That's the typical room in every casino in town. Ever see the scene in Outlaw Josey Wales where he walks into the bar and they're all sitting around waiting for a "big spender" to come in? That would be the description of most rooms in Vegas.

Alex, I think that's a gross over-simplification. There are a lot of fish, but there are some sincere sharks, too. Ability to know the difference helps.

Variance here is quite large. I've had winning days and horrific losing days. Without having multiple tables in front of you, bad days can be BRUTAL days. And it seems everyone goes through what I went through when I first came here--adjustment through losing.

An unnamed friend who's a far better player than I is having that very same introduction, I think. He's gotten anal-raped in the worst fashion by some seriously awful beats. Las Vegas tests you, punishes you if you're not strong, and you come out the other side a lot stronger.

So don't think the streets are paved with easy-money. That's just what we want you to think.

Wreck,

I really don't like MGM. It's too noisy and the staff often seems to have Bellagio Syndrome. There are so many places to play, one can choose several where you feel most comfortable and find the best games. Gimme Venetian.

CJ

Mandalay Bay -- 1/2NL 100-200, 2/4NL 200-400, Limit 4/8. Daily tournaments ~10 tables

THE GOOD:
Nice poker room. The tables were huge and plush with plenty of room even 10-handed. The games were pretty weak.

THE BAD:
The rake is 10% up to $4 and they use 50cent coins so they rake .50 every $5 which i didnt like. Also, they dont allow chopping. (I dont chop anyways I kinda like this rule but alot of people dont)

THE UGLY
"verbal is binding." Even if you make a conditional statement. This is what happened:

Everyone is joking around having a good time (2/4NL). One guy straddles, there is 4 limpers. SB completes BB calls. The straddle is on his option and is debating whether to raise. The SB joking trys to convince straddle not to raise. And in doing that he says "If you raise Im going to re-raise". The straddle goes ahead and raises. 2 limpers call, and when it gets back to the SB the dealer tells him he has to raise since he said he would. Players call the floor over, and floor agrees that SB must raise. So the SB min-re-raises and one of the limpers pushes everyone folds. SB had 94o.

Personally, this is the must retarded rule ive ever seen in a poker room. It makes no sense. And I was in disbelief that the floor ruled that way.

So I'm in Vegas for a couple of weeks and was wondering where the fish swim in Vegas $1/$2NL. I really liked Paris last year, but they've moved the poker room to some sports book corner now -- it used to be in an open area in the middle of the casino so a lot of tourists would try their luck, but not anymore. Where else is the competition soft y'all?