Vegas & The Aftermath - Diary

[tikay]

Look, it's just a case of saying, "if you ain't at in your seat when the tourney is ABOUT to begin, your seat will be offered to a Reserve, & your money refunded".

If it's that simple, why don't they do it? Because it means fiddling with the names on the Computer/Plasma Thing, & that's a bit of a ballache. We are increasingly ruled by Computer systems & lack pf imagination.

This was the rule I always used. It's no Hardship to make late entries and remove people from play on the Cardroom Magic system. Takes roughly 30 seconds per person.

And how long does it take to say thats your seat to someone and for them to sit down. Plenty of time whilst they are dealing. Most of these rules seem to have been put in place to save any hassle rather than look after people who have travelled to an event.

Yogi

Exactly! and I made the point very strongly (but politely) to Gala, & it was a "hands-up job" from them. I don't think they realised what their Venues were doing until I pointed it out.

I am, almost uniquely it seems, Pro both DTD AND the Casino Groups, (as my very lengthy submitted "Evidence" stated) but it saddens me when daft rules are allowed to remain in place, & we need to keep working to change things for the better. The Major Casino Groups NEED & WANT to get these things right, but I can only assume thery are not aware of the daft anamolioies that exist in a few Cardrooms. At least I feel confident that DTD will get these details right, assuming all goes well with the Licensing case.

When chatting with the Gala Suits in Leeds - they were all there - they were astonished at some of the Gala anomolies I pointed out, & I truly believe they will go back & change a few things.

[boldie]

Oh, & the answer was, (though it's not relevant, it's the question that fascinated me), "nothing, what can you do, the table played tight so you have to go along with the table".

SIGH!

yeah yikes, even I disagree with that..and I'm tighter than..something very tight on tightday in tighttown.

[Laxie]

Tighter than a nun...well MOST Nuns.   

[vegaslover]

Oh, & the answer was, (though it's not relevant, it's the question that fascinated me), "nothing, what can you do, the table played tight so you have to go along with the table".

Flushy & Thewy would be choking on their cornflakes reading this.

Lol....Flushy was the first person that came to mind when I read that

[tikay]

Totted up last week's poker account - lost £750 "Live", & $1,600 Online. Not good, but it happens. I had a week of particularly brutal outdraws, so it could have been worse, but I played good poker all week & I'm not overly troubled, as I was over due some bad "form". Luckily, I was Freerolling at the weekend in the £500, or it might have stung a bit.

I started well this week Online, 2nd yesterday in the $4k Guaranteed for $1,200, and 3rd today in the same affair for $1,100, so that's handy. That comp is outrageously well-suited to my game - 15 minute blinds Online is huge, 3k in chips & a lovely structure. I can pretty much sit out for the first 2 hours & still have plenty of play left. The field is above average quallity for Online, but a third of them play way too fast, & going deep in this is a given for me. It only has around 20 runners these days, with 3 paid, and I can almost guarantee a top 6 finish, but I struggle a bit at the sharp end against the harem-scarem boys. I got Heads-Up yesterday & the geezer really took my pants down, I'm just never gonna be much cop Heads-Up.

I ventured down to Stanley Notts tonight, (£50 + 3 rebuys, I only took 2) but again, only 14 runners. I felt I'd cash when I Finalled (14 runners - I Finalled!) with average chips, but I made a horrendous & quite unnecessary move & got well & truly snapped off. I was well annoyed with myself, I have played really well for the last week & this was only my second real mistake. I hate making unforced errors, but these things are like a wake-up call, perhaps lucky it was in a small comp.

I managed to muck a winning hand too, for a decent Pot when I called a Pre-Flop Raise with J-9 in a 4 way checked down Pot. The Board came A-A-T-T-7, & I mucked my J-9 at the end, only to find my oppos had 5-5 & 6-7, & my J-9 was ahead - in fact my KICKER was good enough. How do these things happen?

I need to break this Live losing streak soon though.

As I'm working all weekend (APAT) I may play the Luton £50 + £50 on Wednesday, & again at Luton on Friday, then that's it for this week, so a cheap week in prospect.

I was due to go to Brighton today for the £200, Thewy was buying me in, but I overlaid, & was way too tired to drive 4 hours in traffic. I can't play Brighton Wednesday either, as it's a 2 dayer, & I'm working (Sky) on Thursday. Not much poker next week either, as I'm working 2 days for Sky, & going to Barcelona at the weekend for Poker Week. Deffo not complaining though, life is good.

[tikay]

Had a lovely surprise tonight, I bumped into Dipak Makawana - aka "Doc", not to be confused with the Walsall "Doc". Doc was a regular & immensely popular player in Notts & Derby for a good many years, & has a good record in circuit Events. I'd not seen Doc for 9 months or more, as due to family committments, he does not play much these days. He's nick is Doc because, well, he is a Doctor. He speaks in a beautifully refined, very "clipped" Indian accent, & is a perfect Gent.

His is an extraordinary tale.

