12 Hours...

Well here I am, 12 hours until I'm finally in Vegas. After years of dreaming about doing this, months of planning, the last couple weeks being consumed by it, and the final crazy days before actually leaving, I am now only hours from actually touching down in Vegas. For those who don't know, let's back it up...



I've been a gambler my whole life, you could say I was born into it. I grew up watching and learning from some great, and some terrible gamblers. When I hit my late teens/early 20's, I hooked up with one of the great, anonymous hustlers of my generation. We took weekly (sometimes twice weekly) trips to Atlantic City where I learned his long list of rules to gambling to win (there's a big difference between gambling and gambling to win). I applied these rules to the game he taught me the best, blackjack, with moderate success. A couple years later I switched over to Limit and No Limit Texas Hold'em. It's a game that I took to immediately. I loved (and still love) the decision making, math, and personalities involved in the game. I'm above average in the math, but it was the reading of people that pushed me deeper into the game. The psychology involved in the game forces you to pay attention at all times and discover patterns in people to figure out what they're doing...this is something I definitely excel at.

After years of practing, playing, reading, and developing strategy, I came to the conclusion that I could be a big time tournament player. I played a couple of large field tournaments online (knocking out a pro in one you may have heard of, Phil Ivey...pretty exciting) and decided I needed to play live, where my ability to determine what my opponent is doing is much more prevelant. I hit a snag, lost bankroll after bankroll for a couple of years, but within the last year or two, I've become a profitable tournament player, which is a pretty tough feat. After taking down the championship of a local poker series, I finally had the bankroll to play in the WSOP Main Event without worrying too much about money. Winning the Main Event is probably the goal of every tournament poker player, and I am no different. I know there's a certain level of luck involved in a tournament of this magnatude, but I can't help but think I have more than a fighting chance at bringing home the coveted bracelet if I play to the best of my abilities.

So now here I am, 12 hours, make that 11 hours, before I embark on a potential life changing trip to Las Vegas. I've been awake since Wednesday morning, it is now Friday morning. I'm so excited and neurotic that I'm constantly thinking about what to pack and how to play when I get there. I don't really think I'm nervous, but there's an anxiety present that I can't really explain. I'll be in Vegas for about a week and a half before the Main Event starts, playing in smaller tournaments and getting myself set up out there so I am fully prepared in every way to play my best poker come the Main Event. I'm going alone, one of my best friends and poker partners may meet me out there, but it's probably less than 50/50. It will be a little bit of a challenge in that I'm going to have to absorb losses and plays mentally on my own, which is something I'm not really used to. I'm going to chronicle the trip as best I can for those of you that would like to "play along at home." This is my first blog, so bear with me if the posts are late or ramble on. I'm still not really sure what I want to communicate, but hopefully I'll figure it out as I go. 10 hours, 45 minutes.......