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Two Dozen Nights in Vegas: Down Town VP and beer.

Discussion in 'Vegas Trip Reports' started by wasilla, Oct 20, 2019.

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  1. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    Thanks all.
    I started playing this morning at 8:30, took an hour lunch break, and then played until now. I'm going to grab some dinner and then get in a little more point multiplied play. I did learn a couple things this morning at BHB.
    1. There are still only two of the new machines at BHB. They do have drink lights, but they are not turned on. The Aces Kicker (like DDB) game on it is 8/6. The Super Aces Kicker game is 9/6 and pays 2 for 3 OAKs. They don't seem to get much play unless the bar is busy. I read some thread this morning where this was brought up.
    2. Crystal isn't becoming a bartender anytime soon. An issue with going from Bar Back to Bartender is that you lose your Bar Back shift and seniority and have to start all over by picking up shifts when available. I read about this in another thread and Crystal said that she had been asked about it.
    3. My taste buds were blown out last night. That rye IPA I dissed last night tasted a lot better today.

    Sorry for the delay. I'm trying to be timely, but not live with this TR. I have 3 notebook pages of notes to recap already and hope to at least put a dent in it tonight.
     
    Last edited: Oct 24, 2019
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  2. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    Weds 10/23 at MSS.

    I love MSS. Last trip I slept 9 nights here and gambled $56k over 11 days and hit 2 royals.. There was something they didn't like and my November mailers dropped to a casino rate. They were sold out tomorrow, so out of 24 nights, I'm only here for 2. I tried to make the most of it.

    I was at BHB at 8:35 to play .25 JOB. It's senior day. I have an 11X point multiplier, get a buffet or $5 food comp after 1 TC, and get a $5 food credit, $10 MP, or $2 worth of points after 15 TC's. I started the day with a coffee and Baily's, followed by another, replaced by coffee and Rumchata, and topped by a White Russian. After that, I had lunch and started drinking.

