cash game going with Stephen Hendry in the first class bar  Ill play him for any stakes he likes he quips after giving me some useful advise about the sort of tournaments I should be playing when we get there. Hes heading straight for the Palms Casino for their afternoon NL $200 event and hasnt even considered which hotel to stay at yet. Peter Leeper, Elkan Allen and Martin Green are other familiar faces on this last plane to Mashville for the WSOP.

Sitting next to me are three brothers  Ben, Josh and Paul Katz  Paul and Josh have both qualified online for the main event via Victor Chandler. Ben is out there for the ride, much like myself. Josh, who plays on Thursday, has an interesting story. 1,500 in debt he had little cash to take with him and was looking to recall loans from brother Paul to stay afloat, so he decided to have a pop at the 300 freezeout at the Vic the night before flying out. Beating Steve Bovis into second place he cleared his debt and landed himself a nice little bankroll for the trip with the 4,500 first prize.

I manage to get an hour or two of sleep on the flight and finish off James McManuss Positively Fifth Street (highly recommended read).

We get to McCarron and after an almost non-existent security and customs check  far far less than other US airport Ive ever been to anyway  I share a cab with Peter Leeper and check in to the Orlean Hotel. The room is a good size and has an almost tobacco stained feel to it without really being ye olde style.

Everyone seems really friendly  taxi drivers, hotel staff, you name it  but I find it quite strange that the girl behind the cage goes out of her way to tell me they love Brits but hate the French here  this is the first of several Las Vegas I meet in the first couple of days who are openly Franco phobic (I doubt they like Fidel much either).

I wander round the massive Orleans casino and have a brief blackjack session. On my second hand the over-chatty South American croupier deals me a king for my first card but on dealing the second card accidentally misses me out and gives what would have been my Ace to the player to my left. Naturally I protest, as she doesnt seem to have noticed what she has done. Staggeringly, instead of moving the Ace to its rightful place on top of my king the pit boss rules that she deals me another card from the deck, leaving my Ace on my neighbours box. I get another king and win the hand anyway but Im too stunned at the decision to be bothered making a fuss  I also think it might be bad karma to get myself wound up about it, so I shrug it off. Needless to say, I dont play there for too long and leave $95 to the good, jumping in a taxi for the Rio and the real reason Im out here  to see, if not to be in the WSOP.

My first impression of the playing area at the Rio is pretty much the same as everyone elses  wow  I cant even see the far end of the room from my initial vantage point. The first person I recognise is Latif, with his familiar gesticulatory style at the table. Wherever theres a Latif theres bound to be a Bradley nearby and sure enough, theyre both at-it there on the same Omaha cash game. Latif bemusing the rest of the table with his trademark antics as he runs it over. Ian points me in the direction of the single table satellites and I wander down there to try and fit a quick game in before I have to head off to the Tribeca Tables (Blue Squares poker software providers) eve of WSOP reception dinner - at the Palms Restaurant at Ceasars Forum Shops.

There is a long queue to play $125 tables and I spot Junior Greg Hill near the front of the line. Looks like it will be an hours wait if I want to play. After a brief chat with Greg and with Inside Edge's Phil Shaw, I resolve to come back later in the evening for a last chance pop at these sats. Junior points me in the direction of the media event where its rumoured that Tikay is bossing his table.

On route I see 2002 winner Robert Varkonyi looking rather bored in a $125 single table satellite. $25 juice is steep and it surprises me that hes not in a comparatively less juicy $200 + $25 sat instead. Maybe hes broke or perhaps this is why he aint respected by many as a player.

On route to the media event I spot Billy and Andy from Poker 425 and know that if theyre here, Tikay cant be too far away. I get there just in time to see El Blondie II trebling through with Aces.

The Palms Restaurant at Ceasars is my next destination but before making my way to it I drop a quick $105 on one of Ceasars blackjack tables. The Kings, Queens and Jacks in their decks are dressed as Romans, surprise surprise. Well, it wasnt much of a gladiatorial contest and I didnt win a hand.

