Poker Perambulation

That's what the area I live in is called.  It is an interesting area and the birthplace of ecology. We've got cactus and rattlesnakes along with steel mills and refineries. But, the Dune reference is to the old Dune's hotel.  There is an article over at PokerNews that highlights it as the poker hot spot of its day. 

Doyle’s Pink Caddy?
 

I visited Vegas first around 1980.   The main reason was to attend COMDEX – a computer show.  I got a junket package for a 4 day stay and that was at the old Dunes.  It was pretty down hill at the time.  One unique happening was a rain storm.  One morning when I stepped out for a cab, Las Vegas Boulevard was a river.  It was right up to the curbs and had an identifiable current.  There was also a movie shooting in town and late night/early morning LVB was shut down for the car chase.

Storm describes a time before my visit about how it became the poker mecca.  It makes an interesting read.  In those days, about all I played was blackjack.  Before the trip, I used one of the early BJ games on my pre-IBM computer to learn the basics.  Didn't win then but didn't lose that much and managed quite a bit of play.

But there was a poker area that attracted me.  It was at the back of the table area and a step or so up from the floor proper.   It was surrounded by wrought iron railing and the right side was a game I'd never seen before – Texas Hold'em.  For some reason, it attracted me.  I didn't play but it drew me to the rail.  It was probably 10-12 tables in all and stud and the other 'normal' games had signs over the tables in the left area.  The whole right side was Hold'em and it was always full.  Moneymaker was unknown and probably still crapping his pants but Hold'em already reigned.  The area was leased to a guy name Chip Reese.


I wonder who I saw playing there.  They didn't appear to be many fellow tourist.  That was the Bobby's room of the day.  The property must have a magic spell to be the premier property for poker.  The Bellagio stands there today.  And that old table area is somewhere in the fountains now.

I was really tempted by the game.  I kept watching it and thinking it looked easy enough to follow that I could sit down.  I didn't and avoided being the fish or producer as Doyle and his friends called the tourists.  But, I'd spend a bit of time each evening railing and really attracted to something I knew nothing about.
After that trip, I'd always play a bit of poker.  That'd be the only time in the year I would.  I wasn't very good but the games were cheap.  You could find quarter-half games at the smaller places.  One of the places I stayed had a little alcove with a single table spreading half-dollar draw.  I never found Benny's Bullpen.

What a difference 3 or 4 decades can make.  Hope I'm not still a producer.

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