The Big Game at the Bellagio
Anyone can play poker, it doesn't take much to learn the ropes of the game.
However, simply playing and being good at poker are two very different things. As fans and players of poker increase in number by the year, several venues are actually catering to the increased demand. While any poker player can play at the regular venues, only the most elite players in the world play at The Big Game.
The Bellagio in Las Vegas is known for the poker rooms in its casino. The most famous room though, is named 'Bobby's Room' after Bobby Baldwin, the president of MGM Mirage Incorporated. This poker room is dedicated only to extremely high stakes players, but contrary to popular belief it is not a closed game.
Nonetheless it is aptly named the big game because only people who have at least a hundred thousand dollars to gamble could go in and play. The table offers only high stakes poker with no betting limits. Wagers are frequently around $100,000, sometimes even more.
Within these past few years, the stakes have actually increased. A few years ago, the regular stakes were usually around $1,000 to $2,000 big blinds. These days however, the typical stakes are customarily around $2,000 to $4,000. Players sometimes even hike it up to $8,000 on special events like when there are tournament matches going on.
And when they do reach up to these amounts, it is usually a pot limit or no limit game. For this type of game, the limit is put on $100,000 most of the time. This would be the maximum amount that a player could bet on each hand of cards. There are instances when games are played without any limit or cap, but this is extremely uncommon and cannot be seen every day.
There are a lot of famous regular players in The Big Game in Bobby's Room.
Included in the list are well known players like David Benyamine, Lyle Berman, Doyle Brunson, Todd Brunson, Johnny Chan, Eli Elezra, Sammy Farham, Chau Giang, Barry Greenstein, David Grey, Gus Hansen, Jennifer Harman, Phil Ivey, Minh Ly, Abe Mosseri, Daniel Negreanu, and the late Chip Reese.
Other players just drop by when they are in town, or nearby. Some of these are Ted Forrest, David Oppenheim, Allen Cunningham, John Hennigan. Bobby Baldwin himself even drops in from time to time. There are a lot more players who have tried to play in this exclusive game, but only a handful or so actually play on a regular basis.
Indeed only the best pros play there on a regular basis as you need the bankroll and skills to sustain the large variance at that table. Less regular players are the wealthy visitors to Las Vegas who likes to rub elbows with these superstars, even if it costs them a few hundred grands. And who knows, they could be lucky and win a few hundred grands themselves.
Texas Holdem articles