Michele looked fit and redy to play. Butterflies in the tummy I think, but his wife is on ringside to support him, and she has made sure he holds on to the cross she gave him today. "He does not respect the Lord enough" she told me as we gave him the last wave and encouraging words of advice.




Next door to the playing rooms the Poker Palooza show has opened its doors. It began yesterday and despite the name change it's all the same mix of crap and goodies for poker players.

I picked up the cards for the TPT and the new club, saw the people I had appointments with, ran into the defending World Champ who was suffering from a severe hang-over from the Drunk Danes game at the Venetian the night before, and bought a few things here and there.

In the afternoon Greg Raymer gave a free seminar for the visitors, Joe Hachem and a lot of other big names ran around and had their photos taken with everybody who wanted it.



Later in the day I tried the Mandalay cash game. As promised the table was super-soft, most of them limpers and calling stations, but nontheless I was down more than $200 before I finally managed to double up through my neighbor who caught the nut flush on the river while I had slow-played a flopped set of queens which filled up with the very same river card - thank you 6 of spades!!

Later the fish swam out of the tank and let some young sharks in, I left the table with a decent plus and went home to crash.

Tonight I might try the Harrah's tournament again, and tomorrow I am eye-balling the Main Event at the Golden Nugget's Grand Series of Poker, we'll see.