OT - QuikSand's Vegas Journal

[QuikSand]

QuikSand’s Vegas Journal

When we all knew the hurricane was coming here to the mid-Atlantic region, I’m sure that plenty of people were thinking “I wonder if we can just get out of town?” Well, as luck would have it – that’s just what Mrs. Q and I had already planned to do – so our flight to Vegas left the Baltimore airport on Thursday morning, and we escaped with a few hours to go before the airport was closed.

We stayed, as always, at the Mirage. Quality place, excellent service, good atmosphere, great pool, good dining options, and a solid, lively environment for gaming. We like both their sports/race book area and the poker room a lot, and after Mrs. Q’s recent “conversion” (after our last Vegas trip a year ago, she basically swore off games of pure chance and wanted to get serious about poker) that’s where our focus is. So, it’s a good fit for us… worth paying a bit more than the surrounding joints, which are largely a rung or two below (in my book).

We managed to see two shows in town, catching the Blue Man Group at Luxor, and then seeing Danny Gans at the Mirage. Blue Man was as billed – largely the same show as in New York, with a few minor twists. Mrs. Q is a big fan – and I think it’s a good fit for Vegas, honestly. (I still haven’t decided what to think about Luxor… we walked by their tiny poker room, and I was itching to go bust them up, but it was just too smoky) Danny Gans is a prototypical Vegas entertainer – mostly impressions. He’s pretty good at what he does… bit this was another bit of evidence that the standard Vegas show just isn’t for us. I think my stomach for impressions and that sort of act is about the Johnny Carson duration… give me about 5 minutes of schtick and get off the stage.

We did well with food, particularly by taking the advice of friends and reviews and going out of our way to hit the Spice market Buffet at the Aladdin. Outstanding, really. We’re both fans of the buffet mentality (actually, made it through the whole trip basically eating one major meal per day, and the just grazing) and this is the best I’ve seen – lots of fresh choices, various nationalities, several very well-done dishes… it was great. We went back for the Sunday champagne brunch, which was just as good as dinner (nearly the same menu, plus breakfast options as well).

We both played a pretty considerable amount of poker – I’m estimating about 20 hours each. At the Mirage, we both started at the $3-$6 hold ‘em tables, and I ventured a bit into the $6-$12 game as well. My plan had been to go at least one session at a higher game (probably $10-20, as there was no $15-30 game going) but my play didn’t inspire a lot of confidence, and I backed off that target. Mix in a few hours of $2-$4 hold ‘em at Palace Station (we went there so Mrs. Q could get some time with low-level Omaha), and we managed to get our fill at the tables. I ended up very slightly ahead, mostly due to a rally on Sunday evening playing into the wee hours. I went through all the cycles of a losing player – angry at people who busted me after playing junk hands, questioning whether I am even playing well at all, and then finally getting a good run of cards and seeing through the fog… and concluding that I wasn’t playing poorly (for the most part), I just wasn’t getting what I needed to make my money. (It’s tough being a tight player in the typical no-fold-‘em games where you routinely see 6-7 players in every hand) The big upside was that after a weekend of mostly treading water herself, Mrs. Q got on a big roll Sunday evening, and over four hours turned $100 into $363 – that was enough to make her a comfortable plus player for the weekend, and to well her with all the price and enthusiasm that comes from a good run in a game of skill.

We dabbled in football, too. It’s a great environment to be in Vegas for a football weekend – and we got some bets down. Mrs. Q handled Saturday’s wagers (I had the duty of making the Saturday morning sprint to the window to get in the bets). My role was simply to pare down her list of bets from 9 to 6. Of the six simple bets we placed, she hit 4 winners… so she was pleased to have an up day there. On the NFL, I could only come up with three bets to put down, but managed to hit them all, including my money line bet on the Browns to win outright against the 49ers. So, our good fortune put us up a fair bit with football – enough to pay for some future propositions that will keep us interested in the weeks to come.

Good weekend overall – four days is just about right for Vegas, we think. We left wanting to stay longer, but I think that’s the attitude you want. Plus, we missed out on a weekend without electricity at home – and what’s to like about that? How do I win any money there?

