Soon after, we're in The Empire for another swift pint and a wander around the casino floor. With the blackjack tables calling me, I think about breaking my "no blackjack" policy and playing a few hands but luckily they are a minimum of £15 a pop and this influences my decision to steer clear - probably a very good thing! We sink another beer and it's onto the poker room - hurrah! I swipe my card through and I'm about 7th on the list.
Now in Part 1 I wrote about why The Fox is going down in my estimation and most of the negatives I pointed out about that place just don't exist at The Empire. On entering the poker room at The Empire you have the softer lighting, you have the gentle yet unobtrusive, inoffensive music playing at just the right volume in the background - and as a result players are TALKING and chatting away. The whole atmosphere is lighter and people are just being more sociable - it's just plain nicer!
Ok, enough about atmoss, let's consider the attitude of the players... Well, perhaps due to the more relaxed setting, players just don't seem to have that same anal attachment to money that is so much in evidence at The Fox. Even though we have the more expensive £1/£2 variety of cash game, where stacks of £300+ are rife, there just isn't that overt sense or feeling that the money is THAT important - and this is really why I enjoy the Empire more. Yes, it hurts more to lose £300 than £50, of course, but that's what poker is about isn't it? Playing with money that hurts a little bit when you lose, otherwise the game doesn't have that substance and oomph about it that's critical in making the game what it is.
Ok, I better take my preacher hat off now...
Nobbus takes his leave and I take my place, with £400, at a nice table. Two key hands early doors gives me the loose aggressive image from the off and I then coast to a £70 profit for the session and a £30 profit overall on the night.
Key Hand #1
I'm new at the table and I look down at KK. An early position raiser plops in £25 and I raise to about £80 and he folds. I get a "who is this madman?" vibe from the table.
Key Hand #2
Very soon after, possibly the very next hand (I can't quite remember), I look down at AQ in late position. There is a straddle on of £5. It goes limp, limp, limp, limp and so I fire in £60. Everyone folds and I scooop in about £25. I'm thinking a few of these villains think I'm a maniac.
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After this, I just chug along but no jackpot hand is forthcoming. I leave at about 2:30AM with a £470 stack and a £70 profit on this Empire session. Any road, the point is, I NEED TO STOP PLAYING AT THE FOX AND PLAY MORE AT THE EMPIRE. It's so obvious from my last visits to both places that this is the way forward for me.Until next time... Uncle Wobblington.
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