[Mike Gallo]

After working 60 hours in the last 7 days without a day off I had a day off Monday August 1st and decided to take a day trip to play in the Atlantic City poker rooms.

I started my day at 10:00 am by playing in the Borgata's $75 + $15 no limit tournament. I played until the fourth level and lost with AQ against another players AK. I flopped an Ace bet every street and got called by a better hand.

I had enough time to play in the Taj Mahals $50 + $15 no limit tournament.

After busting out rather unceremoniously I found my way to the new House of Blues poker room at the Showboat.

Some posters who have posted trip reports from the Showboat complained they had a hard time finding the room. I found the room quite easily, however the Showboat did place the room far off the travelled path. The escalator ride up nearly game me vertigo, very steep climb.

The room had a $1-$5 stud game a $5-$10 stud game and a $2-$4 Texas Hold em table with open seats. I jumped into the $2-$4 game and I put my initials on a $3-$6 Texas hold em interest list and the $1-$2 blind no limit $40 minumum $300 maximum buy in Texas Hold em interest list.

I went to the cashier to buy chips, and she looked at me as if I had three heads. She told me I could only buy chips from the dealer. The other AC rooms have conditioned me I suppose [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

The $2-$4 game played like, well a $2-$4 game. Luckily the poker gods smiled on my and game me some very good hands.

In the $2-$4 game I won the very first pot I entered, on my second hand. I post when I sit down, I dont wait for the blinds. Ironically, the first time I played in the new (new then)Borgata room I won the first hand I was ever dealt. I won both hands with AK suited.

In another hand I flopped a set of 7's against a players Aces and he raised me on every street including the river. We had a third player in the hand, so I could only cap the river [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

I flopped Quad nines from middle position and got paid off in three spots.

It felt good to be the youngest player at the table by about 25 years. I am 37 fyi.

I bought the table drinks. I gave the waitress two red chips and asked her to take everyones order. The Showboat serves Corona in the bottle. It took me by suprise to see an elderly man drinking a Corona. I cannot explain why this suprised me. It felt good to entertain the geriatric crowd.

Soon after the floor called me for a new $1-$2 no limit game. I took the four seat, and sat next to a local I know as "Hershey Rich". He took the three seat.

The one seat featured the consummate beginner. He had on the "lucky beads" the casino hands out on bus trips. He had not one, but two drinks in hand(s). He attempted to buy in for more then $300 max and the floor had to explain the buy in rules. He lost all his money pretty quickly to Hershey Rich in the following hand.

Preflop action got folded to the newbie who raised to $15 from the button. We did not have a player yet in the two seat. Rich called from the small blind and I folded from the big blind.

Flop A J 3 two hearts.

Hershey Rich bet $50 and the beginner moved all in Rich insta called. The beginner tabled QQ Rich tabled JJ and the beginner did not improve and left the table visibly dejected.

The two seat at one point featured a young woman there with her boyfriend. He sat in the 7 seat. She rivered a winning hand twice and neither time did she bet. She went for a trap, however it became fairly obvious she hit her hand from her body language. She left and got replaced my an older gentlemen from Staten Island NY. His friend replaced the beginner in the one seat. Strange whereever I go people think they have seen me before. Both new players asked where I came from because I looked familiar. I tell them they have me mistaken for someone else, which they probably did.

The four seat featured different players who would buy in for $100 go all in and leave. We had two players do this. Finally a more stable elderly man sat down. The man got very angry at the dealer for taking two chips from his stack to put into the big blind. The dealer instructed the player to pay attention or he would deal him out. The player looked like he fell asleep in between hands.

The five seat featured a player who had a WPO bracelet. He said he earned it playing Stud hi low. He played fairly tight took a few bad beats and left.

The six seat featured an internet player who went bust quickly on a semi bluff, followed by several clueless players.

The seven seat played extremely tight. He did not make it to a showdown once. His girlfriends parents ( the player in the 2 seat)watched and talked to him from the rail. The Showboat has a cool rail.

The 8 seat featured a player with a clue, and the 9 seat featured my favorite type of player. The thug from Philly with money to blow. He left losing $1200. Sadder than that is the fact that I did not get any of it.

The ten seat featured..you guessed it another elderly gentlemen. He got replaced soon by a WPT wannabe who went bust and got replaced by yet another WPT wannabe with shades and chip tricks.

One hand I picked up 99 and I raised to $8 preflop and it got folded to the player in the eight seat. He called from the cutoff. Heads up to the flop. I started the hand with $275 the other player had $325.

Flop came 3 3 6

I bet $20 he called

Turn a brick hit.

I bet $50 he called.

River came a Queen. I checked, he asked me if I was trapping him. I did not respond and he bet $75. I called and he muttered he trapped himself and tabled 77 and mhig.

My other semi interesting hand went like this. I raised to $10 preflop with AK from after two limpers. I had $475 at the start of the hand.

6 people took a flop of A 5 9

The first player to act bet $50 and action got folded to me. He had $150 left in front of him. I raised to $100. Everyone folded and he said "..I go all in". I called with no theatrics and his A 10 did not improve.

Hershey Rich left a few orbits earlier, because he said the game was about to turn "bad". He said this after the thug busted out the third time and player with the bracelet sat down. I took his cue and left soon after.

I like the room overall and I hope that business improves. For those who want to find a "soft" $1-$2 no limit game, I highly recommend the House of Blues.