He qualified as a Doctor in India, & with some help from his family, bought a one-way ticket to London 8 or 10 years back. He had planned to stay with a friend in Northampton or Leicester, & set off for London from Bombay (Mumbai?) with just a suitcase, & $90 in his pocket, that'd be about £60 in those days.

He landed at Heathrow early one morning, & rung his friend to sort out his digs, but the "friend" blew him out, so there he was at Heathrow with no job, nowhere to stay, & £60. He rung a Medical Agency & they sorted him a temporary post as a Locum up in Hull, so he got the tube to Kings Cross then a train up to Hull, & the Post had digs included, so he was safe & sound.

Eventually, he got a permanent Post in a Hossie in Derby, so he moved into rented accommodation in Derby. He wandered into Stanley's Casino in Derby one day, discovered Blackjack & Poker, & that was that, he was hooked. Then he found a wife, Dawn, & they now have two lovely girls now, aged 8 & 10 I think.

It's hard to imagine travelling halfway across the world with no money in your pocket, no job to go to, & nowhere to live, it must take some courage & spirit of adventure. He takes the family back to India every couple of years, but I think he'll live his time ouit in England now.

As a postscript, I'd quite forgotten that the last time I saw him - November I think - he gave me £220 to pay him into an Omaha Comp in Luton, which I forgot to do, & I also had forgotten about the £220 he gave me for it too. So I paid that back tonight, with some embarrassment & fulsome apologies. Nipper Kendall eh? And another £220 disappears from the Bankroll.......

[snoopy1239]

Had a lovely surprise tonight, I bumped into Dipak Makawana - aka "Doc", not to be confused with the Walsall "Doc". Doc was a regular & immensely popular player in Notts & Derby for a good many years, & has a good record in circuit Events. I'd not seen Doc for 9 months or more, as due to family committments, he does not play much these days. He's nick is Doc because, well, he is a Doctor. He speaks in a beautifully refined, very "clipped" Indian accent, & is a perfect Gent.

His is an extraordinary tale.

He qualified as a Doctor in India, & with some help from his family, bought a one-way ticket to London 8 or 10 years back. He had planned to stay with a friend in Northampton or Leicester, & set off for London from Bombay (Mumbai?) with just a suitcase, & $90 in his pocket, that'd be about £60 in those days.

He landed at Heathrow early one morning, & rung his friend to sort out his digs, but the "friend" blew him out, so there he was at Heathrow with no job, nowhere to stay, & £60. He rung a Medical Agency & they sorted him a temporary post as a Locum up in Hull, so he got the tube to Kings Cross then a train up to Hull, & the Post had digs included, so he was safe & sound.

Eventually, he got a permanent Post in a Hossie in Derby, so he moved into rented accommodation in Derby. He wandered into Stanley's Casino in Derby one day, discovered Blackjack & Poker, & that was that, he was hooked. Then he found a wife, Dawn, & they now have two lovely girls now, aged 8 & 10 I think.

It's hard to imagine travelling halfway across the world with no money in your pocket, no job to go to, & nowhere to live, it must take some courage & spirit of adventure. He takes the family back to India every couple of years, but I think he'll live his time ouit in England now.

As a postscript, I'd quite forgotten that the last time I saw him - November I think - he gave me £220 to pay him into an Omaha Comp in Luton, which I forgot to do, & I also had forgotten about the £220 he gave me for it too. So I paid that back tonight, with some embarrassment & fulsome apologies. Nipper Kendall eh? And another £220 disappears from the Bankroll.......

I remember him. I believe he plays at the Broadway now. Still reading the same book at the table I think.

[tikay]

After a week of "negative" luck, the Poker Gods decided to redress the balance tonight, & I won the £50 + £50 (single rebuy or add-on) at Luton. Actually, with average stack at 64k, & Blinds an unplayable 4k-8k, 4 of us chopped £2,800 4 ways, for £700 each, & we played on for the whopping balance of £30, which I was fortunate to win. Phil "snatiramas" Cooklin, Sonny Osman, "Edward" (from Gutshot), were the other three.

I lost my first 4k before the fist orbit had completed making a mistimed squeeze play with Eights, which A-A man felt able to call.

It was grind grind grind all the way after that, seriously patient, until the push stage arrived, at which time I played the most immaculate poker seen at Luton in many-a-moon.

All-in Pre, I beat J-J with A-5, (A first card, nut flush on turn), T-T with Q-4 (misread), A-J with K-T (housed up with a card to spare), & to win the comp, 9-9 with K-6. An easy game when the Poker Gods are onside, but I pushed with aplomb, grace & style, & left behind a trail of bewildered outdrawn foes gnashing their teeth & muttering "lucky fish". Them am not wrong.

Shared a table most of night with Phil Cooklin, Sonny Osman, Paul "M3Boy" Garnham, & Alex Martin, so banter-a-plenty.

So that's all of last week's losses recouped in one night of outrageous luck. Little fish are sweet, & £730 is a tidy catch.

Am at the Luton Days Inn tonight, & go straight to Feltham in the morning for the Sky Show Thursday night. Then it's back home to Derbyshire Friday morning to feed Angell, then back down to Luton that evening for the APAT Weekend.