At the Tribeca reception are representatives and players from all the partners on the network and we have some fine company in the guises of Doyle and Todd Brunson, Jack Binion and Mike Caro. Sitting on the same table as the Mad Genius Im treated to some words of wisdom about how to play the main event (not that Im even playing it)  dont try to use an advantage early on, just try to survive is about the size of it.

The jetlag is kicking in big time now but a couple of red bulls sorts me out and Peter Leeper and I jump in a cab and head for the Rio in a last ditch effort to qualify.

We both sit in the same $200 +$25 single table satellite and an hour or so later were 5 handed and both still in. The table is beginning to rock up but were both changing gear, heading in the right direction  that is until a Texan lady holding 63 of hearts calls my all-in move with Q9 off. Needless to say she runner runners a flush and my 2005 assault on the WSOP is over. Peter busts out shortly after. I could play more, but sleep beckons and after a brief chat with Greg Amoils I head back to the Orleans for some much needed shut eye.

Day 2 - Thursday 7th July 2005

The next morning I wake up early and Im keen to get out and see whats happening back at the WSOP, so I head down there for about 9am and arrive just as they are announcing the very last single table satellite for the main event.

Three seats still open shouts the sat director across the microphone.

I have the $1,030 easily covered in my wallet and for a moment, just for a moment Im on the verge of pulling my wad out and sitting down. I seem to do well with last minute decisions to play, but then reality sets in.  Ive brought $5,000 with me to Vegas and I cant blow 20% within 24 hours of arriving.  If I failed to qualify Id be on tilt big style.  Nope, cant do it, even though the dream is rapidly evaporating before my eyes.

I decide to cool down with a wander into the WSOP lifestyle exhibition.  More like the WSOP soft pornography convention.  Bodog, Party Poker, Doyles Room, Full Tilt, you name it, if theyre here and all with a plethora of scantily clad promographic girls.  Its remarkable how many gambling/poker sites use sex to sell to the US audience.  In the UK there is far less of this approach (well, there is the odd exception) but regardless of what you think about this type of advertising its certainly more colourful than the air of sophistication attempted by many UK sites.

Ive been in such a hurry to get to the WSOP today that I didnt even put the news on when I woke up, so Im shocked to find out about the London bombings.  Shocked and shaken.  Had I not decided to come to Vegas, its extremely likely that Id have been on the train that exploded at Edgware Rd.  I travel to work between Kings X and Paddington and usually get off the train at about 9.20 am at Paddington.  The Edgware Rd blast went off at 9.17, 3 mins from Paddington station.  The WSOP pales into insignificance and I now realise why Ive been unable to get through to my missus on the phone. 

An hour or so later the networks have cleared and I manage to get through to her. Shes fine, but was within a hangover of passing through Kings X at the affected time. 

Back to business. One enormous carrier bag of free merchandising later I wander back to the playing area in time to hear the following announcement

Ladies and gentleman.  Weve lost our first player. Only 5,800 to go.  The whole place erupts with laughter.

Wandering through the rows and rows of tables I do a bit of player spotting. I dont feel so bad about not playing now.  Its gotta be worse for the guy who went out after 17 mins.

After an hour or so of spectating its time to do something else.

Your mission Jonathan, should you choose to accept it, is to seek out and purchase some UK adaptors.  Its the one thing I forgot to bring with me and none of the hotel shops Ive been to stock them.  So, its time for a taxi ride to Frys Electonics.  Mission accomplished and 5 adaptors later (2 for Tikay) Im back at the Orleans to check my email before heading to the Palms for my first multi table tournament.

I get there shortly after the tournament has started, but thats OK. They allow latecomers to join in up to an hour after the kick off.  After registering and coughing up the $100 + $25 for this one rebuy/add on only NL event Im ushered to table 13, seat 8.

Most of the players are tourists, but theres a few WSOP entrants wholl be playing on subsequent first days as well.  The standard seems pretty low.  Top pair poor kicker all in callersmyself included.

I rebuy after 20 mins when my flush draw fails to improve against a pair of queens.  An hour or so later Im still in and decide to make a play with 89 suited against 4 limpers, one of whom has AA.  I flop a straight, but with the blinds going up reasonably quickly its not too long before Im forced to gamble again and I end up 45th out of 120 runners.

