My first
time playing poker I would have to say I was 8 or 9 years old. During the
summer, the family would head down to the river house on every other weekend or
so, out of the school break. There, my sister and I along with a couple of our
older cousins would play “I de-clare-war” with an old deck from the adult’s previous
late night "bidwiz" and spades card game. My older cousin D.W. was actually the one to show
us how to play. I used his initials because my poker crew would give me hell
about it for life.
Fast forward
from 1994 to May 14, 2009. I’m 25 years old on I-95, 10pm heading from
Mechanicsville, VA to Atlantic City, NJ. I felt I had a good 7 years of local
play plus had visited the Borgata a couple of weeks prior to this trip. Not to
mention I ran my own game and called the venue (Guest bedroom) the “Vellagio”
for the previous 18 months. We still play with the clay chips from the first
ever game I hosted.
Anyway, 25
and on I-95 with the cruise control set on 78mph. Riding low in an all black
2006 Dodge Stratus, with the brand-new Garmin GPS just picked up from Best Buy
earlier in the day. I had the radiator flushed and the fluids topped off with
new spark plugs put in too. I figured if I left around 9:30pm it should be a
smooth 5 hr drive with one stop at the Maryland House for a quick bathroom
break and stretch the legs a bit. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little
nervous. Not for the fact of sitting with the more aggressive and experienced
poker players, but for the simple reason this was my first time going this far
by myself. This is what led to the numerous precautions with the car and GPS
including getting the AAA roadside coverage as well. Two suitcases packed, a
carton of cigarettes, jewelry, shoes and clothes all in the trunk. The blazers
hanging from the hook above the backseat on the passenger side. Hotel Room was
booked and the girlfriend was okay with me leaving for a few days. $4,000 cash
in the bank envelope stuffed in my suit case and five $100 bills in my pocket
as loose change. Another $500 was left with my ol’ lady, you know, for shopping
or food, get your hair done or something. Basically the, “I’ll be gone for a
couple of days money...”
About 80% of
the way the GPS took me through the country side of town. Only about an hour
away and it was a nice and smooth ride with the Ipod on random, playing the new
hits and windows down. The anxiety slowing building as I often glanced at the
GPS to see the number of miles left before arrival. Finally, I hit the GPS
directed me to the Atlantic City Expressway, now I know I’m almost there. One
last call home to inform Jesse that I was about 15 minutes from the Borgata
Casino and Spa. The GPS read 5 minutes away and there it was. The East Coast’s
sin city lights lit up the night sky!! I was here all the way by myself no
rules and no body to tell me when, where, or what. The adult’s playground as
some would call it. I missed the Borgata entrance exit off of the 1 Borgata
Way’s rt… Needless to say I didn’t care I was here anyway. After turning around,
I entered the Parking deck and went up and drove until I could find a parking
spot close to the door. Got all of my
immediate belongings and ID, cell phone, etc… Coming up to the elevator from
the parking deck with one of my suitcases and ear buds in my ear, it was grind
time. Nothing reminds you more of where you are at then hearing that elevator
say “Casino” as you prepare to step out.
The fresh
smell of the deodorizing smoke scent which I will always remember, the Borgata
smell, hits you like a breath of fresh air for any gambler. The sound of
hundreds of people talking and yelling, with the constant clinging of the slot
machines which does mesmerize the tourist or first time visitors. The foot traffic was still steady even on a
Thursday night or 2 am Friday morning I should say. I headed past the shops and
onto the Casino floor making a right, passing the Elevator lobby and to the
front desk check in. I had already called 30 minutes prior and told them I was
coming in town early and wanted to see if I could check in before 6 am. “Of
course, Mr. Taylor we have a room for you all set up.” I had learned in my last
two trips that confidence is everything when speaking to the front desk clerks.
Two keys were handed to me after I presented my ID and credit card. Up to the
42nd floor I went. I believe it was the 42nd or 43rd
but any way I had to go to the farthest elevator on the left side of the
elevator lobby. I really like how they had an armed security guard standing
watch at the lobby doors as well. You had to present your key to even get by to
get to your rooms. Eventually I would know the guards by name after greeting
them every morning but let’s not get too far ahead. Opening the room door and
putting the suitcase down I had to walk to the window to look at the view of
the Oceanfront Casinos. I was finally here. At the moment I said a little
prayer and talked to my dad letting him know I missed him and to forgive me for
the stuff I was ready to get into downstairs. I removed the money from my
suitcase adding another 500 to what was in my pocket and put the rest in a safe
that was in the closet. I put on my Georgetown sweatshirt with my “VA” hat and
hit the $1/2 blinds NL Holdem’ table. Max buy in $300 so I bought in $300 in
chips.
I played for about an hour and a half before the road trip began to wear
on me. The hot cocoa with whip cream had gave me a little bit of energy but it
was time to head back to the room and get some rest!! May have been up or down but it didn’t matter
I was tired at that point. I think I sat peering out of the room window for
about another 20 minutes as the cars and lights lit the sky up. Then I
proceeded to kickback and relax.