The Casino was quiet this evening, but Saturday & Sunday it'll be heaving with APAT-ers, Monday too for the Final. Should be a pretty fun weekend, if a little tiring.

Am quite nervous about the APAT weekend, 300 runners is our biggest ever field, & it's quite stressful until the Comp gets started, there is so much that can go wrong, but we've planned it meticulously, (or Des & Rich have, more like), & hopefully, we'll get through. There seems a lot of talk about it, for sure, it looks like a great social weekend is on the cards for a lot of folks, with plenty of Railers lined up. Fingers crossed all goes well.

[ripple11]

Looking forward to my first APAT ....and judging from the info on the website, Des and Rich seems to have planned it with military precision, ...so I wouldn't worry!.

[TightEnd]

Leave the worrying to me!

[tikay]

Leave the worrying to me!

I try to leave everything to you Rich. In which respect, I'm doing rather well.

[tikay]

Discovered an odd thing last night at Luton. They are running a Players League, very nice it is too, lots of big cash prizes on offer, & something for (almost) everyone. And the nice people at G-Casinos have added a shed-load of money. Very nice, keep it coming.

But the players also contribute by way of a mandatory deduction from the Prize Pool of EVERY Tourney that is played at Luton during the League. So, for example, last night there was about £3,000 in the Prize Pool, & payouts down to 5th (only 30 odd runners) were listed on the Plasma, with 5th place being £160. Then, the Plasma listed, in 6th place, "League Contribution". I can't recall the figure, I was too busy outdrawing people, but I think it was about 5% of the Prize Pool.

I welcome any & everything which adds money to Poker, this included, & my support for Grosvenor is a matter of record. But I'm a lttle uneasy about a mandatory deduction from players prize pools & entry fees. I suppose the amount just about equates to the Tourney Reg Fee, so we could in fact be playing "reg fee free" Tourneys, in which case, I suppose it sits better with me. 

I'm just a little uncomfy with the whole concept of money which belongs to the players being deducted from the Prize Pool, even if it does find it's way back to us, together with, I hasten to add, a bunch of extra money provided by G-Casino.

Of course, in America, they mess with the Prize Pools something shocking, & I've heard of chilingly similar tales from Unlicensed Venues in the UK. This is a trend that needs controlling. Strongly.

[tikay]

Talking of deductions from player prize pools, how about this for a real purler?

I had an e-Mail today from "Online Forum Challenge Global Gaming Events" (OFC-GGE). It's just bumf about Forum Challenges, I ignore them, basically they are an afiliate promotion.

But they've fallen out - big time - with the Online Cardroom they use, "Action! Poker".

So they are busy slinging mud at "Action! Poker" which may or may not be true. This bit's a corker though......

All US Players, please note: GGE was originally told that US Players cannot play on Actoin! Poker. It recently came to our attention that Action! Poker does allow you to make an account, play in freerolls, win money, and then play with that real money. What they have failed to make clear to you, is that you will not be able to cash that money out. As a US player, you cannot use the cashier to ever withdraw any money you have won, yet, in my opinion, they seem to be ok with taking a rake on the hands you are playing.

This could run & run.

Oh, & in that wonderfully disarming way in which many American Companies lack any class, tact or decorum, how's this for a name? The Parent Company of "Action! Poker" is "Wager Profits". Only in America.

[robbiebox]

But the players also contribute by way of a mandatory deduction from the Prize Pool of EVERY Tourney that is played at Luton during the League. So, for example, last night there was about £3,000 in the Prize Pool, & payouts down to 5th (only 30 odd runners) were listed on the Plasma, with 5th place being £160. Then, the Plasma listed, in 6th place, "League Contribution". I can't recall the figure, I was too busy outdrawing people, but I think it was about 5% of the Prize Pool.

I welcome any & everything which adds money to Poker, this included, & my support for Grosvenor is a matter of record. But I'm a lttle uneasy about a mandatory deduction from players prize pools & entry fees. I suppose the amount just about equates to the Tourney Reg Fee, so we could in fact be playing "reg fee free" Tourneys, in which case, I suppose it sits better with me. 

I'm just a little uncomfy with the whole concept of money which belongs to the players being deducted from the Prize Pool, even if it does find it's way back to us, together with, I hasten to add, a bunch of extra money provided by G-Casino.

Totally agree with your unease on this Tikay. The Circus Stanley in Blackpool are running a similar league with 4% deducted from prizepool. As an occasional player i have little or no chance of qualifying for the lague final. I am in essence bankrolling a freeroll for the regular players and have refused to go and play there until the league has finished.

[winkie]

I agree with robbiebox...

I'm a "regular" at the Luton G, and my understanding is that the players were not consulted on the format of the league and the contribution that is taken from each comp.

By playing, I'm contributing my own money into the league prize pool, but if I do not play often enough / get enough points to qualify for the league playoff, I have no chance of winning back that money. Or, I could qualify and not be able to make the league playoff date...

[sorry Tikay, not trying to take over your thread...]