I took the money. $3K is already in account and still need to sell the seat but I think that will be no problem.

ah, first, congrats on winning the seat.

secondly, i'm all for taking the money here. Either that or selling action to your seat (though it may be a bit late for this now). Either way, I think you need to guarentee yourself some sort of solid bank roll boost. If you're not a tournament player, your chances of even cashing are pretty small. And then once you cash, the first few pay out levels are only minimally over the 2k. Yes, winning it would change your life, but your chances of winning are (no offense) relatively minimal.

Boosting your bank roll here, and off of a free roll, is too big of an opportunity to pass up. I think taking the money is too +EV to ignore.

that being said, i think you should still go to vegas.