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Date: 18 Dec 2006 17:11:41
From: John Grout
Subject: Omaha Near Omaha: Horseshoe-Council Bluffs Trip Report
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Between matches of the 2006 NCAA women's VB Final Four at the Qwest
Center in Omaha, I snuck across the Missouri River to the
Horsehoe-Council Bluffs (once the Bluffs' Run) to play Omaha on Friday,
Saturday and Sunday.
Though I liked many of the dealers, and liked the customer relations
part of the poker room manager's skill set, he's a poker newbie that
crossed over from the pit. If a Bay Area cardroom treated waiting cash
game players (and cash games with empty seats) the way the Horseshoe
does, their more experienced customers would stomp away... that
definitely needs work.
Their bi-monthly Limit Omaha H/L tournament was like a downhill skiing
competition. Fifteen minute blinds, big blind increases, the clock
running during color up and, worst of all, No Limit from two tables
onward even though only half the final table is paid... and all this
for a low, low 20% juice. I am told that this is the normal structure
for their daily tournaments. Though few new players wander over to the
Omaha table, to promote poker, the Horseshoe is sending out Saturday
freeroll solicitations to local Harrah's card holders. If you can
imagine playing short-stacked turbo NLHE with the rawest TV-watching
fish occupying an upper stratum... because they know the hands...
you're close.
The Omaha action varies a great deal. The normal game is O/8 $4-$8
with a half kill... that's spread just about all the time people are
around except the wee hours after the game breaks or on Saturday
morning and afternoon, where a loose-aggressive mixed game is spread
(alternating rounds of $20-$40 HE and $20-$40 O/8) and O/8 $4-$8 has to
wait until late afternoon, when the Saturday tournament action
subsides. There's also a Wednesday night $2-$5 PLOH.
The house collects a 10% rake, capped at $4, plus $1 for the jackpot
(TTTTx or better beaten) if the pot is $40 or greater. If two players
deliberately check down a small pot, the house won't collect the $1 for
the jackpot... but they also won't pay the jackpot on that hand. The
house credits your Harrah's card for $.50/hour of cash game play at the
end of each session.
In the six or seven hours I played O/8 $4-$8, it varied wildly from
loose passive to loose aggressive with somewhat tighter pre-flop play
on Sunday morning. Even when the game is loose passive and the pot
isn't too large, most of their regulars will chase to the river if they
see a somewhat-fitting flop. A player playing nut draws should have a
solid win rate. When the game switches to loose aggressive, a player
with enough pre-flop discipline to play A2(s)4K for $16 or $24 but
throw away relative cheese like A2xx unsuited should have an even
better win rate (with high variance) because the regulars chase big
pots even harder than they do small ones... some even chase miracle
draws to the river.
All in all, the Horseshoe is a good place to play Omaha. If you can
avoid Saturday mornings and early afternoons (or head there then if you
want the $20-$40 mixed game), it's worth a visit.
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Date: 18 Dec 2006 19:11:43
From: bo dark
Subject: Re: Omaha Near Omaha: Horseshoe-Council Bluffs Trip Report
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John Grout wrote:
> Between matches of the 2006 NCAA women's VB Final Four at the Qwest
> Center in Omaha, I snuck across the Missouri River to the
> Horsehoe-Council Bluffs (once the Bluffs' Run) to play Omaha on Friday,
> Saturday and Sunday.
>
> Though I liked many of the dealers, and liked the customer relations
> part of the poker room manager's skill set, he's a poker newbie that
> crossed over from the pit. If a Bay Area cardroom treated waiting cash
> game players (and cash games with empty seats) the way the Horseshoe
> does, their more experienced customers would stomp away... that
> definitely needs work.
>
> Their bi-monthly Limit Omaha H/L tournament was like a downhill skiing
> competition. Fifteen minute blinds, big blind increases, the clock
> running during color up and, worst of all, No Limit from two tables
> onward even though only half the final table is paid... and all this
> for a low, low 20% juice. I am told that this is the normal structure
> for their daily tournaments. Though few new players wander over to the
> Omaha table, to promote poker, the Horseshoe is sending out Saturday
> freeroll solicitations to local Harrah's card holders. If you can
> imagine playing short-stacked turbo NLHE with the rawest TV-watching
> fish occupying an upper stratum... because they know the hands...
> you're close.
>
> The Omaha action varies a great deal. The normal game is O/8 $4-$8
> with a half kill... that's spread just about all the time people are
> around except the wee hours after the game breaks or on Saturday
> morning and afternoon, where a loose-aggressive mixed game is spread
> (alternating rounds of $20-$40 HE and $20-$40 O/8) and O/8 $4-$8 has to
> wait until late afternoon, when the Saturday tournament action
> subsides. There's also a Wednesday night $2-$5 PLOH.
>
> The house collects a 10% rake, capped at $4, plus $1 for the jackpot
> (TTTTx or better beaten) if the pot is $40 or greater. If two players
> deliberately check down a small pot, the house won't collect the $1 for
> the jackpot... but they also won't pay the jackpot on that hand. The
> house credits your Harrah's card for $.50/hour of cash game play at the
> end of each session.
>
> In the six or seven hours I played O/8 $4-$8, it varied wildly from
> loose passive to loose aggressive with somewhat tighter pre-flop play
> on Sunday morning. Even when the game is loose passive and the pot
> isn't too large, most of their regulars will chase to the river if they
> see a somewhat-fitting flop. A player playing nut draws should have a
> solid win rate. When the game switches to loose aggressive, a player
> with enough pre-flop discipline to play A2(s)4K for $16 or $24 but
> throw away relative cheese like A2xx unsuited should have an even
> better win rate (with high variance) because the regulars chase big
> pots even harder than they do small ones... some even chase miracle
> draws to the river.
>
> All in all, the Horseshoe is a good place to play Omaha. If you can
> avoid Saturday mornings and early afternoons (or head there then if you
> want the $20-$40 mixed game), it's worth a visit.
nice report grout,i guess when your the only game in town you don't
worry about the regulars.
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