Nice tournament card room at the Palms with very colourful tables.  Im going to spend quite a bit of time here I think, as they have 4 NL tournaments every day  2 x $200 + $25 (one rebuy) events, a $100 + $25 (one rebuy) event and a late night $100 + $25 freezeout at 10pm, which I decide to come back for later.

I bump into Tai Tran, a Blue Square colleague who won a Gutshot sat - not for a place in the main event but a holiday and a seat in a super sat. He didn't make it in to the biggie sadly but is enjoying it here all the same. We walk back to the Rio to see whats going on. The Palms is across the road from the Rio, but it takes a good fifteen minutes to get there and the heat is soaring at about the 100 degree mark.  Taxis everywhere from now on.

After catching up with the UK players exits to date its time for the players to break for dinner, but Im not hungry so its off to the Rio pit for a spot of blackjack.  I sit down on a single deck blackjack game.  Its a friendly table full of WSOP casualties discussing their exits while consoling themselves by taking up the waitresses offers of Free cocktails anyone?

I get chatting to a couple of septics (sorry I shouldnt really use this phrase to describe them as technically Im one myself  my dad is originally from New York and I have a US passport and dual citizenship). One is Derek, a young guy from Washington D.C, whos just been dumped out of the main event with a straight that got runner runnered.  Why is it that everyones exit story seems to involve being runner runner after flopping the nuts? You dont hear many people saying I played like a muppet, I deserved to go, being the deadmoney that I am

Speaking of deadmoney, Ive bought myself a t-shirt that says just that on it Deadmoney.  I figure that its got to improve my chances wearing it, for the simple reason that my opponents will surely think twice. Ok, so to all extensive purposes I probably am deadmoney, but anyone playing against me has to put me on being a better player than I am trying to advertise myself as. Real deadmoney doesnt know that they are, so anyone claiming to be it, must be giving off false signs.  Ill surely be able to carry off an audacious bluff more successfully with it on.

Anyway, back at the blackjack table were joined by Jimmy from Michigan, whos in an $8,000 hole and cant go back to his wife until he wins it all back.  Hes due to fly home the next morning.  He hasnt even played in the main event.  He would have, but he right royaly screwed up.  A massive chip leader going into the final table of the nightly $225 money tournament (not a satellite) on Wednesday, but blew his chance at the $16,000 top prize by playing A3 off followed by A8 suited against the table rock on consecutive hands.  He finished 6th and only got $2,500, of which he had to give $1,000 to some guy hed struck some kind of hairbrained deal with at the final table.  The deal was that the guy would help Jimmy win the thing by protecting his blinds? Dont ask me, it didnt make sense to me or anyone else at the blackjack table.  It did however make sense when told me he was an alcoholic.

Anyway, getting fed up at blackjack (up $150 or so) I say Im thinking of going to the Palms for the 10pm freezeout, so with these two randoms in tow, plus one of their mates, we jump in a cab for the 3 minute ride to the Plams and buy our way in. 

Willie Tann is there and I persuade him to play as well, even though he doesnt like the $25 juice that they charge. Gutshotter and winner of 4 WSOP sats Nick Persaud is also there playing in one of the $225 rebuy events that started earlier.  He seems to be doing well.

I end up on table 14, seat 7, with Willie in seat 4 and my new found best buddy Jimmy to my left.  I start off slow and dont see much for the first hour, after which I have about half of the 1,000 starting chips.  The table gets broken and I move to a table full of chips and with a lot of chirpy players berating the plays of others.  My stack starts to grow.  Im playing reasonably well, better than I did earlier anyway. 

Derek, Jimmy, random number 3 and Willie are all out after a couple of hours and Im average with about 3,000 chips or so when we get down to 40 remaining from 128 runners.

Down to the last three tables and Andre from LA to my left - who is the tournament chip leader - seems impressed enough with me to want to swap 5% if we both final.  I agree.  A few hands later my QJ suited steal puts me down to 125 chips, with the blinds at 200/400 and a 50 running ante. I go all in for my remaining 75 (50 already anted) with A2 suited and with two others in the pot I hit the Ace on the turn to fend off their Jacks and eights.  When my QJ trebles me again on the very next hand Im back to over 2,500 again.

