[Berge20]

This isn't as good as the Toss to Vegas reports, but....

Part 1: Friday

After many attempts at trying to get up to Atlantic City, I finally was able to put together a weekend to check it out. It was poor timing for my BR since I just booked flights and accomodations to beach and to Vegas, so I was scrounging around for some cash. Pull out the poker books and thumb through them for loose bills (I tend to toss some in them in after poker related trips). Phil Helmuth's Play Poker Like the Pro's comes through with a few bills and we're off. Thanks Phil, best thing your book has done for my game ever.

Fellow 2+2r ChrisAJ and I took off from DC about 2:30ish, about two hours after 2+2r Mr. K who we were helping celebrate his final AC trip and acceptance to law school. He'll be leaving DC, so this was it and I prepared myself for a full weekend of poker, drinking and whatever else we got into.

Immediately we run into traffic and it takes way longer than expected even to get across the river, but things start to clear up and we start making good progress...until Deleware, where it takes us an hour to cross the 10-mile stretch. Not good, but I brought ToP and brushed up on some basics.

We arrived over 5 hours after departure, which I noted is about how long it takes for a flight from DC to Vegas--but in that scenario at least you gain 3 hours, so next time I'm just flying out west under that logic [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

Immediately we head to the Borg and I grab a set at a new 1/2 NL game. I get stuck in the 1 slot, but the bigger fish were to my right and it wasn't so bad. 3-4 reasonable players at the table including a woman in her mid-30s with gorgeous hazel eyes and a low cut shirt in the 6-slot right in my view. To my immediate left were two really tight players, but fairly unimaginative from what I could tell. There was a mega calling station and a couple hyper aggro guys both to my right.

I think we'd been playing an orbit when it folded to the blinds (wtf), SB completes and BB mini-raises (score)--SB 3-bets, BB pushes and gets his KK's called by AA. Not an orbit later the same guy runs into set-over-set on the flop and is down two buy-ins in twenty minutes and storms off.

I grind, grind, grind getting nothing solid and am down to about $250. Getting annoyed b/c all the fish are handing their money away and I can't get anything to show down. It's always fun to look at the 2-3 other decent players after a mega-donk pulls in a pot with some randomly rivered two-pair and we are all thinking the same thing "Just don't leave!"

Finally I'm in the HJ and pick up AKs: UTG limps, EP makes it $12 to go, I call, CO calls, UTG calls. Flop is AQ9ds and EP c-bets $20 and I make it $60 to go trying to isolate (he loves any ace or paint)--CO who is pretty tight cold calls and UTG mucks. Turn is a low 3-flush card (I've got the nut draw) and it goes Check-check. River is a Q and goes Check-Check and he shows 9's full--guess scared of AQ/AA?

New player sits down in the 4 slot, really attractive asian gal with Ipod. My view is improving, even if my stack size isn't.

I tangle with her not long after. She seems moderately tight--I limp in with A6s from MP after 2 limpers and she comes along from the CO and we go 6 to the flop. Ten-high flop all spades (bingo!). Checked to me and I lead for $15, she calls and we're heads-up. Turn a blank and I fire $35, she makes it $100 straight. I think briefly and push--she folds AT up (huh).

A few hands later I get KQs UTG and make it $10 to go. She calls from MP and BB comes along. JT7 flop with two spades (I have hearts) and I C-bet $25--she calls and I turn a queen and it goes check-check. River is a ten and I lead $60, she thinks and pushes for another $150 or so and I muck, wishing I'd bet the turn. She shows J7...

Meanwhile Mr. K has doubled through a couple times at another table and has a mountain of chips when he so kindly comes over and knocks my neatly arranged stacks all over the place. I go to retaliate, but then realize his towers are too impressive. Chris has had the opposite luck and ran bad, so he decided to stroll through the casino and see what else is around--it was also his first visit to AC. We discuss some dinner options and I decide that food isn't necessary.

I finally move out of the 1 seat and get some space in the 3. This is when the mini-heater finally starts. Snag 3's in UTG+1 and flop a set in limped pot--I fire out on the flop and get a caller, but he folds to my double barrel on a draw-heavy board.

The very next hand, I snag 44 UTG and it goes 6-ways. Flop is 47J and I lead again for $15--MP calls. Turn is a Jack (score) and I lead for $50, he doesn't oblige me with a raise and just smoothcalls. River is an Ace and I make it $100 to go--he reluctantly calls with JT and my hand is good.

I snag JJ in LP and 3-bet a loose EP raiser, no action. Next time in the BB I get QQ and raise it up to $17 after about 6 limpers, 1 caller. QT4r flop and I fire out $30 and he calls--turn is an ace and I fire again, hoping maybe he was monkeying around with Ax or such but he folds.

We decide to call it a night at 2am so we're fully prepared for Saturday. 6 hours of grinding and the mini-heater on the end netted me $301 for the night and we headed off to the hotel.

More troops are arriving in the morning--including some women, who are looking to do some drinking, assorted gambling and perhaps some dancing. We needed our rest.

Next: Saturday Daytime