Last AC Trip
Posted by Wolfshead on Nov 04, 2011
Took two nighter to AC last week. Almost total disaster, one decent session at the pink game, one decent session at the limit tables, otherwise wipeout.
Started out Wed about 11. No rush, didn’t even pack until that morning. Hit Harrah’s about 12:30, no traffic, and surprisingly got my room right away. Desk clerk was a gem. Asked for a shower stool since my leg isn’t always the most dependable and Harrah’s put their grab bars in the shower in backwards and the lady says that she has some handicapped access showers in Harbor Tower. I know they have them in Waterfront but that’s too damned far a walk to the poker room. I tell her no need I can live with a chair but would appreciate something close to the elevators as walking is no longer my strong suit and she says no problem but it is on the 16th floor. No sweat as long as I’m not climbing the stairs. So off I go to the 16th floor, only 3 doors down from the elevators, close walk but far enough that you don’t hear them running all night. Unpack my shirts to keep them from wrinkling but that’s about it before I head to the poker room.
Pink game (7.5-15 OE) is running with a list so I put my name on it and hit the 2-4 limit. Actually don’t do too badly at 2-4 and was up about $50 when they call my name for the pink game. Things proceeded to go downhill from there. I’m not going to give you bad beat stories as there were no bad beats, at least on this day. It was just plain ugly. The hi/low games are basically games of outs to the nuts or near nuts and I was getting set up in a ridiculous amount of hands. I also got dropped down an elevator shaft almost every hand. There were so many blanks on later streets that I was tempted to report the dealers to the bricklayers union. Example, in a stud hand I pull 2-3-4-6 my first 4 cards. I wind up with 3 low pair which of course loses out to a higher 2. Add in the fact that a couple of players are hyper aggressive and more than a few are willing to bet and raise extremely light, a fact that can make you bucks when you hit, and a run of those types of hands can get expensive. And I had a very big run of those hands. I’ve been cold decked before but that afternoon required a pair of fur lined mittens to pick up those cards. I went through a buy in and a half before I finally gave up and went to my room to shower up, rest and relax for a bit. It’s while there I realize that everything is going to hell in a hand basket. My TV decides that it’s time for its tube to fail and it keeps cycling between a good picture and a totally red one. Great. He gods are speaking but I’m not listening. If I had I would have headed home then.
After resting for awhile I head back to the poker room. The pink game has broken but there is a 4-8 running so I grab a seat there. Not totally ugly but no great shakes there either. Spend most of the rest of my night there, wind up down about $50 which I more than recovered in the amount of Myers rum I drank. Nice thing about AC, free booze and no need to drive so I can imbibe. It was a friendly table for the most part and I had an enjoyable night.
Thursday I decide to go for a ride before playing poker to clear my head and also to get breakfast as the one place in Harrah’s for breakfast has closed down so I head for Ocean City and another Shore favorite, Uncle Bill’s Pancake House. You can tell it is off season as OC is closed up tighter than an altar boy’s ass at a priest’s convention. The rain has blown over but it’s still windy and overcast. Somehow there is something enjoyable about a day like that at the Shore, as long as I’m not on vacation that is. Uncle Bill’s has a good crowd for the off season though I feel like a teenager again given the average age in there and I prepare for a long slog at the tables with blueberry waffles, scrapple and lots of black coffee. Afterwards I drive around a bit before heading back to AC. Was going to hit the boards for a bit but decided not to. Did decide to put my car in valet parking to save myself a walk to the garage with my bag the next day. My status got me free valet so I only had to worry about the tip.