The blinds then went up to 300/600 and a few hands later my pocket queens got beaten up by jacks and that was that. Out in 26th place, 8 off the money.

After winning back the cost of the entry on one of the blackjack tables I decide to call it a day and head back to the Orleans.

2 hours of online poker later I finally crawl into bed.

More of these please...thoroughly good read...Thanks Jack

johnny i think you should steer clear of poker as you keep losing and just play blackjack as you seem to be very lucky at that

Next installment tomorrow, if I have time. 

I did finally win a bit of poker last night.  Details to follow in the next day or so...off to the Rio now.  The sole BSQ qualifier - Simon Moore (aka Ratneck) has made it through to Day 2, albeit with only $6,925 chips, so I'm going to cheer him on.

Not playing the Crypto Sunday 30k? 

At least someone else gets a chance i guess

LOL

Nice read Jon, you got you phone with ya?

He does indeed.

I think we've found a budding blogger here.....

One thing, what was all that nonsense about the T-shirt??  Even more confusing than your new buddy's tourno deal i reckon.  :)

talking about t-shirt any chance of another white blue square one i spilt spaggetti all over the one you gave me and white is not the best for getting clean i even put it in the dish washer thing no luck but the dishes are all broken

ah well my folks are home tomorrow to sort out this mess

AS I remember Ironside, you only got that t-shirt after you had done the same spaghetti spilling trick whilst holidaying in Sunny Blackpool.

HEHEHEH
Yogi

yep but the sauce came out of the black shirt

ps i just found out the dish washer thingy is a washing machine and i wasnt supposed to but the plates in it


now they tell me

Day 3 - Friday 8th July 2005

Day 1 part two sees Simon Moore, Blue Squares sole online qualifier starting his WSOP. I turn up shortly after the shuffle up and find him being observed by his travel companion and best pal Dean at Table 7, seat 8. We watch him win his first pot. He held Kings that tripped up and took 1,500 off the table bully. Way to start!

I leave Simon to play his game and take a wander. On table 111, seat 8 I spot Nick Whitten, who has just doubled up when his bb pocket Aces stood up to utgs pocket Kings. Sadly for the victim he was a Betfair qualifer and it was the first and only hand he was to play in the tournament.

Ian At-iT Bradley on table 115 was doing very well, but Ariston was bleeding chips early on.

For the next hour or so I help Poker Europa photographer Pamela located some European players to take their snaps. Jovial Joe Grech and Kevin OConnell are spotted in seats 2 and 3 on the same table. Joe would later to send Kevin packing.

At the first break I chat to Joe, Kevin, Leeds new superstar Lawrence Gosney, Howard Plant and Chris Johnson. They head back to resume play and I decide to head for the casino for a spot of blackjack.

Horrific  down $540 after doing what I promised myself not to do  chase. Theres another WSOP loser on my table, one of the first to exit  he was out having flopped the nut straight only to be runner runner housed on the third hand of the day, but he seems in a much better mood than he should be. A random oriental guy tries to nip me so I tell him to fuck off. He fucks off.

Back to the playing area and I watch Simon Moore playing for a while. Just before dinner break he doubles through to 23,000 when the same chip bully tries to push him off a pot with bottom pair, shit kicker. No match for Simons club flush.

Delighted he leaves the arena 10 mins before the dinner break and we go to eat at the Sao Paulo caf? He tells me about himself and his poker. Hes a 21-year-old deputy manager of a Corals shop in Birmingham. After discovering poker last November he has now given up betting on sports to favour the one true game. His route to Vegas was via a $3 satellite feeder, into a $27 one and finally he was victorious in the $198 super. This is his first live game.

After dinner he gets back to play and I sneak into the media room without a pass and chat to Elkan Allen and Phil Shaw. Greg, a guy from a US talk radio station discusses the poker phenomenon with us  is it a phase or here to stay? Here to stay we think, hes not so sure.

