Wednesday, April 8, 2015
A 4-8 limit holdem seat was open immediately, so I played a short session.
My favorite couple from Viet Nam was at my table. I see them at 4-8 games around Las Vegas and I smile until my cheeks hurt every time we meet. For all of America’s faults it has become home to millions of hard-working, delightful folks like these two. The cosmopolitan nature of Vegas is an underrated strength of the city and an attribute that I truly treasure.
Back to poker for a minute, I stopped while ahead $50 in what I feel was a classic example of beating the rake. If everything had been the same tonight, but at a 2-4 limit game, the rake would have overwhelmed the pot sizes and I would have likely been a small loser. I believe I would have been only slightly better than break-even at a 3-6 limit table. Fortunately I was playing a 4-8 game with somewhat larger pots and I was able to pay for dinner a few feet away at Noodle Asia.
There must certainly be a lot of low limit players who are long-term small losers. I often wonder if they realize that they’re probably beating the other players, but not beating the rake. This should be encouraging to them. One possible solution is to simply experiment with higher limits and see how it goes.
Ok, enough about poker. Because the joy is in the journey, I often park in the Palazzo underground parking garage (off Sands Ave very near The Strip) and walk indoors to the Venetian. The corridor always has a beautiful display that changes seasonally. It recently changed from the Chinese New Year theme to a spring motif. I included two photos for you. I love Las Vegas for many reasons and seasonal displays around town is one of them.
