By Pauly
Las Vegas, NV
Around 2am last night I had a moment of clarity where I realized... I don't have to be at the Rio every second that cards are in the air. Scheckytown is as close to paradise as you can get. I rarely have a home base since I'm a nomad and constantly on the move. I left the Amazon Ballroom and went home to sleep and write.
This morning I woke up and instead of rushing to the Rio, I had a relaxing conversation with my roommates. Although Change100 has been at the WSOP the last two years, I'm always working so much that we barely have time to hang out. For a second day in a row, we had a quiet lunch without having to wolf down our food and rush to work. She actually has days off this year and I'm working at my own pace. This is my fourth WSOP and I know it's a test of endurance. Start slow and finish strong.
By the way, Day 5 is the first hectic day at the series. Five tournaments...
Event #2 $1,500 Donkament - Final 18 and Final Table
Event #3 $1,500 PLH - Day 2
Event #4 $5K Mixed Hold'em - Day 2
Event #5 #1K NL Rebuys - Day 1
Event #6 $1,500 Omaha 8 - Day 1
11:02am...
Kristy Gazes sunbathing outside at the pool. I almost took exclusive photos for Tao of Poker. I know Snoopy would have paid a premium for those paparazzi type pics.
Professional Keno Player Neil Fontenot called me to update me on the life of a balla. He was shock that I actually answered my phone.
12:03pm...
Smokkee reminded me about a tournament on BoDog tonight at 9:05pm ET. They're putting a $270 bounty on his head. I might actually play this one!
BoDog recently added a bunch of new WSOP props. I'm still listed at 16/1 odds in the blogger last longer.
1:04pm...
I sent Michalski a text that said... Rhino? He replied... Week 2. Booooo! I might have to rage solo and check out the afternoon shift by myself.
2:05pm...
Off to the Rhino to grope the afternoon shift with the blessings of my girlfriend. I can't bring a laptop inside the Rhino. I tired once. Long story. Anyway, I will update my Rhino trip via Twitter. Click here to follow me on Twitter.
4:20pm...
Today's smoke break is borught you by MMAJunkie... for all your UFC and Mixed Martial Arts needs.
5:05pm...
Back from an inspection of the afternoon shift. I need a bit of depravity to remind me of the struggle between good and evil in a war that has spilled over into the streets of Las Vegas. I will write more later about how the housing crisis and rising gas prices have affected the stripper economy. I thought I saw one guy who looked like John McCain. I didn't know he was campaigning in Nevada.
I wandered into the press box and was elated to find out that Brandon Schaefer was among the top 10 in chips in Event #3 $1,500 PLH. There are 30 left.
In Event #4 Mixed Hold'em, Patrik Antonius is slowly rising to the top of the leaderboard.
The final table for Event #2 Donkament is finally set. Jesus is the biggest name at the final table. He almost didn't make it. When it was ten-handed Jesus was all in and won a coin flip to stay alive.
Pokerati is on the ball today with two stories of note: Less of Mike to Like and No Chinese at the WSOP. Yes, I'm sure the Triad is up in arms after discovering that the WSOP no longer spreads Chinese Poker.
6:05pm...
The Rebuy event went on a break. Players were streaming out of the Amazon Ballroom through one door. I saw a seam and hit the hole, except at the last second Fossilman came barreling through and nearly ran me over.
Gary Wise interviewed a very slim Mike Matusow in the press box about his weight prop bet with Ted Forrest. The weigh in was 12:01am and Matusow made it and won $100K. He told Wise that at one point he didn't eat for 98 hours (and went on some odd lemon-pepper diet) trying to make the weight. He had a new prop bet with Ted Forrest. There's a weigh in at the first of the month. If Matusow weighs over 184, he owes Forrest $1K. He said it's going to be tough.
"When you play online poker, you get fat quick," said Matusow.
Over in Event #3, Brandon Schaefer is 10th in chips with 100K. 21 players remaining. I once made a bet that Brandon Schaefer would win a bracelet before his buddy Carl Olson. I got 6-1 odds too! With three tables to go, Brandon still has a lot of work ahead of him. David Singer is the chipleader in that event.
Bond18 told me a funny story about a game that the Shipitholla guys have involving Eskimo Clark. They all go up to Eskimo and strike up a conversation. They try to see who can last the longest without Eskimo hitting them up for money or a stake.
7:20pm...
Brandon Schaefer is 11th in chips out of 15. He's hanging on...
Shirley Rosario sighting. She's an 08 player so I figured she'd be in today's event. One of the Poker News floor guys came over and handed me a note. He said it was from a hot chick on Table #41. Here's the note...
8:13pm...
According to Slippers, Brandon Schaefer was just eliminated from Event #3.