    I quit playing at 9:16 for a breakfast break. I had played through about $700 in a pretty calm session. When I went to the kiosk for the buffet voucher I saw a huge line. It's these times that I miss my Emerald card. I went to plan B, BHB, and continued playing. I couldn't hit a 4 OAK and brilliantly decided that switching to 8/5 3 play BP was the answer. I'd put about $1,800 through JOB and had lost $50 at that point. The decision to switch was mostly due to wanting to put a lot of coin through today.
    At 10:40 I made the switch, At 10:53 I lost another $50. Apparently not hitting $ OAK's might be more of a problem on triple play BP. I finally drew my 4th 9 at 10:57 and felt better finally getting a quad. At 11:16, I lost the day's 2nd hundred. I had gotten killed playing this game for the first time in June and was a little concerned. I hit 9's again at 11:41. At noon I was dealt a Diamond straight flush, a huge hand in BP multi line. I got 3's at 12:19 and again at 12:30. I was recouping credits. I got Q's at 12:36, was hungry, and quit at 12:50 with 2773 pts. For coin in, multiply that by two. I was down $49 for the session and $99 for the day excluding scratch cards and points.
    I had a $25 food credit from yesterdays mystery game. Even though the advertised mystery dates included today, I have never been able to use this promotion on Senior Day. I thought it might be to prevent promotional double dipping, but the player's club said that the promotion was not applicable for anyone on Wednesdays. Perhaps someone younger can verify from their own experience. Lunch was a Classic Cheeseburger with the onion ring upgrade. The sample of the rye IPA tasted much better today and a 23 once accompanied lunch. I got a 23 once cherry porter to take to the machine.
    I started playing the same triple play machine at 1:50. I hit 2's at 2:00, and J's at 2:09. Sounds like I was doing well, but I was on my hundred's last bet at 2:16. I got deuces with it, but still lost the hundred at 2;35. I had 3,440 points and had lost $200 today even after getting 750 credits on that lucky dealt SF. What does it take to win this game? I put in another hundred.
    I hit Q's at 2:40 and lost the hundred at 2:57. I slid another in. I was dealt 5's at 3:13, drew 7's at 3:28. At 3:48 I was dealt my first multi line 4 card royal. 2 extra chances wasn't enough. I decided to cap the day's losses at no more than a grand. At 3:45 I filled out an inside Club SF draw. I drew 3 more queens for the quad at 3:50. At 3:55 I was dealt 4 royal clubs. On the top line the king of clubs completed my first multi line RF. At 4:06 I hit 6's. After that I had 7 deals composed of 21 hands that didn't earn a single credit. I was dealt 10's at 4:13, drew J's at 4:30, Aces at 4:34 (first aces of the trip), and J's at 4:58. The machine started spitting out tickets for any win that would reach $1,200 in credits. I cashed out $1,200 in tickets and deposited another hundred.
    I lost that hundred at 5:41. A guy I knew had sat next to me after my bigger hits and was trying to console me. I was trying to assure him that this draught wasn't a problem without seeming to brag. I didn't hit another quad until I got K's at 6:08. I got them again at 6:13, got 6's at 6:35, but was on the hundred's last bet at 6:58.I drew 3's. I drew a Heart SF at 7:02, and K's at 7:30. I quit for a dinner break at 7:45 with 7,629 pts and my hundred intact.
    Dinner was at the Cal's Noodle House. I brought a Carlsbad IPA from BHB with me. I like the restaurant, but not every dish is equal. I love Pad Thai. A couple of decades ago I'd buy a plate from a street vender for 40 baht (about $1) and it was delicious. I've yet to adjust to Anchorage prices for this dish and look forward to a comped plate at the Noodle House. I always pair it with Dog Fish 90 minute Imperial IPA. It's hands down the best beer that I can get comped in DT Vegas. I got two $5 food credits for Senior day and charged the rest to my room credit. I like the Pad Thai there 70 to 80% of the time. Other entries are more hit and miss. Portions are huge so I always take home an extra meal.
    After dinner I moved to BHB for .25c JOB. I finished my IPA, had a Rumchatta on the rocks and finished with Canyon's Merlot. Thanks for the tip Joe, it's delicious.
    I started playing single line 9/6 JOB at 9:45. I had an 1 1/2 hour quad draught, but was playing even. I hit 2's at 11:15, 5's at 11:40, and 8's at 11:51. I quit at midnight when the point multiplier expired. I was up $50 for the session so that I had won back the $50 I had lost playing this machine this morning. Small victories! I got another Merlot to go to help me with this TR entry. I'll have to wait till tomorrow to decide if too much alcohol was involved in this entry.
    I had 8572 pts today (over $17k coin in) worth about $94 with the multiplier. I also had 33 scratch cards worth $67 (one was $3). My pocket dump puts me up $648 for the trip. I'd like to pretend that I was smart enough to engineer this, but getting dealt a multiline SF for almost $200 and a $1,001.25 isn't something I was able to plan. I could easily been down as much without a couple lucky hands.
    Tomorrow I move to $ Q's for 3 nights.
     
    Last edited: Oct 24, 2019
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  3. Guardian

    Guardian High-Roller

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    33 scratch cards? In one day? I can't get that many in a month. Nice.:thumbsup:
     
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  4. Aplayer2

    Aplayer2 wager enthusiast

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    Now that is Vegas Champion breakfast---You are my Video Poker Hero, Carry on and Good Luck Sir.
     
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  5. Nohitter1217

    Nohitter1217 Low-Roller

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    10/23 in the lower 48 here bud :beer:
     
  6. gutshotSF

    gutshotSF Royal chaser and real-life long-distance runner

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    Your trip report thus far is a good reminder that playing low-volatility games is not a guarantee of a low-volatility session! Glad that your results landed on the right side of the bell-curve today. I wasn't aware that the Cal Noodle house had Dogfish head. It is a shame that I will never play enough at Boyd to start earning comps on video poker ;).
     
  7. mwig

    mwig VIP Whale

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    Congrats on a great early start. I'll be able to answer the Wednesday question next week. We will be staying at the D but booked a room at the Cal to take advantage of the bonus game. Arrival day is Wed. so if that promo doesn't work it will be a wasted comp. Boyd is on the verge of cutting me off too so figured I would get some bonus points one more time.
     
  8. RedChip

    RedChip VIP Guppy

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    Outstanding! :beer: Loving all the details. Congratulations on being up! Keep it going.
     
    One night at the Gambling Hall...
    ...followed by two nights downtown
  9. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    Probably should have skipped that last Merlot. Edited.
     
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  10. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    I recall last Summer that you were playing single line $1 BP at El Co and hit Aces right before you left town. There are different ways to get Dogfish. I usually get it with a comp at Noodle House or Redwood. The menu lists it at $6 but I always seem to be charged only $4. Even a $20 room credit is enough for a meal and couple of beers.
     