Get back to AC and Harrah’s poker room about noon and one of the players from yesterday’s pink game grabs me and asks if I’m playing. Absolutely says I. Seems they are trying to organize the game and I make 7 which means it’s a go. Much better day today as I’m not getting as many playable hands and the ones I am getting are hitting for the most part. Mainly chopping as I can’t pull a deuce or trey to save my ass so lows just aren’t happening much but my high cards are pulling in a few high scoops so it ain’t too bad and by the time the game breaks around 5 I’ve gotten at least one of my buy ins back. Still down about a buy in between the pink and holdem games from the previous day but at least things seem to be looking up. Well they were but mainly because the bottom dropped out from under me and up was the only way I could look. After the pink game broke I moved to a 2-4 table and decided to not play in my usual assign around style, I was going to play it seriously. Well I did but made no difference. Started out in the 6 seat but didn’t stay too long as Harrah’s plays 10 man tables and I was feeling cramped so as soon as a seat on the corners opened up I moved, down to the 2. Sat there for about 2.5 hours and played between 5-8 hands outside my blinds. Should have been at the pink game as literally 3 out of every 4 hands contained a 2 or a 3, usually combined with paint. Even if I wanted to play crazily it was impossible to play ay all. The hands I did play cost me a bit as they were a couple of monster pots, for 2-4, but I wound up second best. Finally had enough and moved to the 9 but unfortunately the cards must have left a trail of bread crumbs to find me as they didn’t change at all. After about a half hour there I requested a table change and found myself at a table just opening all the way near the back but that didn’t last long as the first 5 hands there I pulled a 3 in every one. That did it. Apologized to the table for leaving so quickly but I couldn’t put up with those cards anymore and headed to the room down about a buck twenty at 2-4. Ordered some room service pizza with a SoCo bread pudding for dessert and hung it up for the night. Tells you how bad the cards were, me in a casino and in bed before midnight. That just don’t happen, even when I’m losing.
Friday was getaway day. All week I had been seeing people with their bags in the poker room and decided I was going to play for awhile if the pink game was running. You see Harrah’s and I had a beef a few years back. I went down for a weekend with my brother who had the room in his name. I got down there before he did and decided to play poker while waiting. When I got there I was told no bags in the poker room and was made to check mine which necessitated a walk back to the front desk. Since it was before the stroke it was no big deal. What was the big deal was that while checked my laptop screen was broken and I had to jump through hoops for 3 months before they decided they weren’t replacing it even though the guy who examined it before I left said the case was adequately padded and stiffened. Since I saw all these bags sitting around I figured that rule was gone. Hah! Woman at the desk said no, bags weren’t allowed and that they did enforce the rule during the day. I didn’t argue since the pink game wasn’t going and decided to check the bag. Of course I didn’t have a computer with me either. So I gimp my way up to the front and back and decide to sit in on a 2-4 game while waiting. If the pink doesn’t go by noon I’m out of there. Cards at the 2-4 weren’t great though nowhere as bad as the previous night. A couple of players from the pink game are sitting in and mention that 2 others aren’t coming over that day. When they get up and leave about an hour later I figure the pink is dead for the day and plan to leave in about 30 min. The pink wasn’t dead, I was.
Just as I’m pulling up stakes, down about $50 the pink game is called so I go over and grab a seat. Interestingly enough right behind my chair is someone’s suitcase. I’m tempted to point it out to the floor person who just happens to be the same lady who told me they enforce the no bag rule on day shift but figure why be a prick. Just as well, only lasted 45 minutes at the game. In the course of 5 hands I had the nut 5 times, with a scoop 3 of those, on the turn. All 5 rivers killed me. Included was running nut flush in to straight flush. That’s the way my luck ran. To make it even better there was a Crazian in front raising light on the turn which of course means I’m 3 betting with the nuts. A buy in plus went to hell on just 5 hands. 5 straight hands. Enough was enough, time to head home and return another time. Was hoping to get down sooner but it looks like next trip is when Joe blows in to town again. Any who it was a devastating trip just by the way the cards ran not to mention the hit the bankroll took. Hopefully next trip improves. Noticed that the old Trump Marina has become the Golden Nugget and they are supposed to be opening their poker room sometime this month. May have to make a trip over there when down with VJ in 2 weeks. We’ll see. Hope to see some of you East Coaster then.
Thanks for the listen.
November 4th, 2011 at 13:45
“…though I feel like a teenager again given the average age in there…”
Um, was the average age 102? lol Sucks about taking a hit in the bankroll, but we shall change that soon enough my friend….assuming you come packing salt caramels, that is.