Ameristar St. Charles - Impressions, small report, and question

[Doc]

Hi guys,

In the past, I have ripped Ameristar St. Charles for being poorly run and having slow dealers. I was back this week Thursday and Saturday night and had a much more pleasant experience.

I've been on vacation this week, so my lovely wife let me get away to the poker room twice. It takes about 45 minutes for me to drive up there, and I finally remembered to call ahead to get a seat. Both nights I got seated basically as soon as I swiped in.

Thursday night I played 3-6. There was a list of interest in the 4-8 w/kill, but it never got going. Dealer speed seems to have improved significantly since my last trip up there. I had one dealer miscall a flush as A high, but that was quickly fixed, no harm, no foul. I stayed too long, got tired, and got stupid, evidenced by me calling down a good player with a pair of fives because I was convinced he was on overcards. $-26 for the night, live and learn.

Saturday I got into the room at about 7:30pm. Bought in for $200 (It's a pain in the butt to buy chips in Missouri because you have to go to the cage so they can swipe your card and make sure you don't go over our silly loss limits). I got seated immediately at a 3-6 game.

Question time: First or second hand I am sitting down. I muck preflop. Goes to river headsup. Board is 678Tx. Both players show a 9, but one player had a jack as well. Dealer starts to chop the pot. I realize the pot shouldn't be chopped after the dealer pushed the two stacks of chips and as the dealer was turning over the cards. Should you speak up in this situation? I did, floor was called over, things were rectified, and everyone seemed ok with it. Since I rarely play live, what is the proper thing to do in this situation?

I sit there for about 45 minutes, have Fancy Play Syndrome bite me in the butt, lose with KK when I try for a limp reraise but no one has the decency to raise. I also have to give up on JJ when I get multiple overcards on the flop and a lot of action.

So 45 minutes in, down about $60 and hearing my wife's words that I could only go to the poker room if I would come home a winner. Some creative accounting may be necessary to accomplish this. They call the 4-8 w/kill and I switch tables. I'm down to around 140 in chips, and I make the trek again back to the cage. It seems odd that they only have 2 windows open on a Saturday night with 6 people deep. I use my emergency check to buy more chips (probably not what my wife had in mind when she made me carry one) and off we go.

About my 5th hand in, we are in a kill pot. I am in EMP with JTs. 2 limpers in front of me including the nice lady to my right, I limp, 5 to the flop. flop comes JTx rainbow. Action goes bet call I raise and rest fold behind me. Turn is a 7 rainbow, she donk bets me and I raise again. I can't decide if I was being sexist for not respecting her turn bet or just trying to protect my hand. River is a blank, she checks I bet, she calls. Turns over the straight, and at this point I am down ~140. More creative accounting may be required in the report to my wife.

I am trying not to steam and reminding myself that maybe I shouldn't be playing a game that can go to 8-16. Fairly boring for a while until the pot that goes to 4 bets preflop x 7 people. I flop a set and it holds up. All the sudden the night is looking up.

After talking to the lady a bit and listening to the conversation, I realize it's her to my right, he husband to the right of her and a friend of theirs to his right. She remarks that her nickname for her friend is "Pit boss." "Pit boss" and I get into a pot heads up on the turn and I river him with 2 pair in a decent sized pot. You can see the frustration in his face.

About 3 hands later, Pit Boss has the kill button Folded to me on the button. I raise to $16 with Q9o just trying to steal. Pit Boss says "Normally I wouldn't call, but I am going to call you because of our bad history together." Ok, so now you're spite calling me. Flop comes JTx again. Pit boss bets I raise trying for a free card. Turn is a T, pit boss bets out again, krap, my goose is cooked. I call, hoping he isn't already full. River is a J. Pit boss bets out again. I tank for 10 seconds and finally the thought comes to me that he probably doesn't have a damn thing, he's been spiting me the whole way. I call. He shows a counterfeited 66, and my queen is good. My analysis was off somewhat, but I will take it. After that I got plenty of action whenever I wanted it.

Game got shorthanded, I am amazed how people don't seem to adjust from 10 handed down to 6 handed. I made a bit more and was up significantly when the game broke. Creative accounting no longer necessary.

I should probably go cash out some chips but I am too stinkin' lazy to walk 50 steps over to the cage. I move to a 3-6 table and sit down with a lot more chips than you should sit down in for a 3-6 game. Dealer gets the gold star for sarcastically telling me, "Sir, I'm sorry but we have a one thousand minimum buy in for this game" [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] Everything is funny when you are winning. I made a check raise on the turn early on this table which made things nice because a lot of people wouldn't bet their marginal and good hands against me on the river. I won at least one pot because of a free showdown that I would have mucked to a river bet and maybe two. It seems odd to me, but here they have a rule that 6 handed you can drop to 1 sb and no bb playing 3-6. Amazingly enough only one dollar in the pot did not seem to completely kill the action. We saw one of the typical Saturday night NL fights break out, security called, etc. Only thing different about this fight was that the dealer could give us some background on both players. One was a known angle shooter and the other was a serious player according to her. Fight's over boys, table breaks and I spend another hour playing at a shorthanded 3-6 table and pick up some more and it's a good night.

Fourth table in 9 hours. Play for an hour, nothing remarkable. I announce it's my last round, one hand later my wife calls checking on me so good timing. I cash out up a nice chunk, wait forever at the restaurant/bakery downstairs to get my wife some eclairs, and head home.

Things seem to have gotten significantly better here. Comps aren't amazing at 75c/hour but it's still at least something I can actually use. I would recommeded the room for limit action to anyone in the St. Louis area. Final comment is that the floors seem young relative to all the other rooms I have played in, but they seem competent.

Cheers,

Doc

[Biggle10]

[ QUOTE ]
Question time: First or second hand I am sitting down. I muck preflop. Goes to river headsup. Board is 678Tx. Both players show a 9, but one player had a jack as well. Dealer starts to chop the pot. I realize the pot shouldn't be chopped after the dealer pushed the two stacks of chips and as the dealer was turning over the cards. Should you speak up in this situation? I did, floor was called over, things were rectified, and everyone seemed ok with it. Since I rarely play live, what is the proper thing to do in this situation?

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I think you are right to speak in this situation. Both players tabled their hands. Cards speak and so pot should be pushed to winning player.

[magoo]

Bought in for $200 (It's a pain in the butt to buy chips in Missouri because you have to go to the cage so they can swipe your card and make sure you don't go over our silly loss limits).

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"Loss limits". I won't gamble in Missouri because of that. It's actually an insult to gamblers.