Xmas in Vegas

Here is a modified trip report i posted on www.allvegaspoker.com with added photos.

The end of the year brings me and my wife to Vegas for the 3rd time in 12 months.

It was the first time I had flown BA to Vegas instead of virgin but it was great and a little early. But for Xmas day, it should be !
We stayed at the Excalibur as usual, looked after by our great host. Xmas day evening we were supposed to meet friends and hit up Dragon Noodle in the MC, so we headed off quickly, got there and turns out they didn’t want to go there and were back in the Excal. So we traipsed back and ended up in the food court. Merry Christmas!
Once they left, we did what all people with 8 hrs jet lag should do, and started drinking and gambling until 6am. Rough, but hey!
After a little lay in on day 2 and breakfast/lunch in the Lynard Skynard I got some 1/2 in. 3 hours returned $192. Good start to the week. And we got to dragon noodle in the evening. And it was worth the wait. Dim sum was fantastic.
With a broken body clock i was up the next day at 5.30, so hit one of the new restaurants in the Excal. The ABX Burger place. the pancakes were fresh as a daisy and most filling. Missus TLJ hit the tix booth for some Elvis cirque action and I hit the poker room again. Another 3 hours but down 70. No problem, 20 mins of blackjack got me another 150.
I then got the call of the wife on holiday “shopping time”, so a quick trip to the premium mall got that out of the way, and we rested and then hit the Aria for the show. Bearing in mind this show is closing, I really enjoyed it, and it played to a near full house. Afterwards we went to the secret pizza bar in the Cosmo. I had heard about the real arcade machines and was a little disappointed to find a PC in a galaga shell. Cop out!

Day 4 found me at the breakfast 9am crapshoot in Excalibur. #This started a little late as a guy was being CPR’ed and then trollied out. They set the comp up with all the medics and nesr dead guy in the room (not the biggest room either), classy ! I busted early with 10 10 against a rag who hits a on the river. I’ll be back. Today we went for a wander around the strip, highlights being $167 bonus on the pinball slot in the MGM, and dinner in the cheesecake factory.
Day 5 was a bit of a washout in the crapshoot (i’ll be back), and turned into a relax with Penn and Teller in the evening. So the Rio, what a tip! You need to a be parkour expert to navigate the slots, they are that close together.

Day 6. The crapshoot had 30 runners + rebuys, etc. got to the final table with no worries . Then busted 2 guys in quick succession with back to back full houses. I was way chip leader when heads up, so asked my opponent if he wanted to play for stacks, as time was getting on. He won the first, but the second we played cards down. The board was k high, and he had qk, and I turned over………AK! $498 in the bag. I knew I would be back. Lol. My first tournie win in Vegas !
I then got a tweet regarding the noon comp in the Trop on NYE with Mr Gold. $100 buyin, 500 in my bin, so why not.
Not a lot to report the next day, so onto NYE. The Trop room is nice, and the players were friendly. I got seated on a table with a bounty. A lady who i did not know, who was a poker tv presenter. I made the break, after being chip leader (between hands one and two. Lol), but was card dead, hard. As well as me, Dennis Phillips and Jamie Gold were still in . So far so good.
I have a bad leak, that post break I always try to buy hands, and today for no different. Blinds are creeping up , so I go all in post a 455 flop with 46. Called by tv lady with ……….66 and that’s that.

Spent NYE on the strip, and it was fantastic. Outside Bellagio for midnight, saw fireworks and then back home for more beer and merriment.