Can a newbie play Vegas without getting cleaned out?

[jimswarthow]

Why don't you rephrase the question? How much can I reasonably expect to win (knowing that I may indeed lose), after reading and studying this game for many hours without actually playing much?
If you expect to lose you will. Chances are, if you have the ability to truly play tight and stick to some general starting hand/position guidelines you will be leap years ahead of most players at the tables. Within 2 laps of the button you will not be intimidated in the least by the structure of the game. You will however be forced to look within ourself to determine if you can APPLY what you have read. Read the Pshychology of Poker, and Inside the poker mind.