  11. SandsFan

    SandsFan VIP Whale

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    Have a great trip. I used to go to Kenai via Anchorage at least every quarter and many of the team there would make the Vegas trip during the winter to get out of the short days. I hope you enjoy your trip and get lots of sunshine.
     
    The 3 P Trip (Paris and Palms)
  12. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    Thursday, 10/24 morning and afternoon.

    Yesterday I reported on BHB new machines' pay tables. Since I am egocentric and rarely play dollars, I didn't check for different denominations. I cut through the Cal on my way to 4 Q's. They do have 9/6 Aces Kicker (DDB) for $1's. It is 8/6 below that. Sorry for not being more thorough. They are pretty bad a quarters. There are too many cameras around for vandalism to be a consideration, but I have started telling quarter players if there are better pay tables for their games at the next machine.

    I had an 8:30 wake up call, but I didn't roll out of my room until close to 10:00. I walked to 4 Q's, went to the host's office and got a suite upgrade. There isn't a cool promotion this stay but I do have a$300 FP and a $50 food credit. At 10:35 I started playing a Mikes' bar downstairs. I had a couple of good Baileys and coffees. If it was later I would have delved into their Pina Caladas.
    I find 10/6 DDB fucking crazy. Even playing 50c, I can win or lose more than my meager monthly pension check in an hour or two. I figured I would start slower this morning and played the .25c DB and DDB progressives switching to whichever had the best EV. These games have VERY different playing strategies. DB is my favorite game and I was sober and awake, so the strategy switches were working out.
    Unfortunately I was in a quad draught and lost my hundred at 11:16. The progressives were less attractive by then, so I switched to 50c 10/6/40 DDB. This probably would have been a fine idea if I wasn't in a quad draught.. I lost the 1st $100 FP in 10 minutes at 11:26 with 88 points, the second $100 FP at 11:44 with 143 pts, the 3rd $100 FP at 12:04 with 215 pts. I had lost all my FP in less than an hour. I added another hundred and lost that at 12:16 with 251 points. You can multiply points by 8 to calculate coin in. This was an ongoing horror show that a mere quad draught didn't come close to accounting for. In an hour and 40 minutes I had gambled $2,000 and lost $500 of it. That's a 25% loss rate. I'm looking longingly at slot players envious of their mere 10% hold. I'd like to pretend that this is an anomaly, but it's not. On multiple occasions I have bled bankroll on 10/6 DDB like a sliced artery.
    I quit at 12:16 $500 down. Some of you might think that I quit because I was losing so quickly. A normal person would do that. When you reach the subset of people that go to Vegas for over 3 weeks to play VP, you've filtered out most of the normal people. I quit because I had to check out of MSS and I was pissed about it.
    I checked out at 12:50. On moving day, I call for a late checkout when I get up. I saw a friend playing JOB at 4Q's and we caught up a bit. He was one of the people sucking up all the quad progressives I wanted at the Vue Bar last Summer.I had forgotten my watch this morning and I use it a lot for my TR's. I forgot it again when I checked out, so I had to go back. Fortunately the security guard was not at his post so that I could get to my ex room. It was being cleaned and she gave me my watch. TR disaster averted! There was a couple in the elevator when I got in. That was odd as I was on the top floor. I couldn't let it go, so we joked on the way down about their tour of the hotel floors.
    I was heading for my room again, but didn't get past the stairway to Chicago Brewing. I figured that I could lose a full grand today without tapping into my original bankroll, so I decided to reevaluate if that happened. I had added $2,000 to my bankroll to be able to play DDB. I bring $7,000 which is reasonable for playing quarters but a bit light for .50c.
    The progressives for .25c DB and DDB both looked good and I started with DB and later switched to DDB. I ordered a Windy City pizza and an Imperial pint of Hardaway IPA. I ordered another later. I actually prefer this to anything else in casinos except for some special taps and the Cal's Dogfish 90 minute Imperial IPA. Gambling was horrible, but at least I was eating and drinking well.
    I started playing at 2:08. The quad draught continued. When my pizza came the 5 thru K quad progressive was high enough to add a full percent EV to the game. My pizza cooled until it was hit. I had been dealt an overabundance of trips, but never got the 4th card. At 2:34 I was dealt 2's with a kicker for a $227 progressive. I got 5's with $64 at 3:18 and 6's at 3:53. At 4:18 I was dealt 2 aces and drew 2 more complete with kicker for a $532 progressive. I quit at 4:30 up $500 for the session and even for the day. I had 226 points for the session.
    I figured that a would celebrate this as a small but significant victory. I ordered another IPA to bring to my room and write this entry. I'll be back to playing VP soon.
     
