Calgary Poker

I've been out here a month and I finally got to play some poker over the past few weeks...have been running good and even hit a straight flush high hand jackpot and sat at a bad beat table, $1000 in jackpots in 3 weeks, not bad.

Perhaps the softest 1 2 nl games I've seen and it's nice having a $300 max to at least get a bit of money on the tables. I've been playing well and running good, averaging $70/h at the 1 2 games over a few weeks.

What I've seen/heard as far as weeknight games go (confirmed with phone calls over the past few nights):

Stampede -- 1/2 nl is about it for weeknights, really nice room but pretty dead -- did have a 10 25 PLO on Tues night. Only comp is a single free drink voucher. Weekends generally have 2/5 and 5/5 NLH/DC games as do most rooms from what I hear. They have a bad beat and quad, str flush, royal jackpots.

Grey Eagle -- has become my regular game when I just have time for a 3 hour session -- 1/2nl is incredibly soft, 4 8 limit -- I had heard they had 2 5 n on weeknights, but not the case when I went there. Bad beat jackpot (I hit a table share for $680...brag at watching a hand and getting paid for it). Ugly as hell casino and poker room , the only time I've played on felt that hurt my eyes (edit, they replaced all the felt, so not a problem anymore, is now a burgundy/red colour) -- some kind of bright orange/red. From the looks of the place I figured it was built/designed in the 70s, but it's less than a year old. More action on weekends but 2 5nl is as high as they go. Occasional free round of drinks, worst service on the planet (over 2 hours for food; edit -- depends on the waitress, if you have the asian server then beware of longgg wait times), free food at 3am, free sandwiches now and then.

Cash Casino -- 1/2nl, 1/2 DC sometimes 2 5 nl. Good action, not a nice casino or location. Free meal if you're there an hour.

Deerfoot -- 1/2nl, maybe 4 8 limit not sure. Not sure about comps.

Elbow River -- the main limit room 4 8 and 15 30 all nights and 30 60 at times (LHE). Maybe a 1 2nl on weeknights. Free rounds of drinks.

ABS (Casino Calgary) (drug money casino, caution at playing high limit there from what I've heard -- home invasions, etc) -- 1/2nl, 4 8 limit, 2 5 nl DC. Not sure about comps.

Weekends -- from what I've heard everywhere that regulary has 1 2 nl has good action 2 5 nl 5 5 nl on weekends. Confirmed that Grey Eagle has 2/5 nl 1 to 2 tables on weekends. Games vary, sometimes the 1 2 is a more profitable game depending on the number of regulars sitting at 2/5..table selection is key. Can't find nl much bigger anywhere in calgary as the action players tend to play PLO. 5 10 DC at ABS, 10 25 DC/PLO at Stampede, 30 60 LHE at Elbow.

Small tournaments daily at most casinos ($33-$55) with $150+ weekend tournies at most. Grey Eagle has a monthly $330 with 65-70 players on Wednesday at 2pm. Stampede is having sats into some big event -- not sure, I don't play tournies but it's on their website.

Websites:

Official Casino ABS Web Site
Welcome to Cash Casino
Deerfoot Inn & Casino
Elbow River Casino - Functions - Private and Corporate Events
Grey Eagle | 24-hour Poker Room
Stampede Casino - Stampede Poker Room

Well, fuck, these links didn't work...well you can google them all...ok, they work, whatever.

So many games so close to me...Mmmm life is good.

Freaky Fridays at The Office

I finally got a chance to play the Friday night 2 2 NL game at The Office in Toronto -- $1000 max buy-in. I managed to end with almost $2300 in front of me -- marking the most I've ever had on the table in a 2 2 NL game, my biggest comeback in a 2 2 NL game and my lowest profit to stack-size ratio ever. After taking some awful beats early and being down $1000+ I came out +$235 on the night, almost exactly 10% of my $2300 stack. Crazy.

Stampede Poker Room, Calgary

I just got back from a brief trip to Calgary and had the chance to play a couple of sessions at the new Stampede Casino Poker Room. Overall, it's a pretty decent room. On a Tuesday night starting at 10pm I payed a short 3-4 hour session. The only games going were 1 2 NL, 300max -- not bad for a casino 1 2 game. Not too tight at all and a few horrid players thrown in -- good times. Wednesday I played from 1pm-11pm and the day games were much tighter, but we managed to get a 2 5 NL going and had some good action at the table by 6pm or so. It's so sweet being able to play casino poker at any time only 10 minutes from my house in Calgary...and Calgary seems to be the PLO capital of North America -- 5 10 PLO going on weekday afternoons? Sweet. I can't wait to live there full-time and play live poker on a regular basis. The Stampede needs to get some sort of comps program for their poker players, but otherwise it was a pretty decent room with the exception of one horrid dealer who they seemed to be training during the game.

My Biggest 2 2 NL Cash Ever

In less than 3 hours last night I made $1150 playing 2 2 NLH, $400max. If you add in the $50 or so in tips I likely made $1200+. I was hitting everything and against the right players. I made a few successful bluffs with position in medium pots and I got my money in good in the right spots, inducing calls at times.

It all started with the proper seat selection as the game started and after being down $100 or so playing LAGGY in the first round or two it just all fell into place. There's nothing better than being deep-stacked vs easily readable players. Fun.

21 Months Later...

Since living in Toronto I have been a part-time recreational at best. I've taken 3-4 months breaks from playing at times due to the lack of close/decent games in Toronto. I've taken some brief shots online, but it bores the hell out of me, so I usually go from +1k or so in a week to even a few days later due to playing unfocused and taking unreasonable shots at bigger games, etc. Live I continue to be a winning player, but in the past year I've played so infrequently and such small games that it really doesn't amount to anything significant at all...it's become just a social/fun thing to do now and then.

In a month I am moving to Calgary. Little did I know that it is the poker capital of Canada. I'm excited about all of the action in the area within a short drive to my house. Having many rooms to choose from all within a 5-15min drive at 1pm on a day off is going to be great . I believe Calgary is 3rd to only Vegas and Atlantic City for legal games per capita in North America. Sweet. I played there once this year during a trip to Calgary -- I had forgotten how soft casino games can be and I can't wait to start taking a shot at playing more often.

I'll be writing again to update all of my poker friends in the GTA about how things are going poker-wise in Calgary and to track my progress in all things poker.