I think a salad saved my life. When you're stuck in the Amazon Room every day and short of time, your dietary options are limited, and what the Poker Kitchen has to offer soon becomes tiresome. The pizzas are stale, the Chinese is the worst I've tasted, and I've lost count of the players who have complained of a dicky stomach after consuming a burrito. Thankfully, they've added a create-your-own salad stall which actually tastes pretty good. For the first month I had a salad almost every day. It felt like the only option, but it was one that kept the engine running when I needed it the most.
If you want a Snickers, it's gonna set you back $2. I know everything here is a business, but I don't understand when it became acceptable to up the prices and start overcharging the players. It's not just here, it happens everywhere on the circuit, yet no one seems to complain. I suppose they just surmise that if you're stumping up thousands in buy-ins, you won't care how much the food costs. It's probably true, but not everyone's rolled, and it shouldn't be an excuse to take advantage. Vegas used to be a place where you could get a steak and eggs for a few bucks, but that ethos is slowly disappearing. Soon everywhere will be extortionate restaurants serving fancy food.
When you buy in to an event, you get a free dinner ticket worth $10. I saw Ivey spit gum into his, and durrrr just chuck his $100 HORSE one to one side, but to me they're gold-dust and I'll happily take it if they don't want it. One thing that I noticed is that if you refund a buy-in, they don't ask you for your dinner ticket back, meaning you could come to Vegas and eat for free if you were shrewd. It seemed like a sound strategy for those looking to budget, although refunding 57 events may raise suspicion.
I think the Poker Kitchen has been partly to blame for the deterioration of my health. The annual bloggers' flu runs rampant through the media room, but it somehow evaded me this year. My problem came mainly from wind. I had numerous days where I would have to run to the toilet mid-hand and crap through the eye of a needle. I wasn't the only one. Pauly said that when he feels the need to anally exhale, he targets a particular player he dislikes and releases in the region of where they're sitting. I took great pleasure in adopting this strategy for a couple of notables that have pissed me off of late. Judging from their sudden grimace, the operation was successful.
Like last year, the media room has an endless supply of beef jerky, although in noticeably smaller packets than before. Unfortunately, I can't take advantage as I got drunk one night at the PokerNews Cup, downed a bag of Jack Link's and threw it up the next morning. It was the last time I ever ate jerky.
One day in the Amazon Room there was shouting from the corner of the room. It made me jump because a chair was thrown and I thought there was a raid of somesort. A bit like how people hate the sound of polystyrene because it subconsciously makes them think someone's screaming. I remember thinking, 'That wierd-looking dude flipping out is fucking huge,' but on closer exception, I realised that it was a man dressed in a sasquatch suit and that they were filiming a Beef Jerky ad with Phil Hellmuth. I don't care if it's not real, that sasquatch is fucking scary.
Now and again, Dana and I treat ourselves to some expensive meals. There are some incredible restaurants out here. One day we actually left the Strip to check out the Hoover Dam. On the way back we popped into a suburb called Henderson to stock up our fridge with supplies from the local Deli, and also grab a meal at Lucille's. Lucille's is a barbecue joint and one of my favourtie spots in Vegas. As Dana commented, "I have a porkasm whenever I eat here." On the way back, I could see the Strip in the distance. It looked so quiet, so peaceful, and I recall thinking about how much was going on in that one road in the distance: the gambling, the alcohol, the strippers, the hookers, the endless sound of slot machines. For that one moment I was on the outside looking in.
Last night I went to Naked Fish's. I'll never understand how one of the world's best sushi joints is in the middle of the dessert, but this place is a taste sensation and not too expensive. If you wanted sushi this good in London, it would set you back hundreds. I've also eaten the juiciest steaks at the New York New York, some beautiful duck at the Aria, and some top-notch Mexican at the Palms. It all adds up and is a huge expense, but it makes the days easier to handle when you know you've got a nice meal to look forward to instead of some three-day old chicken wrap.
Back in the Rio, I'm wondering where to grab a bite. The Poker Kitchen is now closed, so I'm considering making the jaunt up to the Sports Deli for a cup of decidedly average chili and greasy fries. Unfortunately, the Main Event is slowly being sapped of excitement as all the big names fall. Johnny Chan and Phil Galfond have both slipped through the net, and with JP Kelly hitting the deck, Redmond Lee is the only one left flying the flag for the UK. At the moment, it looks unlikely that we'll have a representative on the final table. In fact, I'm concerned that the November Nine will be a somewhat disappointing line-up made up predominantly of unknowns. Getting a few familiar faces on there, or least a couple of 'characters', is important for poker in my opinion.
At the start of the day, I thought about what the perfect November Nine would be. I think eclecticism is king with every segment of society represented. We want people who can grip an audience, personalities who have stories to tell and will finally give us the final table we've been looking for. It's slim pickings, but this is what I came up with:
Michael Mizrachi - the comeback kid
Johhny Lodden - the degenerate Scandie
Jean-Robert Bellande - the joker
JP Kelly - the plucky Brit
David Benyamine - the high roller
Tony Dunst - the dude who wears a suit
Breeze Zuckerman - the female
Johnny Chan - the old guard
Phil Galfond - the Internet whiz
Poker gained popularity through the characters of the early to mid 2000s, so to be left with nine reticent 20-something socially challenged Internet kids would be disastorous. The WSOP is a story, and our main protagonist needs to be a character, with a voice and a presence, someone with a bit of spunk who people can relate to. The Champion has the chance to become the new face of poker. I'm tired of looking at the same ones.
Previous WSOP Reports:
Employee of the Month
Fairytale Endings
Must Be Nice
Make Mine a Double
Blonde on Blonde
Summer of Sam
Chuft to Bits
Under the Radar
Taking Notice
BBP Braced for WSOP Main Event
WSOP Main Event - Day 1A
WSOP Main Event - Day 1B
WSOP Main Event - Day 1C
WSOP Main Event - Day 1D
WSOP Main Event - Day 2A
WSOP Main Event - Day 2B
WSOP Main Event - Day 3
WSOP Main Event - Day 4
Vegas Blog:
May 23: My Old School Teacher
May 31: Welcome to America; Let the Institutionalising Begin
June 1: Pleasure & Pain
June 5: 100% British Beef
June 9: Alphabetti Spaghetti & Giant Meatballs
June 13: Colour Me Up
June 14: The Crying Game
June 20: Last Gasps
June 25: Dancing With the Devil
June 30: The End of a Streak
July 6: Tournament of Famous People
July 10: Running on Empty
July 15: An Excuse to Party