Raise or Fold:  A Year of Risky Business

Writing and playing poker as if they were activities worth doing well.

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Anticipation

I find myself looking forward with great enthusiasm to my sojourn in Las Vegas this June. I am genuinely psyched at the prospect of playing tournament poker at least three days a week, and at having the vaunted 55 cardrooms at my disposal the rest of the 24/7.

I have already booked my air travel, and am in the process of finalizing my lodging arrangements. If all goes well, I'll be close enough to the Rio to make it a short bus or taxi ride (I haven't yet decided whether I'm renting a car), but far enough away to be able to leave it totally behind when my day is over. I'm staying in a condo, so I'll have a real kitchen, a real bedroom, and a real living room. I'll be able to entertain company. I'll have a pool to swim in and a fitness room to work out in.

It will be absolutely essential for my well-being to make and stick to a well-structured schedule. I plan to take one day a week completely off from poker, to focus on on the three "Rs:" writing, recreation, and errands. I also intend to go to bed and wake at approximately the same time every day (that's likely to be about 3 am and 11 am, respectively).

My current thinking is that I'll play four WSOP events ~ the Razz event, one other limit event, and two no-limit events ~ and some yet-to-be-determined number of tournaments elsewhere (at the Venetian, for example). On days I don't play tournaments, I'll play cash games. If things go well, I'll think about trying to satellite into the Main Event, but honestly I really don't care if I don't get a lottery ticket to that game.

I know that my stay in Vegas will still constitute a small sample size upon which to base major life decisions. But it's also the best sample I'm going to get. I intend to make the very best of this opportunity that I can.

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7 Comments:

Blogger Forrest Gump said...

How much are the buyins for those events CG? I'm looking forward to your blogs on this trip as I plan to make the trip to 'poker mecca' sometime in the near future.


FG

5/9/09 10:21 PM  
Blogger Philly said...

I don't want to sound like your mother, but I hope you are careful when you are out there. It's easy to forget that there's a lot of crime in Vegas.

5/10/09 12:45 AM  
Blogger Mike G said...

Well I live here and I wouldn't worry about the crime so much as the place itself - Vegas is a hot, grimy, desperate city these days, with the visitor count down and casinos dealing with lower revenues. That's just the reality of this city at this time - as a boom town it suffers more from the bust.

That said last night I played at the Venetian and I would recommend the cash games. It's a nice clean huge room and there's usually lots of drunks to pick your spots against. The first hand I played was AA under the gun, I called, "Sunglasses guy" raises to 12, 3 other callers, I raise to 100. Sunglasses seems to be debating it and then I stare right at him for 5 seconds - like I'm projecting strength because I'm bluffing - and he calls immediately. That always works with the guys who watch too much TV ;). He had queens and I doubled up. Yay aces.

So anyway it's going to be hot and brutal in vegas this summer - yesterday my car thermo said 103 already. So be mentally prepared for that.

5/10/09 1:34 PM  
Anonymous joxum said...

Here's another reader who's preppring for a boat load of exciting posts from Vegas!

Have you planned if/how you'll document your hand histories?

/j.

5/10/09 5:13 PM  
Blogger diverjoules said...

Hey CardGirl, When are the dates you will be there. A group of us from Cleveland are going to be there from June 12 thru 18th. Some of them are playing in Event 28#. Good luck regardless. Hope to maybe stumble across you while I am there. - diverjoules

5/11/09 8:37 AM  
Blogger loosemmjan said...

Wow 2 weeks until the start of the WSOP.

Good Luck.

~loose

5/11/09 11:13 AM  
Blogger Cardgrrl said...

@FG: Buy-ins are between 1-2.5K for the WSOP events.

@diverjoules: I will be in Vegas for the entire month of June.

5/11/09 10:55 PM  

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