At the end of another players break and I spot Joe Grech taking his seat at a new table near the rail. Hes sitting next to a lady who is being shoulder massaged by Robert Varkonyi. I ask the ex-champ how hes doing and he tells me hes out, but still has the A team left in. He means his wife Olga, who has an impressive stack and position on Joe.

Its now approaching 10pm so after a final check on Simon (hes down to 17,000) I go to the Palms again for the $100 freezeout. Jimmy from the previous night is there. Not gone home yet I ask him? Hes still in a hole and says he cant go back to Michigan until hes recouped the $8,000 hes blown on the trip. Now I know why the hotels rooms here dont have balconies. I do badly and 4 hands in to to my tournament Im back in a cab home to the Orleans.

More blackjack. An hour or so later Im up $600 recouping my Rio blackjack losses, so its time to retire for the night. A spot of room service (soup and a sandwich in case anyones wondering) and some online poker later and I hit the sack.

In case you've lost track it's actually Monday now (where you are anyhow) so either your typing is very slow or some of women advertised as "$99 for 3 naked girls in your room" nicked your watch/calender.

Good to hear you're having a good one.  Wish I was out there.  Nevermind, come November I'll be there and you'll blatantly be going back as well!

I'm just running behind in terms of posting them. I have two more days of stuff to upload, which I'll do when I get time. Played in the $1,000 event at the Orleans tonight. 5,000 starting chips and a second chance for another 5,000 plus a slow blind structure and half hour clock.

67 started, including about 15 Brits. 20 of us resume tomorrow at 1pm Vegas time including 8 Brits. Here's the chip stack info I can remember.

Steve 'Womble' Walmsley 87k (chip leader)
Roland De 'sheep' Wolfe 81k
Greg 'Junior' Hill 51k
Julian 'yo-yo' Thew 48k
Jonathan 'AlrightJacK' Raab 34k
'Irish' Denis O'Mahoney 23k
Ian 'At-iT' Bradley 22k
Howard 'The Magician' Plant - unsure of his stack but I think its between 15-20k

Average is 33k

Blinds will be 700/1500 with a 200 running ante.

7 places paid, 1st prize circa 24k.

Need to sleep now.

Cool. Good luck tomorrow (today?!) then.

Day 4 - Saturday 9th JUly 2005

A slower start to the day than usual, mainly cos Ive holed myself up in the hotel room writing this diary, but I eventually leave at about midday to check out the tournament times in the Orleans card room. At 7pm theres a $100 + $25 + $5 event with one optional rebuy. I try to buy in early but the rather clueless member of staff I ask about it eventually tells me I cant buy in until 5.45pm. OK, time for a bit of BJ. I get sucked out and lose $200, so off to the Rio for Day 1 part three it is.

Every day it seems to be getting busier at the Rio, with more and more spectators wanting to get as close to the action as possible. Getting to some parts of the floor takes ages. The aisles are crammed, especially where theres a well-known face on a table close to the rail. Plenty of Brits start their assault today. Julian Yo-yo Thew, Barry Im from Sheffield Neville and Gutshots Nick Persaud to name a few.

Heading for the media room I find Tikay and El Blondie looking rather serious and stressed. It seems my inability to access the forum today wasnt just another issue with my laptop, but a forum meltdown that they are desperately trying to resolve. At least Jen and Tikay get a much-deserved break  the 12 hours per day theyve been putting in takes extreme dedication. Theyve been struggling on with a temporary solution, but intend to finish early.

I watch the TV table for a while, but its pretty dull  you cant really see whats going on and most people watching are just leg weary spectators glad of a seat. Barry Nevilles updates on his progress make up for it though.

Ive got 50k now, me tables full of muppets, I want 200k by the end of the day and the chip lead. Then theyll know who Barry from Sheffield is!

I decide to take a final look at the lifestyle exhibition before heading back to the Orleans. Its the last day of the exhibition and I want all the freebies I can get  for research purposes of course. The first stand I come across is one with author Peter Alson signing copies of his new book. Several years ago, when I had just started working for City Index I read Peters Confessions of an Ivy League Bookie  a great read that I highly recommend to anyone who works in the industry. I dont buy his book, but we do have a brief chat and he tells me the rights to the film of the book have been sold, but nothing is being done about actually producing it.

