My opportunities to get out for the big tournaments have been curtailed lately by a new work schedule (no $20K at Final Table last week, I’m missing the $40K at Encore Saturday, and the Chinook and Muckleshoot series have double whammies on them) but when I have made it into public, I’ve gotten great feedback on the Planner from people in Portland clubs. Please keep the acknowledgments coming; they’re my only payment for combing the Internet to keep the calendar up to date.

Aria High Roller XV and XVI: Deal of the Day

Yes, the Wildhorse has a “High Roller” event. They’ve been $2K or less for the buyin. Heck, even I played one. But I’m fairly certain that nobody reading this is an habitué of $25K buyin events like the Aria High Rollers.

Aria’s held a dozen $25K events since last December, with anywhere from 12 to more than 40 entrants. There will be two held on consecutive days, on October 1st and 2nd (a Thursday and Friday). The format is a one-day event starting with 100K in chips, 40-minute levels, and ten-minute breaks between each level. They’ve announced for previous events that if you register before 2pm, Aria waives the $1K registration fee, so you can save yourself enough to cover airfare and a room.

The most recently-completed event—High Roller XII—ran in mid-August, got 21 entrants, and resulted in a three-way chop, with John Morgan (my nemesis from the Wynn), Charles Keith Lehr, and David “Doc” Sands each taking about $168K (Lehr won $300K the previous day in High Roller XI).

Poker Telegraph has commentary on several of the events, including the most recent. According to their write-up, HR XII ran from 2pm until just about 11pm, ending in Level 14. For a profit of more than $140K, that’s about $16K/hour. HRXI (27 entries) played down to a 2-way (uneven) chop with Lehr getting $300K and Issac Baron $218K (and Cary Katz and Martin de Knijf taking $97K and $32K, respectively), and went until just after midnight.

A median-position cash (halfway between the top money and the bottom payout) in a small tournament is typically better than in a game with more than a hundred entries. It’s why high roller tournaments are a more attractive option for players who can afford them, whether they know it or not.

And if you have some money burning a hole in your pocket after Chinook or Muckleshoot, the chance to quintuple your money in less time than it takes to play this weekend’s $40K might just be something to take a look at.

This Week in Portland Poker

This is what’s happening in town.

• Saturday at 1pm is the big $40K guarantee at Encore. $250 buyin, $80 addon. (Their Labor Day $9K guarantee ended up with nearly $19K in the prize pool and a scheduled top payout of almst $5K. Friday’s noon game with the new $2K guarantee and $40 buyin/rebuy was over $5.8K in the prizepool).
• Over at Portland Players Club, there’s a $2K guarantee Big O tournament ($100 buyin/rebuy, $40 addon) at 5pm.

Only a Day Away

• Tonight and tomorrow (7pm both nights) are the last evening series satellites for next week’s Muckleshoot Poker Classic. Sunday at noon, and Monday and Tuesday at 7pm,the casino is running $225 mega satellites for entry to all five events.
• The Commerce Poker Series is running at Commerce Casino in City of Commerce (LA) until the 20th. Tomorrow is the $500K guarantee $1.1K buyin Playboy tournament. Next weekend is the start of the $1.65K buyin $500K Main Event.
• The HPT Golden Gates started Friday in Colorado, which overlaps the HPT series at Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, starting tomorrow. And coming right up on Monday is the return for the HPT to Sacramento
• The Bay 101 Open got under way yesterday.
• The Venetian Deepstack Extravaganza 3.5 runs from September 10th to October 4th; dates for the DSE VI are October 26 to November 25 (the day before Thanksgiving).
• The Chinook Winds Fall Coast Classic starts next Wednesday. $100K guarantee Main Event, with the entry on Saturday the 19th, $550 buyin with $200 addon.

Check out the Pacific Northwest Tournament Calendar for more poker…in the future.