Going to Vegas. How much $ should I take?

[mxp2004]

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You guys heard of ATM machines?

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ATMs are not really good options in the casinos. Although I didn't actually use any, I read the signs on a few of them out of curiousity. There were huge transaction costs associated with them . . . costs that went beyond the usual small service fee associated with using an ATM from a bank other than your own. In particular, most of the machines that I saw charged a percentage of the money withdrawn on top of other service fees. I think that you are far better off bringing cash as opposed to relying upon a machine.

As for a decent stake for 1/2 NL in Vegas over 4 days... I would suggest $2,000. I played 11 sessions over 6 days, and although I ended up overall, there was a lot of variance. Particularly in the evening sessions, I found plenty of players willing to put their whole stacks in against me on a draw. I lost a good number of all-in confrontations with big hands against flush and OESDs. Even in some of my biggest winning sessions, I had to pony up another half-buyin or more to make up for a beat and keep sufficient money on the table.

I think that if you start with only $1,000 and hit a rough patch early on, you'll be tempted to play overly tight (and perhaps weak?) to protect your remaining roll and make sure it lasts for your whole trip. That's not a good way to play against the competition that I saw in Vegas.