Well the first round is finished and the 535 players have been whittled down to 208 and I’m still alive. I’ve got $25,000 in chips and probably just below the average, but i won’t know until they post the standings later tonight.

For now, I’m off to dinner

AllPokerPlay

The clock is ticking and for those who may know a bit of Yiddish, I’ve got spilkas! Ants in the pants, nerves, wobbly knees, etc.

Now i spent about 5 hours playing 2/4 holdem yesterday and i’ve got to say that i’m pretty happy, i broke even, despite going in to showdowns with today’s potential opponents, just to see what they’ll play. So far, most of the hands have been decent, but i’ve been smart/lucky enough to avoid their strongest hands.

So here I sit, in my cabin, the ship moving a bit more than i’d like (proabably 2 ft. waves our there) but maybe it will shake things up and land me in tomorrow night’s 2nd round.

Finally a word about the cruise. This cruise is from Card Player Cruises (not affiliated with Card Player Magazine) who have arranged to operate a pokerroom with over 50 tables throughout our time at sea. Yes Party Poker is the worlds largest poker room, but this week, the Westerdam is the largest poker room at sea! It’s been a fun cruise, lots of young folks, but also lots of 35-55 folks too. So if you want to go on a first class cruise and play poker, visit www.cardplayercruises.com.

Well here goes nothing - I better finish in the money, the cost of the booze and internet service is likely to bust me otherwise!

A nervous AllPokerPlay - off to the tables - wish me luck!

The first elimination round complete in the last hour or so and the starting group of 265 is now down to about 135. As a result, eventhough i haven’t played a hand, i’m now in the top 75% of players in the tournament. Of course, if i crash and burn early tomorrow, that won’t necessarily hold, but i’m hoping that this time tomorrow, i’ll be in the top half of all remaining players. Several top players from last years final two tables went out early as did Barry Shulman, publisher of Card Player Magazine and 2001 WSOP winner, was the 3rd man knocked out today. I guess even great players have bad days.

Off to the show, bar and poker room, for the rest of the evening

AllPokerPlay signing out.

The first round (1/2 the players) started about 45 minutes ago.The room is packed and there are now about 500 players in the tournament, about 50 bought or won their way into the final, last night.

The most interesting scene on board is in the Upper Vista Dining Room, where money games have been going on since we left port last night. There are literally hundreds of people playing everything from $1/$2 limit to $40/$80 no limit. I’m not going to hit that $40/$80 game, but i may try some lower limit games.

Meanwhile, i’ll keep prepping for my 1st round on Tuesday at 10am EST.

Well it’s over and out for now.

AllPokerPlay

I’m on board the Westerdam and just finished listening to Mike Sexton welcoming the players. This year in addition to the Party Poker Millions final, there is a Party Blackjack and Party Slots contest on board.

The first round of play begins Monday at 10am, with half the entrants playing. The 2nd group of entrants, myself included, start Tuesday at 10am. Wednesday and Thursday evenings will be the where the real action is, with the final table starting at Noon, Friday March 17th, guess no green beer for those guys on friday!

The ship is full with a crowd that probably averages about 30 years old, so it should be quite the party, but at my age (43) who knows how much partying is left in this guy’s bones.

Well i’m back to my cabin, for a rest and to watch as we head out to sea. I’m hoping the we can catch the coastal lights as we head toward Jamaica. I’ll be back tomorrow, with some reports on the first day’s play.

Allpokerplay