The Two One-Eyed Jack Foursome

The best way to kick off a Saturday morning in Vegas is with a breakfast that would make a heart surgeon faint. Or perhaps salivate. And that means country throw-up gravy (#CTUG).

I still have comp dollars on my Four Queens card - some $50 worth. The Quad Queen has $140. I wish I could figure out a way to access hers.

Main Street Station, lit up like a beacon this morning.

I rather enjoyed blogging my exploits from yesterday because it was one of the best gambling days I've ever had. It's easy when you're winning!

I wandered down the fairly empty Fremont Street - the only sounds came from a fellow very early riser, a gentle soul, a troubadour of sorts, like a wandering minstrel, pounding the ever loving ass-fuck out of six overturned plastic buckets, four metal pots, and a steam table serving tray lid.

My destination was Magnolia's Veranda, and their renowned Country Fried Steak and Eggs. It was everything I hoped for.

There's a card out there for someone...

As I ate I pondered what the day would bring. Would I be able to keep the streak going? (Or would I have to change underwear.)

On the agenda for today was the Boyd Beat the Heat $25,000 slot tournament. I'd play two rounds at Fremont, and there was a banquet to attend at which the winners would be announced and an additional $5,000 would be given away in a drawing.

After breakfast, I puttered around on the Fremont until it was time for me to partake in the action.

The tournament is pretty slick, all automated with a central system assigning seats and recording scores. Same system they use at Encore.

I did well - for a while. Mid-way through my three minute round I was in first in my group of ten people. But I dropped and finished fourth. My score was, I would say, average, based on my observations.

Next stop was some Super Slutty Bimbo Times Pay - it took $60 to get it going, but I had a couple of unusual hands to get me over the top, and I cashed out $200. Nice.

A pretty remarkable hand - two successful one card draws for the straight flush.

I wandered around Fremont, trying this machine and that, a twenty at a time. I won a quick $20 on the same reel slot I'd hit on previously for $100 (yesterday? the day before?) and played that on dollar VP. Which failed, sadly.

A video keno machine beckoned and I wondered if it could happen again.

To my shock and surprise, it did. I hit a five spot again.

I took $230 out of that machine and found myself way up on the day. It was happening again!

Another couple of twenties went by the wayside as I wandered around, playing whatever caught my eye. A studiously professional mode of operation...

Then I saw One-Eyed Jacks. "That looks fun..." I thought, and put $20 in, with the idea of playing dollars, win or lose.

I lost the first three hands, then Lazurused a few times with my final five bucks, then hit a Two One-Eyed Jack Foursome.

I played that down to $50 and cashed it out.

I decided to try some Jacks back at the Four Queens - and this, I think is where my good luck streak went off the rails.

I played $60 or so on quarters, trying to employ the Strict Rules of Parlay.

My chance came with yet another four-to-a-royal draw on 50 cents.

One card away from $2000. Sigh.

Out of credits, and out of twenties, I put $100 in. And switched to dollars. I've hardly done any dollar video poker play this trip, and this was as good a game as any to give it a shot. Boom, got a quick hit.

Did I cash it out? No. Did I cash it out when I was back to $100? No. Did I fight and fight and struggle and play for 20 minutes trying to hit something - anything - a quad, a few fulls house, and get nothing, and get faces full of second-hand smoke from the idiot on the other side, and then completly go on tilt, playing as fast as I could until it was all gone?

No.

I lied, it's a yes on that from me.

Tilt, tilt, tilt. Another $100 went into the bar on Double Double. I wanted my money back!

The machine I chose was happy from the get-go. I never dropped below $100. And finally, it coughed up four deuces, dealt, for which I failed to draw the kicker. But basically, it gifted me $100 - which I kept.

Back at the Fremont, I played some more machines - but my luck coin had flipped, and I was now in drain mode.