Official World Poker Tour Magazine

Once a haven for the Rat Pack and other stars of the 50s and 60s, the Sahara Hotel at the north end of the Strip, as its name suggests, boasts Moroccan-influenced designs, architecture and cuisine. Oh, and there’s a rollercoaster on the roof. Just like what you get in the African desert.

In search of a late-night poker game after the WPT World Championship had wrapped up early at the Bellagio, I fancied a trip back near my hotel to see if I could emulate the storming victor, Yevgeniy Timoshenko. Just with about a 985th of the budget.

Inside the Sahara’s casino, the deceiving African exterior gives way to the familiar 70s/80s decorated gaffe, with the familiar 70s/80s music pumping out over the sound system. As I enter the poker room at the far end of the casino (just sandwiched between the African-influenced Burger joint and the equally African-influenced NASCAR Cafe, I catch a few bars of ABBA’s ‘The Winner Takes It All’ wafting through the lounge. If only the gamblers happily chucking their hard-earned over the blackjack tables understood the pain and anguish that was going on when that song was written.

Anyway, happily I find that the North End casinos give a toss about poker and there’s a $65 Freezeout kicking off at 11pm. A tasty 6,000 start stack and 20 minute blinds (despite the inevitably hefty vig) is just fine with me and we shuffle up and deal. The usual mix of locals, middle-aged women and German tourists make up the field and it;s a mix of locals, middle-aged women, German tourists, and one English editor who make the final table. At near on 4am, I’m losing the will to live and praying for an end, even if it means a bustout. The curiously sped up structure also means that the big stack only has 10 big blinds, with 5 players left, and with a decidedly wonky payout plan ($1,200 to 1st, $580 to 2nd, with just over $100 for the other 4) we elect to chop 5 ways after giving the bubble his entry money back and, after a week in Vegas, I find myself with a healthy $500 profit.

Now, this is where ‘Vegas-itis’ gets to you and you suddenly rouse yourself from your slumber, itching for another game. Having meant to check out the Mirage’s impressively lively cardroom all week, I hop in a cab down to the busy end of the Strip and find a $70 sit n’ go calling my name. As this is Vegas, it’s actually a $60+$10 Sit n’ Go (17% fee, lovely) with 10 minute blinds. As i discover as we hit the 3rd level, it’s a turbo with ANTES!! The bizarre sight of 5 players anteing in 25s from their already meagre stacks shows the attitude of most Vegas casinos to the game. Pack ‘em in, take their money, turf ‘em out. Next please!! ANd why not? There;s always another game a few minutes away or there are a multitude of much less skill-based (make that none) games on offer if you want to switch your brain off.

With four players remaining, I wake up to find pocket aces on the SB. UTG decides it’s time to call it a day and moves all in, the middle-aged woman next to me (there they are again – maybe they’re hired by the casinos) snap-shoves and i elect just to call the 2 smaller all-ins. The BB also calls and after a flop of Q-6-7, I shove the rest of my chips in. He calls to show Q-J, player 2 has 10-10 and the Mrs. Vegas has kings. How’s that for cold decking?

Naturally a king comes on the river to scupper my first SnG win of the trip and I walk away with $180 2nd prize. (oh, that’s another thing – 10-man SnGs are paid out at the Mirage 70%/30%, just in case they were being too kind to start off with). ANyway, I WOULD have walked away with my cash if I’d bothered bringing my passport, apparently a requirement in Vegas casinos in order to collect poker winnings but a rule only strictly adhered to by a minority of places, as I’ve discovered. My chips irritatingly waiting for me in the cage, the sun nudging its way up, I fill in some tax forms to receive my very own ITIN number from the American IRS and head home. The winnings were waiting for me this morning but a word of warning if you’re heading out here: bring photo ID everywhere – you never know when you’ll need it. Also remember that UK citizens are exempt from paying tax on gambling winnings in the US over a certain amount. The casino will have to provide you with the forms (W7, W8-BEN, and, although we don’t recommend it, your WD-40) and you’ll be sent a tax number to your UK address.