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Welcome to a collection of Vegas adventures. We cover it all, from dancing the night away at Pure to hitting a royal flush. Whether your style is wining and dining at exclusive N9NE or hitting the buffet at Circus Circus, you can read it all about it here. All stories are submitted by our readers, and we're always looking for more.
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Featured Story
I flew down Friday a.m., and headed directly to the Palms hotel for ‘Ditch Fridays,’ the Palms pool party. Vegas was in the midst of a heat wave, and the 117 degree heat was unusual even for the Nevada desert in July. Dancing/drinking in that kind of weather takes a toll. Hydration is key.
Pool parties are a blast. It’s basically the same scene as a nightclub -- a young, party-hard crowd made up of too many dudes and some hot chicks, a DJ spinning house/rock/rap sets, and lots of alcohol. The only difference is instead of club wear, everybody is wearing swimsuits, and is waist deep in water. Three Vivid video girls (helpfully identifiable by their pink Vivid ball caps) were in attendance wearing translucent bikinis. The Palms version isn’t as full-on crazy as Hard Rock’s Rehab (more on that later), but was an excellent way to kick off the trip.
Having sufficiently roasted myself, I headed over to the Rio to check out the WSOP. I started off with the Expo, which was definitely smaller than last year, but still better than I expected given that that none of the online sites had much of a presence. Chris Moneymaker (looking fat), Jennifer Harman (looked tired and harried), and Antonio Esfandiari (looking bored and wearing a Tao t-shirt) were all signing autographs in various booths. Without the big online sites and their mega-booths with lots of free swag, there were a lot more of smaller operations hawking tournament supplies, “poker water ” (?), customizable chips, and a bunch of other stuff.
Inside the tournament room, the crowd was three to five people deep all along the rail. Much less populated but almost as fun was the cash game section, where several games of 25/50 NL featured pots that hit the five figures every once in a while. I also watched a high-stakes game of Chinese Poker, without having any idea of what the hell was going on.
My two buddies (one playing the main event, the other a non-poker player) arrived Friday night, and we went out to Cheetahs, where we dropped entirely too much money, but had a good time doing so. Made it back to the Rio at around 3 a.m.
Saturday after the breakfast buffet, we went back down to the WSOP just as the day’s action was getting underway. It was pretty chaotic, and no spectators were allowed until 2 p.m. And no cash games until some tables broke. So it was back to the Palms for some 4/8 half-kill action. I’d been running cold at home in Seattle, but was dealt Aces in a kill pot and they held up, so I left after an hour or so with a nice profit.
We chilled out Saturday afternoon in anticipation of a long night ahead. My buddy had brought a laptop, and fired up Full Tilt. I played a $10 SNG, my first time playing online in forever. Continuing my streak of good luck, I took it down. Sweet.
Saturday night my non-poker playing buddy and I headed out, leaving our friend playing the Main Event to get some rest for his big day tomorrow. Back at the Palms, a couple of passes got us up to the Playboy Club without the $40 cover, which was nice. After a couple of drinks, taking on the Bunnies at $25 a hand blackjack seemed like a fun idea. I played a couple of shoes and wound up dead even, which I considered to be a huge win. My lifetime total vs. Playboy bunnies: +$25.
At 11, they opened Moon, the Palms new night club. It’s a great space, with a massive sound system, sizable dance floor and fun atmosphere. You can go from the dancefloor to a two-story outdoor deck, 60 stories up, with a killer view. I saw one of the Maloof brothers talking to the staff.
I stayed til 3, but hadn’t had enough. Seamless had been giving out free passes at the expo, and I wanted to check it out. Before 4 a.m., it’s a strip club like any other. After four, the strippers put on outfits and go-go boots, they clear the floor of chairs, and it becomes an after-hours dance spot. I love the concept, but the place was a little rough around the edges. One whole corner was occupied by a half-dozen Hispanic dudes who looked like extras from every LA gang movie you’ve seen, complete with wife-beaters and lots of ink. And at the bar this 60-year old couple was going at it, not something I wanted to see. The place was just too freaky, even for me. I didn’t stay long, and was back in the room by 5 a.m.
Slept til checkout time. Then it was time to go this.
Oh my god. Rehab is just nuts, the wildest party in the city. It was packed. At one point, the MC/DJ gives the word, and an enormous splash/water fight breaks out, with hundreds of people in the pool going bonkers. Late in the afternoon, Jenna and her boyfriend, ultimate fighter Tito Ortiz, are introduced from the VIP area. Jenna didn’t look great, too thin and rather plastic. Tito is short but intimidating. Even if you didn’t know who he was, he is definitely not someone you would fuck with.
My friend in the main event texted me updates. He was treading water ‘til dinner break, when his top two pair ran into a well disguised straight. He managed to double up to stay alive, and was moved to Todd Brunson’s table. But by midnight the dream was over. He felt he played well, and has no regrets.
This was my third trip in ‘07, and I’m done for a while, probably until January. But going to the Series is an annual tradition, and I’ll be back next year for sure.
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