Official numbers have been released for Event #6 $1,500 O8... 833 entrants. Top 81 get paid. Total prize pool is $1,249,500. First place pays $243,356.
9:15pm...
The best part about being able to roam is that I can watch multiple events this year. In 2007, I was chained to whatever event I was covering. Most of the time, they were Day 2s, so I was always covering one of the latest tournaments of the day. Thsi year, I'm free to roam. With five events ongoing, I made the rounds. I have been checking in with the different Poker News bloggers to get the skinny on any interesting things. They give me a bunch of info and good stuff that they can't write on the site. "Save it for Pauly," is their motto.
For example, over in Event #5 Rebuys event Mean Gene told me, "At Matusow's table they think two decks might've been mixed together and they were playing with 56 cards for a few hands. The floor took the decks, not sure if that's the case. Didn't want to blog it."
In Event #5 the big boys are at the top of the leaderboard; Ivey, Negreanu, and Hellmuth.
In Event #6 Omaha 8, Kristy Gazes just busted. The brother of the Grinder is the chipleader.
Andy Bloch is the chipleader in Event #4 and Michael Craig is still alive. And at the final table, Jesus is second in chips with 8 to go.
For all you degenerate gambling political junkies, I caught this blurb in the NY Post.com...
Hillary Rodham Clinton and Mitt Romney are the favorites to be their parties' vice-presidential nominees, according to a popular online betting site.
Intrade, which correctly picked the winner of every state in the 2004 general election, evaluates the veepstakes chances of 30 prominent political figures - 16 Democrats and 14 Republicans.
Among Democrats, Clinton holds a slight lead over Virginia Sen. James Webb, with a 21 percent chance of her being named to the No. 2 spot, compared with Webb's 19.7 percent. In a distant third place is New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, at 6.2 percent.
On the GOP side, there are three leaders, Romney at 19.2 percent, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty at 15.6 percent and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee at 14.1 percent, according to Intrade.
10:15pm...
I have a prop bet with Matt Parvis involving the 23 remaining players in Event #4 5K Mixed Hold'em. We both drafted 5 players. Whoever's player goes the deepest wins...
Pauly: Roland de Wolfe, Andy Bloch, Isaac Haxton, Phil Laak, and Ariel SchnellOf course, one of my guys busted first. Unabomber is busto. Parvis is up 5-4.
Parvis: ZeeJustin, Erick Lindgren, Michael McKenna, Andrew Robl, and Howard Lederer
Felipe (the PokerNews photographer from Portugal) and Flipchip are talking cameras in media row. Felipe told me that hookers in Brazil cost only $10.
"Everything is cheap in Brazil," he said.
I couldn't tell if he was serious or joking.
11:15pm...
Snoopy stopped by. Like most Brits he has a cheeky sense of humour. He always clues me in on British slang for masturbation such as "bashing the bishop." I told him the old stay by, "glazing the donut."
When I pointed out that Shannon Elizabeth was sitting at a table in front of the press box, Snoopy said, "I'm better looking than the chap in American Pie. You think she'd want a go with me."
Shannon Elizabeth is third in chips in Event #8 1.5K Omaha 8. Yes, that's a sign of the apocalypse. It's also raining frogs right now in the valley.
Of course, it's closing in on Midnight and there has not been one Michalski sighting yet today.
1:05am...
Over at the final table, Jesus needs to perform a miracle and pull of some water into wine tricks. He's fourth in chips with five to go.
In Event #3 5K Mixed, Andrew Robl made the final two tables. He bet (undisclosed five figires) that his buddy couldn't live in a Bellagio bathroom for a month. Yeah Robl lost the bet. In my last longer with Parvis, he's up 4-3. We both lost a player.
In the Event #5 Psycho-Rebuys, Phil Ivey is third in chips and Negreanu is fourth. Hellmuth is near the top and Tony "Bond18" Dunst is one of the shortstacks.
Over in Event #6 0maha8, the legendary Amarillo Slim busted. DonkeyBomber and Shirley Rosario are still in. Shannon Elizabeth slipped a bit and has roughly the same stack as Linda Johnson.
2:07am...
Well, Jesus is still alive at the final table. Hallelujah! He's second in chips with three to go.
In the 5K Mixed event, Parvis is up 4-2 in our prop bet after Andy Bloch busted. My last two horses are Isaac Haxton and Roland de Wolfe. Parvis still had Lederer, Lindgren, Andrew Robl, and Zee Justin in the race. I need help with 12 to go.
Over in Omaha, Shirley is still alive but Shannon Elizabeth is busto. Again.
2:45am...
Jesus has left the building. The holy roller out in third place.
Original content written and provided by Pauly from Tao of Poker at www.taopoker.com. All rights reserved. RSS feeds are for non-commercial use only.
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