The next morning,
I hopped up and dialed room service and ordered some pancakes with bacon and
eggs to start the morning off right. I pulled back the curtains and all you
could see was fog since I was forty-two floors up. After eating I figured I’d
go down to the spa and relax in the hot tub by the pool. Definitely a great way
to start your gambling day with some poolside action. Once again, I reached out
to room service with the phone by the towel area and tried to order a grey
goose and vodka. Grey goose wasn’t on the room service menu according to them
so, I settled for the Ketel One instead. Not too bad with pineapple juice,
slice of orange, lemon and a lime. Breakfast of champions for me sipping by the
pool and preparing for the war that lies ahead on the felt.
After an hour of
relaxation. It was time to hit the poker tables. I would play till about 4 or 5
pm then get some lunch either there or some where out on the ocean front. Some days
I would hit the Hooters in the Tropicana and then enjoy a cigarette watching
the waves crash on the beach. Then after I’d proceed back to the Borgata and
play more poker. That was the routine throughout that weekend. Friday and
Sunday nights were for the Club inside the Borgata. Club Mur Mur was a pretty
happening spot on those nights as the Jersey and Philadelphia locals would pack
the casino in their finest clothing. That’s one thing about the casino life I
enjoyed and that was from Thursday to Monday morning everyday seemed like a
Friday night! For a twenty-five-year-old young man, it was where you wanted to
be if you enjoyed the sights, sounds, and party atmosphere.
The weekend
hits and my buddy Wes showed up. Wes always had a love for the game of poker and
respected it the same as the infamous Phil Hellmuth (Las Vegas Poker Pro).
Needless to say, he reacts to bad beats the same as Phil too.
Wes was the first
player I noticed early who actually studied the game or would do research on different
topics. For example, throwing the dice in a “V”, with the 3 dots showing on the
top of both die and meeting in shape of a “V” when you bring them side by side.
He brought a couple of books about Black Jack and a poker book by Barry Greenstein
or Phil Hellmuth with him as well. At the
time I thought it was a little much but hey, to each their own. Looking back at
it why not study or research anything? It’s all good information even when
gambling. I used him as my book when it came to the Casino experience. He was
the first to have introduced me to the city and he had the experience with the
players. One of the first things he reminded me of is that the poker games
there never end. What I mean is that basically when you’re tired it’s okay to
get up. At that point in my life before the casino games I had always stayed at
any game until it ended. Win or lose I would always play until the morning or
the game broke at a friends or underground games throughout the Richmond City
areas. With that being said we hit the tables and had a pretty good time. I
recall the time we sat at the Black Jack table and found a nice $10 minimum section. Wes always looked for the Asian section because that's where the table minimums were the lowest. Sometimes we even found $5 min tables throughout the weekdays.
The drinks had been flowing all day as it was late on a weekend night so still
a good crowd throughout. This particular table we ended up being at a table
where it was just us verse the dealer. I’m thinking let’s go to a table with
some more people to enjoy the crowd he was thinking our odds just went up and
it’s us vs. the dealer. With a $10 minimum it was easy to save your money when
you didn’t “feel it” on a particular hand. With that and a few other strategies
we had things began to go pretty well. We even had a dealer come over by the
name of Lynette which is the name of my mother and sister. Once I told him that
he immediately said, “it’s a good sign Rob it’s going to be a great shoe" (Shoe:
Black jack term for a device where the decks of cards are held before the
dealer rolls them out to the players).
We played at that table for about 2 hours
before some random pit boss walks up and says that there closing the table
after the shoe finished. I was thinking okay no problem sir, still being a
rookie of the game and new comer, I had no idea that they were watching us win
for the last hour and a half. We didn’t win 100,000 dollars or anything but we
did have a couple a piece. Wes on the other hand was like, “wow Rob they’re shutting
the table down on us dude.” We hit them for bout 4 thousand or so between the 2
of us. Not a bad night, especially for a couple of poker players playing at the
$1/2 or $2/5 limit Holdem tables. After that hit he squared away his half of
the money for the room and from that point on it was a free roll for us.
The game
plan was set after we built up some hours at the tables. Of course, we were
comped a few things through the trip as well. Ultimately the plan became to use
my two complimentary nights Monday and Tuesday, then we’d used his two complimentary
nights for Wednesday and Thursday. Friday, Sat, and Sunday would be paid from the
winnings from throughout those 4 free days. Wes had a paper route back in
Richmond, VA so he had to return to work for a couple of days then he would pop
back up on Wednesday night and we’d do it all over again. I arrived at the
Borgata May 14th, 2009 and I returned July 2nd, 2009. The
swings were tremendous and the experience was so exciting I couldn’t put it all
in one blog entry so, Look for Part 2!! Coming soon.
-FLOETSPEAR
Bobby Tee vs
Borgata
2009 Files
Declassified Pt.1
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Floetspear Taylor III
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