Then I bump into Lenny Barshak, the CEO and main shareholder of Tribeca tables. I tell him about what Ive been up to and the games Ive played and he laughs condescendingly at the $100 to $200 buy-in tournaments Ive entered.

Hey, I play $200/$400 limit he says rather gratuitously.

How rich does he think I am?

I then get into a conversation with a random who thinks the WSOP is unfair to the better players. His reasoning is that if a good player gets put on a table that is full of tight players and that table never breaks, they dont stand a chance to build up a good stack. He also believes that there are loads of tables like this that will not lose any players at all during the first day, thus penalising the good players that find themselves on them. Players who get moved around a lot will get ample opportunity to increase their stacks, he reasons. His solution is to redraw seats every two hours.

I tell him that IMO not only would that be logistically impratical, but that hes having a bubble if he thinks there is even one table that loses nobody all day. I make it big odds on that every table loses at least one player across all three first days. On average each table loses between 6 and 7 of the 10 that started. However he remained convinced he is right.

I buy a copy of the recently published Harrington on Holdem, a pair of Graham Hieuws new poker specs and enter every prize draw I can going before leaving the Rio.

I get to the Orleans cardroom just before the start of the tournament and find myself on a table with at least 3 people whove never played live before. For the $100 + $25 buy-in you get 800 starting chips, but for an optional extra $5 dealer tip, you get 200 more, bringing up the starting chips to 1000. Everyone takes it. My table is quite weak and I get up to 3,500 at the break. Ariston, Burnley John, Womble and Junior are also playing, but none are on my table.

After the break the blinds begin to get rather severe and it becomes virtual all-in poker after another 30 mins or so. I decide to reraise all-in the table cannon who has now preflop raised four hands in a row. I do have a hand this time though, so when a K comes on the flop my big slick looks good against his pair of ladys, but when their case sister shows up on the river its adios AlrightJack and another failure to even get close to the money.

Just as I get busted Burnley John makes his exit and 10 mins later Womble, the last remaining member of the Blonde raiding party, rises from his seat.

A couple of drinks later and we manage to drag Ariston away from the fruut machines and video poker and head for the bar/blackjack tables, where I recoup $140. Eventually we decide to head for Ariston and Womble's rather fragrant hotel room for a few private sit n gos. There are four of us playing  Ariston, Chubby Nowab, Colchester Kev and myself. We play winner takes all, $50 buy-in NL Holdem. Simon wins the first one, Russ the second and when I river a straight against an extremely unlucky Kev holding pocket rockets I take down event number 3. I win the fourth and final game as well and a quick heads up against Russ - where his A3 fails to outdraw my AJ - to make my first poker profit of the trip. Up $300 on the session and its time to head back to my room to pass out.

Really good reads Jon, i will arrive tomorrow lunch time, will give ya a bell when i land and we can catch up.

This Vegas virgin cant wait :d

Update on the $1,000 event at the Orleans.  7 of us made the final.   In the end money was taken off the top to pay $1,000 each to 8th, 9th & 10th.

Howard Plant got 10th. Greg Hill got 9th and I got 8th...nasty exit.  Julian Thew made a 9k bet, I went all in for 30k or so with pocket 6s. Roland all in behind me, Julian folded.  Roland has Aces, but I hit a 6 on the flop. Case Ace on river puts me out.

Julian got 5th and Womble, Roland and At-iT chopped it up with a Mexican guy, At-iT getting the lion's share.

I made the right move at the wrong time, reading Julian for a bluff, and ran into Aces behind me...

Disappointed as 7th place paid $3,800 and would have ensured a profit on the trip.  Still, a final table in the biggest live game I've bought into to date is a positive.

Unfortunately I then proceeded to tilt off a whole bunch of dough on blackjack. I've not done that for a long time and now need to dig deep and question myself.

More proper diary when I can be arsed, which may be some time yet.