Anyway – Vegas trips are always fun, and this was no exception. Great time.

[Butter]

So, being a computer and all, do you just ship yourself UPS to the Mirage, or stow away in the cargo hold of a commercial airliner?

Just wonderin'.

[Marmel]

Is Mrs. Q computer talk for an input device?

[bbor]

Q...Do you ever get into games of "Let it ride" poker?

I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts about it, since i am thinking of getting involved in the game after watching countless hands being played at the casino this past weekend.

[primelord]

Originally posted by bbor
Q...Do you ever get into games of "Let it ride" poker?

I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts about it, since i am thinking of getting involved in the game after watching countless hands being played at the casino this past weekend.

I know the question was for Quik, but I'll give my thoughts too. You should really only play Let it ride if you are playing with the intention of just having fun. It is a fun game to play, but the house edge is about 2.8%. You can find better bets in the casino. And it is very common to go 15-20 hands without getting a winner.

However if you are going into it knowing that it's a bad bet, but are just looking to have some fun then I think it is a good game to play. And ya never know you just might hit that straight flush and make 200-1 on your $15 bet.

[Maple Leafs]

Originally posted by QuikSand
Danny Gans is a prototypical Vegas entertainer – mostly impressions.

God bless Danny Gans. Nobody outside of Vegas has ever heard of him, but once you get there you're bombarded by massive signs extolling him. I wasn't around for Elvis in his prime, but I can't imagine he was any more omnipresent than Danny Gans in Vegas. My wife and I almost shelled out to go to the show just to figure out who the hell he was.

[bbor]

Originally posted by primelord
I know the question was for Quik, but I'll give my thoughts too. You should really only play Let it ride if you are playing with the intention of just having fun. It is a fun game to play, but the house edge is about 2.8%. You can find better bets in the casino. And it is very common to go 15-20 hands without getting a winner.

However if you are going into it knowing that it's a bad bet, but are just looking to have some fun then I think it is a good game to play. And ya never know you just might hit that straight flush and make 200-1 on your $15 bet.

Thx Primer.

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by bbor
Q...Do you ever get into games of "Let it ride" poker?

I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts about it, since i am thinking of getting involved in the game after watching countless hands being played at the casino this past weekend.

I don't have much to add to primelord's answer... it's a bad bet, so don't let the sense of "strategy" lure you into thinking you're actually in control.

Personally, if I'm going to play a fixed-odds game (I hate blackjack, by the way - I get bored to tears) the game I would play is Pai Gow Poker. There is judgment involved in how you set your hand (even though it's pretty marginal), the game moves fairly slowly (increasing the free-drink-to-money-lost ratio), and there are a lot of "pushes" where no money changes hands (almost half the time - increasing the aforementioned ratio even further). The house edge is nominally 2.5%, but you can (if you're an enterprising player) bid that down by taking the dealer role when it's offered.

However, the best "losing" game in Vegas has to be the old-fashioned 25 cent horseracing game (they have one near the sports book at the MGM Grand). Play 25 cents per race, about once every 90 seconds, and gradually lose about $2 or $3 an hour. Of course, over that time, you can get about four free Coronas... you do the math for yourself (before the beers, preferably).

[Marmel]

Hey Quiksand, did you notice if they had any tables of Boston Stud Poker (Or something like that) out there?

Have you heard of this game yet? I saw it up at Mohegan Sun on my last trip, but did not have time to learn how to play.

[Franklinnoble]

Originally posted by Marmel
Hey Quiksand, did you notice if they had any tables of Boston Stud Poker (Or something like that) out there?

Have you heard of this game yet? I saw it up at Mohegan Sun on my last trip, but did not have time to learn how to play.

I heard that you are the Boston stud poker...

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Marmel
Hey Quiksand, did you notice if they had any tables of Boston Stud Poker (Or something like that) out there?

Have you heard of this game yet? I saw it up at Mohegan Sun on my last trip, but did not have time to learn how to play.

