Trip Report: Fitzgeralds Poker Room - Las Vegas, NV

If you are downtown and want a break from the larger, busier poker rooms such as Binions and the Golden Nugget, The Fitz may be what you are looking for.

The Poker Room is located upstairs next to the tiny Keno area and the tiny Sportsbook. There are about 6-8 poker tables at the Fitz. I have played tournaments there several times and a few things stand out in my mind:

1. The felt. Can someone fall in love with poker felt? I've been in a few dozen poker rooms, and this is among the best felt I have seen. Cards just glide over it.

2. The funny, and friendly poker room managers. For a small room, I have seen several managers there. Each one has been very friendly, and each has a sense of humour. This really separates them from Binions across the street. While Binions is Class all the way, the staff there is very formal, and everything follows the rules. The Fitz is much more laid-back.

3. The cocktail waitresses seemingly come by every 5 minutes for drink orders. You will NOT go thirsty playing poker at the Fitz.

They offer 3 tournaments a day. A 12 noon and 9pm Rebuy event, and a 5 pm Freeze-out. Each tournament's buy in is around $40-$60. I've never played in a Cash game there, but occasionally I have seen one.

I have cashed/won a few tournaments there. Tournaments usually only fill 2 or 3 tables..they usually pay 3 placings.

My biggest complaint with the Fitz is the tournament structure. You only start with $1,500 in Chips in the 12 noon and 9pm events. Not enough to really "play poker".

Grading:

Poker Room: B. I like the Fitz a lot. Something about the room just appeals to me. I'm sure others would say "Meh" and opt to go to Binions across the street. Just remember..small room..friendly staff..generally weak players..have fun!

Dealers/Staff: A- Like I mentioned, staff is great. A few of the women Asian dealers are hard to understand and made a few mistakes, but nothing major.

Strength of Players: 4/10 You get a real mix of players here. Everything from some decent local players to College frat boys. One tournament the player to my right was a barely over 21 girl who was absolutely plastered drunk. She kept showing me her cards nearly every hand until I finally called the floor. This was a one time only incident, but looking back, it was kind of funny. The Fitz also lures some uber-aggressive, loud 20-something males who always seem to build a big chip stack in the first hour only to donk away their chips right after the break.

Overall, if you are downtown don't overlook this fun place to play small, cheap tournaments.