I played cash poker at The Bicycle Casino here in the LA area last night. Actually I played from about 5pm till about 7 this morning. The Bike serves free food in the high limit games but "high limit" includes $100 buy-ins and that's what I was playing.
I did okay for the night. My pocket aces held up once, got cracked once. Pocket kings held up once, lost once.
My biggest wins surprisingly came when I was hold JQ and three times I flopped full houses, and I got paid nicely on all of them. But for nearly two hours I sat there -- paying my blinds -- without so much as a small win.
But what I like about live poker is that you get to meet nice people, have interesting conversations, and you can learn a lot. I've actually met some new clients playing poker as there are many business owners playing.
But last night I was especially interested in the conversation about where these guys and ladies play poker when they are in Vegas.
What they told me is that they have stopped playing at the smaller and "locals" casinos and instead now like to play at the bigger, big name Strip resorts (Venetian, Bellagio, Caesars) where there is more money played by less knowledgeable players. In other words: tourists.
They say that the "Vegas regulars" are usually at the locals casinos and the "regulars" are also "smart players." On the other hand, the easy money can be found at the big Strip resorts where wealthy people fly in from all over the country for the thrill of playing in the "high end poker rooms" and really don't know what they're doing.
I'm not making an judgment calls on these comments. I'm writing this for discussion purposes only.
But when I have played at the big Strip poker rooms, the dealers will often address the regulars by name during the game -- as if to indicate to the "guests" who are playing that there are "regulars" at the table. And I wonder if that is done as a warning to the hotel guests?