Season Nine of the long running television show “World Poker Tour” begins taping today at Bellagio in Las Vegas with a $10,000 buy-in and a potential $1,000,000 first place prize. The Bellagio Cup VI will mark the 123rd open tournament in the WPT’s eight year existence as well as the 179th and 180th televised episodes when the high stakes battle airs as a two-parter in early 2011. Thought of as a long shot when it was first broadcast on the Travel Channel in 2003, the WPT is now one of the top one hundred longest running shows in the history of television.

he resorts of MGM Mirage offer a wide variety of things to do with your significant other this coming Valentine’s Day. Here is a sampling of what you can experience on the most romantic day of the year: • HOTEL32 at Monte Carlo is offering sweet savings on a romantic Vegas escape.

The world’s number one-rated travel magazine- Travel + Leisure has just released their 2010 list for the Top 500 in the World and Vegas boasts a total of five inclusions in the prestigious list. The World’s Best Hotels list was compiled from a survey conducted by the magazine with ratings on rooms, location, service, dining and value. The big surprise in this year’s list was the fact that over 50 of the hotels listed cost $250 or less

photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com Happy Holidays from the Rio Resort Las Vegas The Night Before Christmas in the Poker Room T was the night before Christmas and all through the poker room, Not much was moving, quiet as a tomb, The chip racks were stacked on the side in a row, Hoping some good luck would fill them with dough; T he players were sitting hunched in their seats, Telling their tales of all the bad beats, The dealer looked at me and asked, Do you plan to bet or will you pass? F rom out in the casino I heard a shout, I jumped from the two seat to see what was about, And what to my surprise did appear, A fat guy drinking a bottle of beer, H e came into the room all in a bustle, No one guessed it might be a hustle, He slid into the six seat and yelled for a rack, Looked around and said, “I’ll leave when I’ve filled my sack,” T hrough the air the cards did fly, Lady Luck loved this red suited guy, He played every hand never folding a one, The outcome was always the same, he won and won, W hen he had taken most of our chips, He said I’m going to give you some poker tips, I’ve played them all, the good and the great, And let me tell you I can relate, I ‘ve sat across from Hellmuth, Brunson and Chan, Hachem, Reese, even a guy called Fossilman, They remind me of a boxer with a glass jaw, They can’t even play me to a draw, N ow please excuse me, I really must go, I got to make a stop at the Bellagio, I left my Mercedes in their valet, Don’t look so surprised, I traded that drafty sleigh, I hope you all have a very prosperous year, I’ll be back next Christmas to play poker right here, Maybe you should read a poker book or two, The way you play you don’t have a clue, U nder you’re pillow tomorrow you must look, That’s where I’ll leave your copy of Doyle Brunson’s poker book, And with that he turned, shouting as he walked away, Have a Very Merry Christmas Day! From all of us at LasVegasVegas… Happy Holidays! photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com Bellagio’s festive 2009 holiday lobby Related posts: World Series of Poker Tuesday Night ESPN 8 PM photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com Liz Lieu plays the… Monte Carlo Night at the House That “Bart” Built photo by flipchip • lasvegasvegas.com Nancy Cartwright is the…

Online poker site UB.com , announced this morning that 2009 Card Player’s Poker Poker of the Year and WSOP bracelet winner, Eric Baldwin has joined its exclusive team of professional poker players . “Eric Baldwin isn’t just a new UB pro, he is UB. Eric loves this game more than anything in the world, he plays to win, and he’s respected for his passion at the tables.