The World Poker Blogger Tour invades the Strip

The poker bloggers are in town. The World Poker Blogger Tour happens twice a year and is one whooping scream of a good time. I don't think I've ever stayed up late enough to partake in any antics that would make me a legend, make me miss the tourney the next day, or cause serious damage at the ATM machine—but it does feel good to be having drinks with a mass of other bloggers and degenerate poker players. This year it felt even better. I've left the poker writing scene, and my contact with this world has been slim. So it felt that much warmer to embrace folks who you get blitzed with twice a year.

We met up at the MGM Grand's sports bar next to the poker room. There were three tables of $3-6 mixed games going on but we never heard our names called. Nobody was giving up their seats and that was just as well. The cool people were drinking greyhounds around the corner as Brits got shooed by security out of the walkway.

Our poker tourney today is small potatoes compared to the other groups taking over Vegas this weekend. First of all, the ever so spanking trim cowboys with their pressed shirts and dress Stetsons are in town. Yeeeeooowie, buy me a ticket to Wyoming! It's NFR time, baby. I've been before – even stayed at the Frontier and hung out at Gilley's back in the day (2 years ago).

The other big event is fight night. Ricky Hatton takes on Make-it-Rain superstar Floyd Mayweather. So there are 33,000 lovely British accents to be heard in all the casinos up and down the Strip.

But back to us bloggers.

We ran into Linda and April first, but it was Falstaff that gave me the best pick-me-up hug greeting ever. Everyone was proud of him for losing so much weight, but worried to no end that his kilt wouldn't stay up at the tournament. He said it was the heroin, but we know he must've been exercising. The question is, are there any prop bets that it was a gastro band? (sorry I don't have a pic of the lean mean falstaff machine yet)

Bloggers I bought drinks for: Pauly, Iggy, Change100, ??
Bloggers I bought drinks for in hopes of converting to Twitter: Iggy
Bloggers surprised me by saying they get my Twitter on their Bloglines: Pauly
Bloggers who bitched that they weren't going to drink so much this time because they didn't wan to puke like last time and then snipped at me for not buying them a drink: Bobby Bracelet
Bloggers who showed up with hot girlfriends: F Train, Aussie Garth
Bloggers who said they saw me at the L.A. Times but didn't say hi: Joe
Bloggers I said hi to or talked with between getting drinks: Maudie, Derek, Otis, Katitude, Rooster, Gracie and Pablo, Al Can't Hang, Aussie Garth,
Bloggers I might've missed last night but am not sure if they were there: Grubby, G-Rob, Waffles
Bloggers who I admitted I thought I had a connection with and always want to talk more to but never get to talk more to and then was told he's like that with everybody: Otis
Bloggers who I missed last night: Amy, Leigh & Brian, CJ, Will, Ryan, Donkey Puncher
My favorite poker bloggers who are too cool to ever come to our events: Wicked Chops Poker
Other bloggers that were busy playing poker last night and I didn't get a chance to say hi to: Mean Gene, Special K
Bloggers who I hope I get to hear telling others that he's homeless and doesn't know how to play poker: Mr. Subliminal
Bloggers who have a blog but don't blog and I married them anyway: Schecky

Everyone's saying how many new poker bloggers are at this event this year. If you wind up at this post, please  introduce yourself to me today at the tourney and/or add your name and blog in the comments. And if we did hang out last night and I missed you on this list, demand a drink from me today at the tourney. It's really great to have you all in town.

And - oh, if you want to follow me on Twitter. Sign up, and then find me here.

CURRENT: Las Vegas, NV
NEXT: Seattle, WA by midnight

Comments

[Peter]

Nice blog! More people should read it. If you want, you can register your blog www.pokerweblogs.com. It is free and and it automatically updates when you do an update, so visitors of our site can see when you updated your blog. The big advantage is that it will attract much more visitors to your blog.

Greets Peter

[leigh]

thanks for the link - didn't see you leave last night....we'll take care of your old man. xo

[Otis]

Time always seems to find a way to run out. Next time, maybe dinner should be involved.

[Mr Subliminal]

I caught a glimpse of you sitting at a far table while I was playing the tournament and then you disappeared. Thanks for remembering me. As for poker, I have made tremendous strides and even played crazy pineapple, omaha and stud hi lo for the first time in the mixed games. Alas, I'm still homeless.

[sirfwalgman]

I was there! heh. Sorry I missed you.

[Mean Gene]

I did SEE you, but I guess I was frantically donking it up with the other whackjobs. Too bad John wasn't the beneficiary of my comic tournament screwups on Saturday.

[Instant Tragedy]

You rock!

Thanks for signing Chakko's guitar and having such a wonderful smile. With 120 people it is hard to spent any meaningful time with all of us and I wish that I could have sat down and had that drink with you, but alas we will do it again another day.

Smile

[BWoP]

F-Train has a hot girlfriend? I think he's been cheating on me.

Sorry I didn't get to meet you.

I did get to sit next to your hubby and got an up close look at the playing card bounty. I wanted those playing cards, but alas, I fell to The Rooster.

[Rakenews]

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