It’s the 10th anniversary of Chris Moneymaker, and the big poker events are here — starting with the WPT World Championship, where the final table looks to be a lesson in makeup and collections. But hey, even at only $1.1 million for first, a televised $25k buy-in is still enough to make Bellagio the busiest room in Vegas again. Meanwhile, Dave finds the new lowest stakes action on the Strip in a $.50/$1 NL game at the Quad (which ain’t a bad way to chase the Megabeat) … and does yours truly find his poker passion re-ignited by a missed connection at Red Rock, where a self-professed high-stakes online pro says he’s really impressed by my $1-3 play. (Argh, why didn’t I get his name!?!) Meanwhile, Andrew is keeping it real and chill poolside, with the opening of a new dayclub flavored by the Light Group and Cirque du Soleil. And in our version of “What Would You Do?” the VG crew breaks down an ethical quandry about dealer error and cards speaking when the table won’t … which begs the question: is there a difference between angle shooting another player and pocketing cash from a casino slip?

Oh, you know you want it like we do …

Vegas Grinders 1.15
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C’mon somebody pour some sugar on me …

They’re gettin’ deep in the NCAA tourney, and not one of us has filled out a proper bracket? With basketball tourists in town, Boyz II Men are playing 1/3 and 2/5 at the Mirage … and Kenna James is sitting behind some big stacks in a 25/50 game at Red Rock? Good time to discuss the practicalities and pitfalls of selling your action in cash games. And if you’re looking for backers on Craigslist and end up in a poker-coaching pyramid scheme … well, we’re not ones to judge, but just be sure to watch your wallet and wear a condom. All that and Awesome Andrew’s Awesome Vegas Living on the View, a new sky-high lounge at the Palms that replaces the Playboy Club of old with checkers and Connect Four … at a time when casinos are kinda-sorta cracking down on drugs and hookers at their nightclubs and pools.

Vegas Grinders 1.7
[audio: /VegasGrinders/VegasGrinders_13-03-28.mp3]

The WSOP crowned its newest champion this week, but that doesn’t mean tournaments around town are done for the year.

Heartland Poker Tour makes its next stop at Palms. The tournaments run today (Friday, Nov. 2) through Nov. 11, culminating with a $1,650 main event.

This is probably a good series of events for those who want to try their hand tourneys, or players like me who don’t want to spend a bunch on donkaments. It’s essentially a group of at least 7 satellites every day leading up to the big one.

There are single-table sit-n-go qualifier tournaments that start as low as $60 and a $120 “nightly turbo,” all the way up to a $375 “last chance qualifier.”

With former 2004 WSOP champ Greg Raymer winning 3 HPTs already this year, it should be interesting to see how many other well-known pros turn out to give the series a shot. We know from Gavin Smith’s twitter that he’s a lock: “It seems like every day I get one day closer to @HPTPoker at the palms, it is kinda like Christmas only this Santa is real!”

Ante Up Magazine’s new poker tour starts later this month at Thunder Valley Casino Resort near Sacramento, where the main event comes with a $200,000 guarantee. They’re also hosting events in Minnesota and Oklahoma leading up to a world championship at Hard Rock Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. Man, tournament players might have a higher variance grind, but at least it can be exotic.

Ante Up also announced its next Vegas event would be held at Red Rock Casino from Jan. 21-27. The event schedule has yet to be released, but the series will culminate with a $1,100 main event with three Day 1s, which will “spill over into the Rocks Lounge,” according to the magazine. Sounds like they might have more than a few splashed pots.

My best shot at a bracelet just passed me by.

Jokers Wild Casino closed its poker room! The home of the practically secret monthly bracelet tournament in Henderson played its last hand on Halloween night.

They didn’t give a reason for the shutting down, but cash games there were often hit or miss, and staff members told me that some of their regulars had been rounded up by nearby Club Fortune Casino.

And it wasn’t the only locals poker room on the outskirts of Las Vegas to close this week.

The former Aliante Station, now Aliante Casino and Hotel, also shuttered its poker room after being taken over from Aliante Gaming LLC. The North Las Vegas casino was sold as part of Sations Casino bankruptcy and reopened under the new name Thursday.

I never played in their poker room, but if they ever decide to re-open — a la Silverton — I might have to check it out.