FARGO 2014 - Trip Report - Jhiym

What a great trip! I made some fond memories and had a few regrets.

First the regrets, which are only that I didn't spend enough time with some ARG friends. Usually I get placed at their tables and get to interact during play, but this year I never got seated at the same table with David Kuznick, Katie Baxter, Rick and Tracy Becker, Pete Segal, Barry Cornspan or Stephanie Wasserman. I was sort of lost all weekend as I didn't know who to lose all my chips to. Russell Fox and Crunch would end up helping me with the answer to that question. :)

I didn't get to play with Goldie either but did have an enjoyable breakfast with him and Llew Saturday morning.

I am a kind of quiet guy anyway and keep off to myself for the most part, but just being around everyone and a part of these events, I feel right at home and completely content while I am there. It truly is a family which I feel honored and blessed to be part of.

It's been since ATLARGE that I have taken more than one day off at a time from work, other than weekends, so I was really looking forward to getting away from the daily grind and spending time with everyone for 5 days. I wasn't disappointed at all.

Tracy - You did a fantastic job planning and organizing FARGO, especially with a new venue. None of the seamless fun would be possible without the work you and Rick put into this just as Goldie does for ATLARGE. Even pulling yourself out of the Pairs event to make the numbers even. Like a true queen!

The Mohegan Sun was very nice and accommodating. It took almost the whole trip just to explore the whole place. I'm not sure I ever really knew how to find my way around without looking at the overhead signs. :)

As I said earlier, I really needed a break and thought spending 5 days with everyone would be the highlight of the trip, and all that was excellent and didn't disappoint. But the real highlight of my trip was getting to hear Nolan Dalla's speech at the banquet. I knew who he was from his role at the World Series and follow his blog on Facebook, but other than that, I really didn't know much about him. To hear him talk about his past and his top 10 life lessons was amazing. How he has witnessed some historical events unfold in Europe, the impact family and history have on him and how he got into the WSOP and knew the perception of the game was changing as it happened was fascinating. But to hear the passion and sincerity in talking about what he believes in with no apologies for staying true to himself was very inspiring. He's been around lots of famous people and could easily put himself above most others, yet he is very down to earth and a great guy with no ego at all, which all of you already know. I got to play Badugi with him on Sunday and he spent a great deal of time just talking to staff and letting his hands fold, never turning away anyone. I think getting to hear him this weekend and his message was really what I needed. He talked a lot about moments that made I difference for him and that have stuck with him through the years. His speech was kind of one of those moments for me.

In the events, I played well except maybe Badugi which I don't think I won any hands and folded most. I knew I was way over matched all weekend when I got the likes of Ming Lee, Nolan Dalla, Russell Fox, Bob Lauria, Brandon Gerson, Crunch, Tom Hummel, Matt Ivester, Len G. and Ashley Adams at my tables, but somehow I don't mind losing when its family. I kept thinking about that line from Rounders when I saw who was at my table each day, "If you can't spot the fish in the first 5 minutes at your table, you're the fish" . It didn't take me 5 minutes to come to my answer. :) I was real glad I got to play with Bob for a bit, as I hadn't seen him since the 2012 WSOP. Thanks for getting my bounty chip out from under the base of the poker table too! Good Luck in your WSOP Circuit Events!

I did notice during this trip that I need to make some adjustments to my game. I already know I play way to tight in most cases, but during NLH, I felt compelled not to bet on the river when I knew I had the best hand a few times as I didn't want to take too many chips from my friends. Not a great strategy for winning, I know, but it's like playing with family. But then I noticed I was doing that in the 5pm NLH event Sunday night too. I need to develop more of a killer instinct I guess.

In the end I played in 5 tournaments and didn't cash in any, won a little in slots the first day, but nothing after that, yet had an awesome time and have some new perspectives on everything thanks to Nolan and another ARG event I'll never forget!

Can't wait till ATLARGE.