Hey everyone,
It's been just under two weeks since I sent out our last newsletter, but what a two weeks it's been!
I always give it my all when in Las Vegas, meaning I don't sleep much, and just try to make the most of the fact that I'm in poker's mecca. This time around, that included a good amount of time spent walking around the WSOP at it's new Bally's/Paris venue. I also had the opportunity to speak at the Wednesday Poker Discussion Group, as well as hit up a couple of my favorite poker rooms and kosher restaurants in the city.
The main reason I flew out to Las Vegas, however, was of course to host our second Mixed Game Festival and it couldn't have gone better. I played over 50 hours of poker over 5 days, while getting the chance to see a couple of hundred wonderful people splash around at $4/8 and $8/16 dealer's choice tables. Resorts World was the PERFECT venue for our festival and I'm hopeful that we'll be able to stage future Mixed Game Festivals there, too. It especially warmed my heart that so many players came to try mixed games for the first time... and loved it! Pokercoaching.com's Paul Beitelspacher wrote a particularly touching review of his time at our tables.
We gave away tons of merchandise from PokerGO, RunGoodGear, BBO Poker Tables and 10 $100 vouchers to the PokerStars Store. We also gave away our grand prize to a most deserving Martin Smith, who grinded for over 60(!) hours after having flown in all the way from Malta to participate. Martin won flight + accommodation to one of 8 European countries and a €400 buy-in to a "Road to PSPC" event where if e goes the distance he could pick up a Platinum Pass!
A number of poker celebrities dropped in to join us at the felt, including: Linda Johnson, Jan Fisher, Norman Chad, Ali Nejad, Joey Ingram, Eli Elezra, Greg Raymer, Lupe Soto, Bernard Lee, Dylan Linde, and more! In case you missed it, here are recaps of each of the five days of Mixed Game Poker action: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5.
I'm writing to you while on a layover in London, on the way back home. Of course I already miss Las Vegas and can't wait to return.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Two of the most common questions I got asked during our Mixed Game Festival was "when's the next one?" and "what's the next trip on your schedule, Robbie?"
For the first time in what seems like a long while, my upcoming schedule is actually "empty". I don't have any poker trips on the horizon and I don't yet know when or where the next Mixed Game Festival will take place. For now, I'm eager to get back home to my wife and children in Israel, whom I've missed greatly. It'll be nice to rest, recharge, "regroup", and get back to my regular work from home. I'm sure I'll get the itch to travel again soon...
With that said, I really want to try and capitalize on the Mixed Game Festival's success, and use the momentum to expand its footprint further. It takes a lot of planning to put live events together, but I'm already looking forward to the next one, whenever and wherever it'll be.
I just want to end off by thanking everyone who joined us last week at Resorts World Las Vegas. We created such a special environment, and hopefully lots of memories that'll last people a lifetime.
Got any specific Mixed Game Festival feedback? I'm always happy to hear from you!
Robbie
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