CARDRUNNERS

What's Your Edge

slothrop's Poker Blog

September 18, 2008

So the new rule is that I don't update this until 4 people bug me to do so; otherwise I'll feel too lazy/busy/unloved to bother...

It's been so long, where to begin?? Some random cursory updates, then a few even more random thoughts.

Vegas was great. Had three separate trips there of 5 days each in June and early July (had to keep going back to nyc for the sake of the girlfriend... the travel aspects of this being emotionally reminiscent of my days grinding $2-$4 limit holdem on planetpoker.com).

Met many wonderful people, including desirae, blueflare, and linecrusher, among many others. Played 4 tournies and broke even (finshed 12th in the 2.5k 6-max NLHE, didn't cash in other 3). Made a small fortune playing some occasional 25-50-100 PLO at the Rio (which occasionally played with a forced 200 straddle). Insane action. At least by my standards.

Learned some things, too, from discussing PLO with others. Partly as a result of this, I had low six-figure months in both July and August. And of course I've come crashing back down since, with a 100k downswing that has me at -45k for September. Still, a good few months.

Other random Vegas notes:

--Devilfish has some rather bizarre tastes in young women.

--Todd Brunson has a consistent leg tell (incidentally---wow, never knew till this trip how +EV leg tells are).

--Gus Hansen is a very solid squash player. (no, we didn't gamble)

--Shutting off the eletricity to a house full of poker players at 5am is a sick beat (no air conditioning, and it's 95 degrees by 7a.m.) (long story)

--The fun of drunk low-stakes prop-filled games at the Southpoint. cannot be overstated. Particularly when sober regs at the table know that you lose money when you show down an ace, and win showing down a 2.

--Honestly, half the reason why I enjoyed Vegas so much was because it was divided into 3 short trips. 3 straight weeks in Vegas would be hell for me. Lack of culture and the money-centric nature of absolutely everything... it eats your soul away after about a week. Which helps explain people like Shawn Sheikhan.

Randomly:

--I will go on life-tilt if McCain/Palin(??!) win. You will want to play at my tables post-election if this happens. I will lose. Lots.

--Obama is trading at 51.5% right now on Intrade.com. Regardless of who you're rooting for, it should be noted that this is an absurdly strong bet. He should be at least 60%. Probably in the low 60's. The post-Palin bounce is already fading in the battleground state polls, and the Intrade number doesn't yet reflect this. If nothing else, buy now, sell in a week at 60. Easy money!

--F&*%ck!!! My mutual funds are getting destroyed!

--The living-together-with-the-girlfriend thing is finally starting to work well. The major non-poker obstacle is quickly realizing when I'm acting like a pig-headed douche; which I'm gradually getting more successful at.

--The French movie (recently released) Tell No One is awesome. Hitchcock brilliantly reinterpreted. Don't be turned off by the "French" label--it's fast-moving and fun.

--David Foster Wallace's suicide completely shocked me. His genius was not only his brilliantly original use of language, but also his intense self-awareness. I don't see how anyone with that gift, and with his success, could do such a thing.

Win lots and, as always, please buy my art/lit mag... canteenmag.com

Entry Tags: plo, vegas, obama, girlfriend