Bellagio Event #3 finished today. The bad/sad news is that Bellagio has changed their guaranteed tournament pay out. The guarantee is now strictly for 1st place. I find this to be sad and embarrassing.
I’ve heard and read comments from people that think it’s funny that Bellagio was forced to fade the $55,000 guarantee on this tournament. I really wonder what those same people would think if all the casinos closed their poker rooms because the room lost money and it was more cost effective to have slot machines instead of green felt in the same space. For all of you dunces that think a poker room is supposed to lose money, read this please. You certainly would not continue to operate a business that lost money so why would a casino?
On the events of the poker room tonight: I started in $1-$5 7 Card Stud and moved to $8-$16 Holdem. The game was better than lively, it was a screamer. Mass action and lots of raises. At one point, a player jokingly said, “Misdeal.”
I said, “I wonder if that’s what happens when we die at a young age. Our life was a misdeal and everyone/thing is called back and we have to start over.”
Several players looked at me with a startled expression and a few others took off with, ‘do you believe in reincarnation, karma, etc.?’ To which my answer is, “Yes.”
*****
Linda Resnick died over the last weekend. She played $1-$5 7 Card Stud at the Mirage and at Bellagio. Her mom, Jeanette, plays $8-$16 Holdem and her dad, Bob, plays $4-$8 Holdem at Bellagio. My heart twisted when I heard she was gone. I will miss her spunky little smile and cheerful attitude.
*****
I moved on up to a three handed $400-$800 mixed game with Magic, Frank, and Hamid. Hamid was grumbing, moaning, crying, bleeding all over the cards, the table and mostly himself. At one point he said to me, “Are you enjoying yourself?”
How in the hell could I even qualify an answer to that stupid question. My answer was silence.
My next game was heads up with Mike M. and Minh, playing $400-$800 Omaha 8 or Better. Mike was paying Minh $800 an hour to play against him. Ok, for all of you that don’t get it…Mike feels that he’s got such an edge on Minh that he will easily overcome the $800 and take all of Minh’s dough.
Minh made a back door low/high hand and won the whole pot. Mike looked directly at me and explained, “He plays so Fucking bad that there’s no way I can’t win all of his money.”
Minh spoke only to me when he said, “Yeah, I play so fucking bad, that’s why I’m winning his chips.”
I looked from one to the other as they kept talking to me and I busted out laughing. I said, “You guys are so damn funny.”
Still they kept explaining to me how they knew the other one played so fucking bad and could not win. They like me and I like them. It was an easy down and I couldn’t help but marvel at how they included me like I was a key factor in the game and they still tried to bludgeon each other’s brains out.
Mike won the $5,000 buy-in Omaha 8 or Better event at the WSOP this year and Minh took 9th place in the BIG ONE.
I hit table 6 which was $20-$40 Omaha 8 or Better with a 1/2 Kill. My back is to the rail which borders the Sports Book. I had a French Braid in my hair tonight and while I’m in the middle of a huge pot and lots of action, Kian C. (a high limit player) leaned over the rail and grabbed my braid and began half pulling, half flipping it in the air. I turned around and said, “Stop it!”
He said, “You want me don’t you?”
He’s funny. He can be so charming and then so…()&%$…of course I said, “Yes!”
I went back to dealing the game.
Then it was the good old $150-$300 Razz game. These guys just never give up, 3 of them fought it out through the half hour of my down. Yes, there were arms and feet of dead Razz players sticking out of their mouths.
*****
I heard a rumor that Bellagio would be hosting a $1,000 Buy-In Tournament every Friday night. Starting when? Don’t know. Is it true? Don’t know. The rumor starter said the events would be different games each week.
Also heard a rumor that the monthly tournament would be a guarantee of $100,000 for 1st place, 2nd would get $75, 3rd would get $50, and 4th would get a buffet comp. *Big Grin* No, I did not make that up…someone said it.