I’ve always been disappointed when I’ve gone to Las Vegas to play poker. Online I’ve become a fan of HORSE mixed games, but in Las Vegas except for the World Series all you find is Hold Em, with the rare Omaha Hi-Lo table or tournament if you’re lucky. You’d think that in Las Vegas of all places you’d be able to find somewhere in the city most of the standard variations of poker. Your theory about the probable effect of legalization may be right, because I learned these other games online, and a major motivation for going to Vegas on my last trip was to try to play these other games live (because the casinos and most home games don’t have them). On the other hand, if I just want to play no-limit hold em, it’s a lot easier to play online or with my homeys.

If you’re right about the effect legalizing online poker would have on Las Vegas, Wynn is not only an ass, but a stupid ass. The explosion in the popularity of online no-limit hold em prior to the UIGEA putting a damper on things probably caused a lot of people to go to Vegas who otherwise would never have gone. I probably never would have gone to Vegas if I hadn’t first learned how to play online and in home games.

To be honest, I’ve never trusted Steve Wynn. He was thrilled when the Chinese decided to allow a gambling district in Macao but as soon as he had his casino up and running there he’s done everything he can to lobby the Chinese not to expand gambling to anyplace else in China. He’s the western version of Donald Trump, but with far less integrity.