WPBT '10

The highlights of the annual blogger trip to Vegas were a victory in the Last Longer Challenge, a 10th-place finish in the tourney, showing my wife the town for the first time, and of course hanging out with distant friends that I don't get to see often enough.

It was a blast as always, and I miss it as soon as I leave.

I'll start with the WPBT group itself. Everyone is fantastic, welcoming and fun. There's always someone who wants to drink, talk, play table games or even play poker. I'm thankful to be a part of a group originally bound together by poker blogging that has since evolved into stronger friendships. While many people don't blog as much anymore (I'm guilty), the group remains solid.

Team Roach took down the Last Longer Challenge for the second straight year when Bayne and I made the final two tables. Along with new team member Garth, we split the prop bet money and the added online cash. Thanks PokerStars!

The Aria poker room and its staff impressed me. They were accommodating, ran a good tourney and kept everyone happy by doing the little things right, like keeping steady drink service and allowing me to charge my cell phone at their desk. Aria provides a comfortable gambling environment, which makes the experience more fun.

My poker room rankings for WPBT tourneys are:

1. Aria

2. Caesars

3. Venetian

4. Orleans (aka The Dump)

During the tourney, Avoque was seated to my right for a few hours before he busted and I won a cool bounty of clear red dice labeled "I busted Avoque. WPBT 12/2010." As he prepared to leave and dusted off a drink, he put five $1 chips in front of me, saying he'd bet me that I would break CK. So I would win the bet if she lost to anyone else, and he would win if she went out to me. At the time, I was rolling along and accumulating chips.

Sure enough, I had top pair on a Qxy twotone flop, and CK shoved. I called and she showed a flush draw, which didn't get there on the turn or river. Hours later, I surprised Avoque by returning his chips for his win of the side bet. I didn't remember until later that I should have paid him an additional $5 for the bet. I owe him next year.

I won't attempt a lengthy summary of the good times I had hanging out at the Geisha Bar, shooting craps and seeing shows like "Blue Man Group" and "Ka" with my wife. Mixed games at the MGM looked like fun, but I just hung out at the bar. I misread a board badly during a 1/2 game at the IP, leading to me losing some chips and quitting the game early. I won money at Bellagio and Caesars.

When you combine gambling with cool people from across the world, it's always a good time. Thanks, and I'm looking forward to next year.

Riverboat Gambling

That was a fantastic weekend vacation. I saw the Braves and Cardinals win one game each on Friday and Saturday, and then I drove to Kansas City to witness the home team beat the Tigers.

And I played in live casinos every day.

I met up with Kuro at Harrahs in St. Louis immediately after I arrived. It was cool to see signs at Harrahs supporting Dennis Phillips, who started his journey toward the World Series of Poker November Nine there in a $200 satellite.

I only had a little money on me, and I was looking to sit at a $1/2 NL table, but my name came up for a $2/5 table first. When I found my seat, it didn't take long to remember how juicy live poker can be: five players saw most flops, reraises were rare and people missed many obvious value bets on later streets.

I feel like it takes a little investment to beat these games sometimes. That's because you should be seeing many flops in position, and if you miss all the time, your stack is going to bleed away. The rake and jackpot fee don't help either. But I'm certain this kind of live game is overwhelmingly profitable over time. (I wish I could be dealt more than 30 hands an hour!)

Eventually, my stack dwindled to about $150, and I limp-raised all-in from under the gun with 77 after an MP player raised to $50 and four people called, putting more than $200 in the pot. I got called by the raiser, who wouldn't reveal his pocket 8s until after the river was dealt even after I turned over my hand immediately. Jackass grayhair.

I ended up losing more money at blackjack, but the real story of the trip is my roulette winnings at Casino Queen in Illinois and Isle of Capri in Kansas City.

I played a Martingale strategy, in which I placed near-break-even wagers on the outside, pocketing my winnings on small bets and doubling my bets when I lost.

In four sessions of roulette over four days this weekend, I walked away a solid winner every time.

The Martingale system isn't profitable over the long run, but it gives you the opportunity to book small wins and have fun at the table for several hours at a time. I'll play roulette this way all the time.