Going to the show

I tried to start this long, literary post about my upcoming trip to LV; I even had a little snippet of movie dialog to start off with, but sadly I am no Pauly. The title of the post comes from Bull Durham, where Crash (Kevin Costner) is talking about his 21 days in "the show" (the major leagues). I remember how people around him in the bus stop to listen, hanging on his every word.

For poker players, the WSOP is "the show." Of course, the main event is the show of shows, but to play in any event-- even a $1,500 buy-in event-- is enough of a dream (or at least the first step) for many. To be able to say that you played in the WSOP, even if it's just for a few hours, is something you will have for the rest of your life.

But do I want to spend a majority of my bankroll on one event? I think it's pretty safe to say that the answer is "no." Especially when Caesars and the Venetian will be running their Mega Stacks and Deep Stacks tournaments respectively and I can play in 2 fairly big, deep-stack events for about two-thirds the price. I might take a stab or two at winning a satellite to the $1,500 but I just can't see buying in directly. Of course, if I go deep in my first tourney I would consider buying into the WSOP event, but I'll cross that bridge when I get there.

Until then, the dream of going to the show may just have to wait a little longer.

Tips for the WSOP newbie

Pauly has a great primer for food options at the WSOP. Although I've never played myself, I thought I'd throw in a few of my own general Las Vegas/Poker Tourney tips.

Much as I am maligned for doing so, I have a man purse that I use almost exclusively when in Las Vegas. It's a sleek little black Diesel bag that's a throwback from my metro days. If you are insecure about a man purse a backpack would do just as well. Here is a list of things of obvious and not so obvious things I carry in it.

1. a light jacket. for some reason I always get cold in casinos and poker rooms, but not when I'm walking around or outside, so I keep this folded up for when I need it.
2. drugs. another thing that often happens to me is getting headaches. I don't know if it's the dry air or the copious amounts of alcohol often consumed, but I get bad headaches in Vegas. Sure, I could go to the gift shop and buy some, but I'd no doubt pay way too much and I'd also need to leave the table, so instead I just carry some Tylenol at all times. I also have some claritin if my allergies act up.
   
3. candy. We've all been there. You've been up all night and haven't brushed your teeth. Your breath stinks and you know it and the others at the table know it. That's why I carry an assortment of mints and hard candies. Those melting strips are also nice. And if you like gum bring your own. Good luck finding that in the gift shop. I think someone once told me that the casinos don't sell gum because the don't like having to pull it out of the carpet and from the bottom of tables. Also, offering candy to others at the table makes friends, which might be especially nice if you're playing next to Liz Lieu or Jennifer Leigh.
4. water. I know it's "free" in most places, but sometimes you are stuck at the table from hell with the cocktail waitress who comes around every hour if you're lucky. Also, I actually like to walk around the Strip when I'm in Las Vegas so it's always nice to have some with you when you're not at a table. Usually I'll just take a bottle with me from the table and fill it with water fountain water or a big bottle in my room.*
5. Snacks. Pauly touched on this in his blog, but I think this is especially true if you're in an all-day tourney. I personally don't function well when I'm hungry so a couple of energy bars in the bag are good emergency food.
   
6. Misc. Stuff. iPod, note pad, pen, card protector, tournament structure sheets, stripper flyers, whatever (Liz Lieu's phone number after you give her candy...). I guess you could just stuff your pockets, but I'm not a big fan of the bulging pockets look.**
   

On thing about a man purse or back pack is that after sitting at a table for hours on end, it is very easy to forget it's there and walk away without it (especially if your last hand was a brutal, soul-crushing, two-outer suckout on the river). Although it's always been there when I've gone back, it's still a pain to have to go all the way back to the poker room to get your bag. For this reason, also, I wouldn't keep any money or my wallet in the bag.

* thoughts on water. I'm not a miser, but I just can't bring myself to pay $5 for those bottles of water they have in the hotel room. As I said earlier, I like to walk around in Las Vegas, so one of my first jaunts is down to the Walgreens (?) on the strip. I go down and pick up a couple of liters of water and the above mentioned candy and snacks. I usually do this in the evening when it's a little cooler and the walkways aren't as crowded.

** If it's my bankroll that's making my pockets bulge, so be it, but unfortunately I've never had that problem.

Sitting with a legend

I only had about 2 hours until we had to leave for the airport so I decided to swing by the Caesars poker room and see if I could jump into a game. The list for 3/5 NLHE only had one name so I put my name on the list. As I was waiting the brush announced that he had two seats open for a $65, 10-man sit-n-go. What the hell, I think, this shouldn't last too long so I book over to the table and draw for my seat. I draw seat number 4. As I'm walking around to my seat I pass seat 5, an older gentleman wearing a jacket with the "Oklahoma Johnny Hale" screened across the back.

Now I know it's a cliche that poker is the only sport (let's not get into that debate here) where any amateur can sit down and play with the pros, but this was truly happening. I don't know why Mr. Hale was playing a $65 buy-in game, but there he was, complete with his Best All-Around bracelet from the 1980 WSOP. For someone in his 80s, he sure played as aggressively as any young gun. Unfortunately Mr. Hale had to watch me move all in with 6c Tc vs. pocket Aces. A 6 on the flop and a second club on the turn made things interesting but I couldn't hit any of my 14 outs and I was quickly dispatched.

Siren's Song

Being the center of gambling world (for now), Las Vegas exerts a pull on all gamblers. The pull is similar to gravity in that the more gamble in a person, the stronger the pull. 1100 miles away from me, thousands of people are making their pilgrimage to the yearly event that is the World Series of Poker (WSOP). Every poker player dreams of being at the (3 month delayed) final table of the Main Event, but to play in any event something that everyone schemes to do, even if just once just to say they were there. I was in LV for the first days of the main event back in 2006. Even though I was just a spectator, the experience was amazing. The site of the row upon row of poker tables in the Amazon Poker room was staggering.

Unable to attend, I'll have to live vicariously through the legion of bloggers who will be in attendance. Always a perennial favorite of mine is The Tao of Poker. Pauly's untiring capture of the less seen side of the WSOP is something to look forward to every day. It truly is the next best thing to being there. In fact, even if I was in LV at the WSOP I'd still read Tao of Poker just to know what I was missing.