I didn't notice the game anywhere... but I really didn't spend any time in the table games this trip at all. (I'm assuming this is some kind of fixed-odds table game, and not a real poker variant that would take away a table from hold 'em)

[John Galt]

Originally posted by QuikSand
However, the best "losing" game in Vegas has to be the old-fashioned 25 cent horseracing game (they have one near the sports book at the MGM Grand). Play 25 cents per race, about once every 90 seconds, and gradually lose about $2 or $3 an hour. Of course, over that time, you can get about four free Coronas... you do the math for yourself (before the beers, preferably).

I'm glad someone else finally noticed this. I love the horse racing drinkfest. It is also a lot of fun to cheer on little mechanical horses while completely drunk.

[Franklinnoble]

Do they give you free drinks at any of the off-track betting places in Vegas? That'd be a nice way to spend the day...

[Subby]

Good read. Thanks, Quik...

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Franklinnoble
Do they give you free drinks at any of the off-track betting places in Vegas? That'd be a nice way to spend the day...

Just about every major casino in Vegas has its own sports and race book - and I have yet to see one that did not offer free drinks, as long as you show signs of being an active bettor (not just a hanger-on). I usually spend at least one day hitting the tracks while I'm there, but this time missed it completely-- even the Super Derby (where I might have been too tempted to bridge jump with Ten Most Wanted).

[Franklinnoble]

Originally posted by QuikSand
Just about every major casino in Vegas has its own sports and race book - and I have yet to see one that did not offer free drinks, as long as you show signs of being an active bettor (not just a hanger-on). I usually spend at least one day hitting the tracks while I'm there, but this time missed it completely-- even the Super Derby (where I might have been too tempted to bridge jump with Ten Most Wanted).

Hmm... see, I abhor pretty much all forms of gambling, except when it comes to betting on horses (call me a hypocrite)... That's probably all I'd do at Vegas.

[Glengoyne]

I love Vegas. The buffet at the alladin is quite good, I agree. My favorite show is Mystere, and I am looking forward to the Cirque du Soleil show at New York New York. I too can't stand a Danny Gans type show. I mean it is fairly entertaining, but just doesn't do it for me. I have never done better than break even at the Mirage, I usually play my poker at the lower end casinos because well I find it easier to pay for my trip playing there. I spent about 2 hours playing with the "Big Boys" at Caesars one time. I felt like the tourists in Rounders. A lot of the time you end up playing with locals at those lower end places, but you get your fair share of folks who fare decently at home games and want to try their hand betting real money in Vegas. My favorite game was a $4-$8(I think maybe $5-$10) seven stud game. Some woman was playing, and she was pissed at her husband about something. She was horrible at poker, but won about $2000 at Keno while I was at the poker table with her. She was feeding that cash back to the rest of the table. When she lamented having to leave to catch her plane with her husband, I said "Hell you are having a blast, Screw him, get a later flight.". She agreed. =) When she finally left one of my friends told me I was going to hell. I said "well if that is the case, she bought my plane ticket".

[sabotai]

Originally posted by Franklinnoble
Hmm... see, I abhor pretty much all forms of gambling, except when it comes to betting on horses (call me a hypocrite)... That's probably all I'd do at Vegas.

Hypocrite

[Vegas Vic]

Glad you and Mrs. Q enjoyed your visit.

The 10/20 game at the Mirage tends to be tough during the week, but loosens up considerably on the weekends.

I think that both of you could have made a killing at the 4/8 Bellagio game, which in my opinion is the easiest low limit game to crush. All it takes is tight/agressive play, and the calling stations and maniacs will pay you off with your premium hands. Give it a try on your next visit.

[Glengoyne]

Originally posted by Franklinnoble
Hmm... see, I abhor pretty much all forms of gambling, except when it comes to betting on horses (call me a hypocrite)... That's probably all I'd do at Vegas.

Forgot to mention this in my earlier reply. I can't really get the wife interested in Poker, but she loves to play the ponies. The last time we were in Vegas was for last years Breeders cup. I was ecstatic that I hit three exactas, netting a tidy profit. When I reconnected with my wife she had hit two of my three exactas, as well as two trifectas. She paid for the trip. It was kind of annoying since when we met she couldn't even read a racing form.

Next month we go to the Breeders Cup in person at Santa Anita. I can't wait.