Day 3 and counting... · 4:27pm Jun 15th, 2016
Not my best day. Things seemed just off from the get-go, as I slept poorly and was making something of a comedy of errors pretty much all day. And yet, I actually showed a slight profit on the day because one of my errors turned golden.
I have the craps tables, and not the poker ones, to thank for that. After breakfast yesterday, I went to the Harrahs main casino floor and found their one open craps table, intending to test my luck there, wagering $100. I came in when there was a hot 'shooter', or dice-roller--the person who rolls the dice rotates clockwise around the table; you roll until you lose, basically.
The rules of craps are too complex for me to relate here, so I'll keep what happened simple: at one point, about halfway through the session, I threw down a chip on a 'hard eight' bet--meaning that you're betting that an eight will be rolled 'the hard way', meaning a double-four roll of the dice. If some other roll of eight comes first--like 6-2 or 5-3--you lose that bet. But if you win, it pays off at 8:1 odds.
So I threw out what I thought was a $5 chip, asking for the hard eight. But I had forgotten I had a single $25 chip at the far right of my rack, and that's the one I grabbed without looking, throwing it out onto the table. I grimaced at that; once the bet is made you can't take it back.
And then the hard eight came on the very next roll! I won $200!!!! 
Well, that made my session, and I walked away from the table with a $135 profit when all was said and done, thinking that would bankroll my tournament entry.
That was the one time my mistakes paid off. The rest of the day, they did not. My intention after that was to go to the Aria and play in the 1pm tournament. I took my time, wandering through the Caesars Mall, and took a couple bad turns getting there. By the time I arrived not long after 1, I found I'd screwed up--they weren't running their usual 1am $125 daily tournament, they're holding $325 deepstack tournaments all week, and that started at 11. That was more than I wanted to spend and I didn't want to come in late (you generally can buy in for the first couple hours), so I left to get some lunch. The burger place I wanted to go was packed, so I went to a hotdog place instead, selecting a 'reuben dog'--pastrami and sauerkraut, or so I thought.
What I got was this massive burrito-like object. Three hot-dogs slathered in chili and pastrami with no sauerkraut to be seen, then wrapped in not a bun, but a tortilla. It was, in a word, disgusting, but I ate it anyway... and got queasy. I didn't eat anything else the rest of the day. 
My plans thwarted and my stomach unsettled, I wasn't sure what to do. Thought about going to the Rio to play there, but the idea didn't appeal to me, and I needed to walk off that goddamned burrito, which was probably at least 1200 calories. Wandered for a bit, noticed that the Ceasars "Omnia" nightclub was open that night, so looked into going. Decided I would try that night, and play the Ceasars 6pm $125 entry tournament beforehand. If I did well, it would end just as the club opened. I did have a single change of business casual attire I could use to satisfy the dress code--you can't just show up at Vegas nightclubs in shirt, shorts, and sneakers--but I hadn't brought any dress shoes. I ended up buying a pair from The Walking Company store at Caesars. Nothing is cheap on the strip, and that includes shopping. But admittedly the shoes were quite comfortable.
Before that, I had some time to burn, so I went to the Harrahs pool late afternoon to soak for a bit, making sure to slather myself with sunscreen first. Spent about an hour there, then showered and put on my good clothes, heading over to Caesars again for the 6pm tournament.
It went badly again. I was tired from lack of sleep and my mind was fretting about going clubbing, wondering where I would get shoes and whether I could pre-buy tickets as opposed to waiting at the door. The result was that I made two stupid mistakes born of not paying attention, and the second time cost me all my chips barely an hour in. What happened? I was on the button, and someone in early position raised from 400 to 2000. It was folded around to me, and I looked down at K-6 suited, in hearts. That's a drawing hand you can play for minimum bet, or for two or three bets if there are a lot of people in the pot. I had actually seen the guy bet the 2000, but by the time it had gotten to me I'd forgotten and I threw out 400. Well, guess what? Even though I made a mistake, by poker rules, I can't take that back. Your put chips in, they stay, and you're required to match the bet. So I had to put 2000 on it even though it's now obvious I don't want to call the bet and thus don't have strong hand.
Flop comes Q-10-8, with two hearts. I've flopped a flush draw, leaving me thinking this might be the second time that day I've fucked up and came out golden. The guy bets 5000, certain I'll fold, but I then surprise him by moving all-in as a semi-bluff. He gives a shocked look, then says something like "I know you hit that." I tell him I indeed did, and further note in perfect honesty that's the second time I've screwed up and it turned out okay. Nevertheless, he decides he's pot-committed at that point--in other words, it will cost him less to call the bet then there's already in the pot, so he pretty much has to take a chance if he has anything--and he does have a hand himself, so he calls.
I forget what he had--a pair of queens, at least. But I didn't get my final heart to complete my flush in either the turn or river, so he wins and takes my chips. There's no anger on my part as I walk away from the table; I screwed up and got punished, as I should be. However, it did kind of drive home that I wasn't in the right frame of mind to be playing at that point, so I didn't try anything else that day or night. As a result... between the accidental craps bet and the failed tournament entry, I made a $10 playing profit on the day.
In the end I did get the shoes but didn't go to the club, realizing I was just too tired to enjoy it, and I needed to bring down the curtain on the day. So I went to bed early (for Vegas), popping a melatonin to get a good night's sleep. I'm pleased to say I got one, and am feeling much better this morning.
And the plan? I'm going back to the Rio. There's a $2000 entry tournament today that I'll try to win my way into via 'satellite' tournament--single-table tournaments where the buy-ins range from $125 to $575 and offer tournament credit as a prize. I win one of those, I can play in the $2000, which is a 'bracelet' event--meaning you get a prestigious diamond WSOP bracelet if you win. Tournaments like these typically have a couple thousand players and take THREE DAYS to play out (playing twelve to sixteen hours a day), but even just cashing in it would be a huge boon. If that doesn't pan out, I'll try cash games and maybe the daily $235 deepstack again. Heading out now. Wish me luck!
Good luck! Kick ass!
The Futa-fajita.