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Mirage Poker Room Review

The Mirage casino is as beautiful today as it ever was. Something I love about this casino is the way you feel relaxed, and a million miles away. The poker room reflects this attitude too. Although I can’t necessarily put it into words, there is a uniquely relaxed feeling inside the room. The area is wide open, and placed in a great place inside the casino. Being next door to the sportsbook is great for guys who play poker and enjoy betting on sports. It’s also in close proximity to lots of plant life and palm trees.

This may sound silly in a review, but I think you’ll understand what I’m talking about if you visit this casino. Rarely do you find a poker room with such a great atmosphere for players to relax and enjoy themselves in. As a long time poker player, I tend to think from a players perspective first. In this case, I can’t help but put myself in the shoes of a tourist. There isn’t a better poker room for someone looking for a fun, yet relaxing poker trip.

The Director of Poker Operations is a wonderful lady named Donna Harris. Donna clearly has a passion for her job and her poker room. We had a nice discussion about the Mirage poker room and some of the more unique aspects to it.

Texas Hold’em Plus
Yeah, Texas Hold’em Plus is what they’re calling it. A game inspired by Crazy Pineapple, Texas Hold’em Plus is played exactly the same way as hold’em, with one clear difference. In this game, players are dealt two cards, just like in regular hold’em. The difference comes after you’ve been given your hole cards. For a price equal to the small blind, players can discard either of their hole cards and essentially buy another. My first thought when Donna told me about this was, “ahh, a great way to bluff pre-flop and set your opponents up” (by not taking a card). My second thought was, “anyone with an ace, king, or queen with a rag, will certainly draw a card”. That one difference certainly changes things, as the games are even looser, and finding a loose game in Vegas wasn’t too hard to begin with. So, essentially what this game causes is a lot of action, and some big pots. That alone makes it worth a try. According to Donna, they don’t play the game on a daily basis, but when the ‘inventor’ of the game comes in, he always gets a table running.

Training Table
There is a table at the Mirage, exclusively for the purposes of teaching new players how the games work, and to get rid of any fear they may have of playing at a live table for the first time. There is a sign located next to the table, when it’s lit, the training table is open.

Food & Cocktails
Finding a cocktail waitress at the Mirage poker room is pretty simple. Unlike a lot of poker rooms, the Mirage does a decent job of keeping enough cocktail waitresses on staff. The waitresses are friendly and polite as well.

The food at the Mirage is great, with a ton of great places to choose from. There are 15 restaurants, and 8 bars inside the Mirage, most of which are within short walking distance from the poker room. If you’re staying at the Mirage, I suggest the Paradise Café for a quick getaway from the tables. The food is great, and it allows you to see what the sun looks like between long hours at the tables. I also highly recommend the Japonais Restaurant. They have great seafood, Japanese food, and sushi worth more than you pay for.

Cash Games
There’s a wide variety of cash games available at the Mirage poker room. While they hold all of the typical hold’em games, they also run Stud, Omaha and Omaha Hi/Lo games on a daily basis. Known for their busy $10/20 and $20/40 FL Hold’em games, they also have a deep following for the other games. Fixed limit hold’em starts as low as $3/6, and they spread a $1/4 Stud game which is a rare find these days. This room has plenty of action, and plenty of professional type people looking to have a good time & toss their money around. There’s money to be made here by players who take the game serious and don’t get caught up in the fun and games. If that is what you’re looking for, that’s fine too. Just be sure you bring more than one buy-in with you .

Rake
There is a no flop, no drop policy only when one player comes in for a raise, and everyone else folds. If there is a raise pre-flop, then a reraise which takes the pot down, the rake is based on however much was in the pot. The strike points at the Mirage are a little different than other rooms, but close enough that in the long run, there will be little if any difference in your stack size. There is a $4 max rake on all games, again in line with all of the other rooms in town. The strike points are: $1 taken when the pot reaches $12, $1 at $24, $1 at $48, and $1 at $80.

There are no high hand or bad beat jackpots. The benefit is that there is no extra rake taken to pay for them.

Tournaments

All tournaments have a 30 minute blind schedule

Sunday at 5 pm – No Limit Hold’em, $100+$25 (4,000 starting chips)
Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday at 7 pm – No Limit Hold’em, $100+$25 (4,000 starting chips)
Thursday at 7 pm – No Limit Hold’em, $200+$30 (5,500 starting chips)
-50 Players Pays 5 Places
50-124 Players Pays 9 Places
125+ Players Pays 18 Places

Satellites for the above tournaments are available Sunday through Thursday for $35-$55. The top two players win entry to the events.

Sit and Go Tournaments
All Sit and Go tournaments at the Mirage start when ten players are signed up. All are offered 24 hours a day (Except from 5 – 8 pm Mon-Thurs & 3 – 6 pm on Sunday). Each Sit and Go pays the top two places. 1st Place – 70%, 2nd Place – 30%
$70 Buy-in (1st-$420, 2nd -$180) $1,000 Starting chips, 15 minute rounds
$115 Buy-in (1st-$700, 2nd-$300) $1,500 Starting chips, 15 minute rounds
$175 Buy-in (1st-$1,050, 2nd-$450) $2,000 Starting chips, 20 minute rounds

Television
There are plasma tv’s located all around the poker room. If you have a bet down on a football game, you can probably watch it while you play. Between the tv’s, your iPod, and the new law allowing players to use their cell phones at the poker tables, you’ll completely forget you’re playing poker.

Summary
The Mirage is not just a great casino, it’s a great place to relax, eat, party, and play poker. Management has continued to keep this place relevant, even as the newer, mega-casinos have been built around it. The poker room has a wonderful atmosphere that combines fun and comfort at the same time. The dealers are well trained, the cocktail waitresses are great, and the entire staff makes you feel welcome. Players get a genuine feeling that the staff wants them to enjoy their time at the tables. At most poker rooms you can tell the losers in the game by the disgusted looks on their faces. At the Mirage, it’s honestly difficult to tell who’s winning and who’s losing. Hey, that really is the point right? If you’ve forgotten that poker is supposed to be fun, try the Mirage. They’ll remind you.

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