GRAHAM WHELDON

Weblog: Blogging on poker from around the world

Luton the perfect training for busy Vegas challenge

THE June Vegas trip is the biggie of the three visits I make annually. I'll be playing as many as 11 World Series Of Poker (WSOP) tournaments and seven or eight Deepstack jobbies at The Venetian.

WSOP: plans to play in 11 events

  PICTURE: Everest Poker

The tournament buy-ins will total around $25k. That's without accounting for the odd evening tournament on top. So perhaps closer to $30k would be a more realistic figure . . . $35k including the rooms and flights. That's how much I stand to lose if I don't make the cash at all. Yikes!

This will be my third year in the WSOP and easily my busiest. So far I've played eight and cashed in three, twice finishing in 22nd spot bizarrely enough. And the figures would have been a deal better with any luck.

But don't for a minute think the standard in these tournaments is high. It isn't.

Last year's 22nd came in a $2,000 event. About an hour in the Hawaiian guy to my right asked whether this was Texas Hold'em we were playing. I couldn't believe what he was asking, but that was it. He just wanted to know what this form of poker was called. In a $2,000 tournament! Then he started handing out massive Cuban cigars before donking off his chips overplaying ace-jack and king-queen etc.

Vegas: mixed levels of experience

  PICTURE: Everest Poker  

That's pretty typical. Loads of online qualifiers with little live experience, mixing it up with rich Americans who don't care about the money. Then there are those taking once-in-a-lifetime holidays and playing way above their usual level.

The standard would be higher at my local Casino in Luton. Players like Tony Kendall, Richard Prew, Vince Calenti, Phil Cooklin and Dean Morris.The latter is a name to keep a very close eye on. I'd be amazed were he not to win a big tournament in the very near future.

I've played with a few of the bigger names at The Rio, including Chris Ferguson, Gavin Smith and Phil Hellmuth. And none of them made the sort of impression on me that Dean has as a player, bar bracelet winner Mark Vos at a push. Seriously.

It all begins on Sunday - an early start to get to Gatwick for the direct flight to Las Vegas. It's likely to be packed with poker players and it blows the mind thinking about what sort of cash will be stashed away on that flight.

To be honest it gets in too early for my liking and I just know I'll get drawn into playing the $120 evening tournament at The Venetian after a quick kip. I know I shouldn't, I should stay in the room. But I won't. . . probably.