    Last edited: Oct 24, 2019
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  13. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    I think that your week includes Thursday, mine didn't. I've used that promo multiple times during a stay, including check out day. I just think that you have to have a room when you get the promotion that day. I will probably spend some time at MSS that Weds before I head to Gold Coast. I check out of the D on Weds.
     
  14. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    It's a lot easier to accomplish on multi line. I got 6 of those cards from just two dealt hands.
     
  15. RedChip

    RedChip VIP Guppy

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    I'll have to remember and practice the pizza and beer VP strategy. Nice comeback!
     
    One night at the Gambling Hall...
    ...followed by two nights downtown
  16. progrocker2112

    progrocker2112 Watch out for this guy

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    Wasilla, I like the cut of your jib.
     
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  17. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    Perhaps I'll change your mind on that progrocker.

    Thursday night, 10/24 at 4 Q's

    So we left off with me playing DDB, losing $500 in under 2 hours, winning it back over pizza and beer, and taking a break to glory over my fresh start. So new beginnings! Learn from the past! Etc!

    I went back to Chicago brewing. There was a line down the stairs for a table, but some machine seats were free. I ordered another IPA. It was the first of only two tonight. They added onion rings to their apps. I couldn't finish them but they were great. Something was off with the ventilation. The cigar smokers in the chairs in the corner would have set off home smoke alarms. The bar was too dark to take good, legible notes, so I'm also relying some on memory.

    I started playing 9/6 DDB with progressives at 8:05. I was dealt 3's at 8:14, but couldn't draw the kicker. I got J's at 8:36 and 3's at 8:51. All these had progressives that, while not huge, were helpful. I think that I also hit 2's. I had a lot of credits, but the quads stopped coming. I was playing fast trying to hit the 5 thru K progressive that was paying 40 extra coins. I shed a lot of credits in pursuit. When it was hit, all the progressives were pretty low and I decided to switch to .50c 10/6 DDB. I was sure the quads would roll in, but I lost the last of those credits at 10:32. I lost another $100 at 10:40, again at 10:52, another at 11:00 and a fifth hundred at 11:07. I considered moving, but a lot of non players were seated at the bar.

    I had dug the same hole I had just climbed out of. It was a bit more dramatic this evening, because my first hundred was sitting at a nice profit before things went south. Tonight's turnaround was at least $700. I put another hundred in. I got 3's at 11:15. A couple of FH's and Flushes showed up and I was accumulating some credits again. That slowed. At some point I switched to dollars. I can't really explain why though. I was running out of credits and contemplating the Clash line: "Should I stay or should I go?" I had $34 left in the machine when I hit aces. I was stunned and can't remember how many I held. It wasn't 3 though. If I had been dealt trip aces playing dollars I would have spent 5 minutes imploring the poker gods. I was really surprised to see them, so I probably held one or none. I didn't consider leaving right away, but was planning a stopping point and how much of that $800 I would risk. At the very least I was willing to lose that $34.

    I switched back to .50c. I hit 8's at 11:38. I had 1888 credits, so the 8's seemed appropriate. Things were going well and I was hoping to get my credits up to an even grand. Then they weren't. I was done with the day's rollercoaster and at 12:02, I cashed out an $800 ticket.

    I'm not up to counting tonight, but I think I ended up being ahead a couple hundred.
     
    Last edited: Oct 25, 2019
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  18. tringlomane

    tringlomane STP Addicted Beer Snob

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    Dogfish 90 minute at Cal huh? At all bars? That really might be the best choice DT...
     
  19. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    Only at the Redwood/ Noodle House bar. Servers don't use it, but a Noodle House comp isn't that hard to come by.
     
  20. Aplayer2

    Aplayer2 wager enthusiast

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    wasilla, at Four Queens do you ever play Kings Bar at the entrance to Freemont? Do you have a reason to prefer Mike's Bar? I think all three bars have the same games. Always make a point of having at least one meal at Chicago Brew so I can continue to play. It's the roller coaster that makes it fun, better than a slow grind, or slow bleed.

    Great trip so far keep it up.
     
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