Card Rooms

We're all Vegas this week! Log 50 hours of live poker play at any Station Casino (Palace Station, Texas Station, Sunset Station, Green Valley Ranch, Santa Fe Station, Boulder Station or Fiesta's) poker rooms by February 28, 2006 and receive a colorful free logo jacket.

Fasten your seatbelts - this column's going international!

First stop is the United Kingdom, and we're tackling Scotland and the northern regions of England.

Caesars Palace opened its doors to the public in 1966 and was immediately accepted as the most luxurious place in Las Vegas. Las Vegas' original entrepreneur, Jay Sarno, borrowed $10 million from the teamster's pension fund and began construction of the resort in 1962. His goal was to produce a Las Vegas hotel/casino that would provide guests with the experience of visiting the home of a king.

In my last column, I discussed the benefits of what Mike terms "a wild image."

His image at the poker table borders on a fun, but friendly form of insanity. It's an image that he has perfected so well that it comes naturally and smoothly to him.

On a busy Friday afternoon in mid-winter in my local poker room, I folded my hand in a ten-handed $4-8 Hold'Em game. Just on my left, LindaMae raised and everyone except the Big Blind folded. The Flop came [Ah]-[6s]-[7d]. The Big Blind bet $4 and LindaMae mucked her pocket Kings. "Damn Ace-magnets!" she swore quietly. While I waited for the next deal, I wondered whether Kings really do attract Aces the way funerals draw politicians. Given that she held pocket Kings, the probability that one or more Aces would flop is (1-C(4,0)*C(46,3)/ C(50,3)), or .2255.

Mississippi: 1990 - Legislature approves dockside gaming. Over the years, Mississippi's economy and infrastructure benefited immensely as the gambling tax revenues flowed into state and local coffers. By 2005, the coast casinos generated tax revenues to the tune of $500,000 a day, according to the state Gaming Commission.

August 29, 2005: The heavy hand of Hurricane Katrina devastated most of the 12 coast casinos and the 13th that was just about to open. The least damaged of the Gulf casinos was the Imperial Palace, which reopened in December.

Poker continues in popularity in Las Vegas with several more new card rooms recently opened or soon to be opened. After a 16 year absence from live poker, Caesars Palace is now back in action with a fabulous, new $12 million room. The 30-table room is located next to the Race & Sports Book, but there are already plans for expansion. Now under the Harrah's umbrella, there is already talk of hosting the future World Series of Poker events here.

Last time, we learned that Canada residents don't have to pay a tax on winnings. The other interesting thing about gambling up north is that the minimum age is 19. As anyone can imagine, this can skew casino audiences toward the young side, especially when it comes to poker. Live poker used to be a mature audiences game, but the young crowd has latched on to the game in a big way.

The Sahara Hotel & Casino
2535 Las Vegas Blvd South
Las Vegas, Nevada 89109
Telephone: 702.791.2027
Reservations toll free: 888.969.2121
Sahara Website

Success at the World Series of Poker has helped Tom Sartori accomplish some big things in the world of music. He was a musician before he found poker and the World Series of Poker where he finished 26th in the $10,000 buy-in main event this past summer. And he's still a musician. Nothing is going to change that. It's his passion.

"But it gets confusing sometimes," he says, flashing a broad grin. Talking to music people about his new cd and then switching in the same day to a discussion with pokeroriented reporters about his recent success at the tables.