Work Trip

From December 7th to December 10th, 2024, we’ll be setting up shop in Las Vegas for our first ever Work Trip.

The Work Trip is about getting better at poker as a team. The goal is to improve our poker skills and make some money. Everything we do will be in support of these goals. If you’re looking to do some wild gambling and get drunk, apologies - this isn’t the trip for you.

Here are the details:

1. Accommodation: We'll all stay at the same hotel to make coordinating logistics easier and save on Ubers. If you want to share a room and save some money, I’ll book your reservation (or ask someone else to do so). We’ll share rooms with queen beds / sofa beds. That means you’ll likely share a room but not a bed. I’m going to try to get the cost around $125 per person per night (or $375 for the trip), though it may be slightly higher or lower.
   • We’ll pick somewhere that’s comfortable but not necessarily luxurious (ex. think Courtyard Marriott rather than the Cosmo)
   • If you’d like your own private room, message me on the side and we’ll plan to have you book your own room at the same hotel
2. Travel: You’ll book your own flight. To maximize play time, I’d suggest getting in early on Saturday and leaving late on Tuesday.
   • I'll be flying out of Boston on a 7:00 AM Delta flight on Sat., 12/7 to start playing poker that afternoon. I’ll be flying back to Boston on a 9:50 PM Delta red-eye on Tues., 12/10. The travel cost for my round trip is about $350.
3. Poker: We'll be playing No-Limit Texas Hold'em tournaments. Specifically, we’ll be focusing on low-buy daily tournaments at casinos like Caesar’s Palace and Mandalay Bay.
   • Most tournaments that I plan to play will be $40 to $160 per buy-in; feel free to play higher buy-in tournaments if that’s right for you.
   • I expect to play 2 to 4 buy-ins each day (though you can play as many or few as you like); this includes re-buys.
   • We'll split up into smaller groups to avoid competing directly against each other at tournaments (i.e., you’ll go to your tournament with 1-2 members of the crew, rather than all 8 of us)
4. Daily Routine: Remember, we’re here to work so we’ll be optimizing our routine and following a set of rules to bring our A game.
   • Get a full night sleep each night
   • Get 30 minutes of daily exercise (ex. lifting weights, running, a walk)
   • No drinking while playing poker (drinks at dinner are fine)
   • No negative EV games (ex. gambling against the house like craps or roulette)
   • Stop playing if you feel you’re on tilt. Taking a break when you’re not in the right headspace is encouraged.
   • Take notes on key hands when you’re at the table to review with the group later
5. Dinners & Hand Review: At dinner each night, we’ll do hand reviews as a group. I’ll book reservations for us. At dinner, you’ll need to:
   • Discuss a hand you think you played well
   • Discuss a hand you are unsure of or think you played poorly
   • Stake someone at least 20% for one their next day’s tournaments (so that you’re invested in making sure everyone is improving)
6. Pre-trip Prep:
   • Venmo David $400 for the cost of the hotel if you plan on sharing a room
     • This money is only for lodging; I’ll Venmo you back any remaining money after we’ve paid
     • If you have to cancel, you’ll cede this money to your roommates (i.e., no one will have to pay more if you have to cancel)
     • If you’re booking your own room, this doesn’t apply to you
   • Book your flight and text your travel details to David (when do you arrive? when do you leave?)
   • Bring cash for buy-ins
     • For reference, I’m going to bring $160 x 3 buy-ins x 4 days = ~$2K-$2.5K; this is a somewhat high-end assumption because $160 is on the higher end of tournaments I’ll play (there are many $45 - $100 tournaments I’d like to try)
     • Take a look at Poker Atlas to see what sorts of tournaments you can expect to play
   • (Optional) If there are non-poker activities you want to do in Vegas, have at it (and let the group know); taking a break to have fun is part of playing good poker!