WSOP in Full Swing and Kicking It Old School at Binons
So far the World Series of Poker has really kicked off with a bang. Over 6,000 players showed up for the stimulus event, making it the largest WSOP event in history outside of the Main Event. The 40k event had probably the strongest NL Holdem field in history and it looked like for a time that Chris Moneymaker might catch lightning in a bottle and make a run at the thing. Of course, I didn’t really expect him to make the final table. In fact, I said that he would likely fall short of the money.
Greg Raymer making the final table of the 40k does not surprise me. Raymer is actually a great poker player and was good before winning the Main Event in 2004. He has had a couple of other shots at winning bracelets since there where Moneymaker has only a couple of mincashes since. I would have loved to see Raymer take down this event, but it was not meant to be.
Thang Luu took down his second straight Omaha 8 or Better bracelet. I watched Luu win his first bracelet last year and I will tell you that his style is tough to combat unless you either have cards or can catch him bluffing. With Omaha, there are usually so many outs in most hands that a hand that starts as a bluff can turn into the nuts by the river. This time around, Luu had a bit tougher challenge than last year, but he still came out on top.
The final table of the 10k Stud may prove interesting. With 13 players left, Daniel Negreanu, Jeffrey Lisandro, and Max Pescatori are all in the field. Daniel has a Stud final table at the WSOP and Lisandro’s only bracelet is in stud. If Lisandro makes the final, that will by my personal favorite to win. (And not just because it would further rub salt in the face of Prahlad Friedman.)
Phil Hellmuth is in position to make a run at the final table of the 2-7 lowball event. Mike Matusow and Layne Flack are also in contention. In a way, I am rooting for Phil to take this down just so that he will have a bracelet outside of Holdem. If Phil does not win this bracelet, I would like to see Matusow win it.
Personally, I haven’t done a lot out here in Vegas beyond play the stimulus event. Most of meat of my playing schedule starts Thursday with a Limit Holdem tournament at Binions in downtown Vegas. I am actually staying at Binions and am enjoying the change of pace that this hotel provides.
If you have read anything about Binions, you know that this hotel is definitely “old school.’ Most of the furniture looks to be from the 70’s or 80’s and the television is definitely from the late 80’s or early 90’s. However, the room I am in is pretty decent for the price I paid. I only paid $20 a night.
The poker room is rather nice. The recently renovated and moved the poker room to where the old sports book used to be. It is worth a visit to check out the room, but don’t expect much other than 2-4 Limit and 1-2 NL. Sometimes there is a 4-8 Omaha 8 or Better with a ½ kill going on.
Last night, the fire alarm went off about 12:30 in the morning. There is no mistaking the alarm in this hotel. It is a piercing alarm that is literally in each room. If you don’t wake up from this alarm, then you are already dead. I didn’t bother to evacuate as I figured someone just pulled the alarm. The last time I was at a hotel that had one of these alarm’s I actually evacuated the building as the building had kitchenettes and the chances of fire were much greater. There was actually a fire that time, but it was just a kitchen fire that was put out quickly by the person in the hotel, but we still had to stay outside for over an hour.
Another interesting part about my stay is that I am above the center of the Fremont Street Experience. Essentially that means that my nights up until midnight are met with a constant party atmosphere. Normally this would bug me, but right now they are constantly playing oldies music and good music at that. A little Queen, a little American Pie, Born to Be Wild, etc. Since I have had to do a lot of writing the last couple of night, this has made for some pleasant background noise.
As busy as Fremont Street is normally, it is amazing how dead it is after about 1 a.m. After all the street vendors and light shows are over, the people leave like someone showed up with the swine flu.
Right now, I am going to enjoy the lull, play a lot of video poker, get some work done, and prepare for the tourneys that are on the horizon. Ill keep you informed of how I do, especially during Event #26 of the WSOP.
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