After more than 50 days in Las Vegas playing the World Series of Poker (WSOP), Yuri Dzivielevski revealed on Instagram that he had two sessions in the former Ivey's Room (now known as Table 1), a high-stakes cash game room at the Aria Casino in Las Vegas. The room is the equivalent to the Legend's Room (formerly Bobby's Room) at the Bellagio.
Yuri took down Event 53: $3,000 Nine Game Mix, bagging himself $215,982, but another trip highlight came later on at Table 1.
The Legend's Room and Table 1 became famous for hosting the most expensive open cash games on the planet, mainly mixed games. Stars such as the late Doyle Brunson, Phil Ivey, and Patrik Antonius were always regulars in the room.
From the airport, Yuri, who specializes in mixed games, answered followers' questions on Instagram.
- How does the game work in the room, and who can play?
Yuri: Anyone can play. It's an open game, and it's probably the most expensive open game there is. Usually, expensive games like this are private, and to answer the question of other people who don't know what Bobby's Room is. Well, it's a room, a poker room, inside the Bellagio, that has these very expensive games. There are also NLH and PLO sometimes, not just Mixed Games. But this time, I played at Aria. The players who play there are the same ones I play online cash games with, there are a few who don't play online, but of the ones you know, Patrik Antonius and Phil Ivey were there.
- Which games are included in the mixed games?
Yuri: No-Limit Hold'em, Seven Card Stud, Omaha Hi-Lo, Razz, 2-7 Razz, Pot-Limit Omaha, Limit Hold'em, No-Limit 2-7 Draw Lowball, Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo, 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball, and Pot-Limit 2-7 Triple Draw.
- Who were the other cash players at Aria? All regulars? What did you think of the level?
Yuri: I played two days in a row. The first day was tougher and there were no weak players, but on the second day, there was one. Anyway, I would never go into a game that I don't have an advantage in, at least that I don't think I have an advantage in. So, according to my online numbers, taking into account all the hands I've played in the last two years, against a lot of these guys, I have an advantage, so that's why I was there.
- What is the rake like in these more expensive games?
Yuri: The dealers' rake and tips are paid every half hour. So every half hour the dealer changes. And then the first hand of that dealer will be the raked hand. And the rake is very low. So whoever wins the first pot, when the dealer comes to the table, is the person who pays the rake. And I was giving about $100 or 125 dollars in rake, and then, usually, whoever wins the hand gives another $50 to the dealer.
- What is the ideal buy-in to play $3k/$6k?
Yuri: There is no ideal buy-in and I don't know what the minimum buy-in is either, I believe it's 10 big bets, $60k. But no-limit and pot-limit games have a cap of $60k, so you can't bet more than $60k. And in no-limit and pot-limit games the cap is 40 blinds, or $120k, except for Pot Limit Triple Draw, where we play $500k, 60 big blinds. So, there is no ideal to enter. You can enter with a minimum of $60k, I think, and there is no maximum, because there is a limit to the bets. It doesn't matter if you enter with $1 million or $500k. I like to have enough chips so that I don't have to rebuy all the time. In this specific game, I entered with $200k (30 big bets).
- Has the level of WSOP players increased?
Yuri: Definitely not. Maybe they are evolving, but not at the same speed as those who are truly dedicated. That's why the gap between dedicated players gets bigger every year.
- Talk a little about the game and some cool hands.
Yuri: It was a really cool experience, I'll definitely play more next year. I'll probably play more cash and get late registration for tournaments, maybe play the $10k, $25k and $50k from the beginning. I'll tell you about two hands, one that I lost and one that I won.
The one I lost was in PLO. Phil Ivey opens from the button, I make a 3-bet from the SB with . He calls. The flop comes. . I have a flush draw and overcards, so I pot it. Preflop I made $18 or $19 thousand, then on the flop I shoved the remaining $41 thousand and he called with , two pair, which held ($120k pot).
In the hand I won, I open of the BTN. The SB, a very good player, called. The flop came . He bets half the pot, I call. The turn is the and he checks, so I bet more or less 70% since I'm not blocking any pair or any for the sequence, and I leave another 70% for the river. River comes a , I'm all in. He calls and doesn't show.
- Is there any tax on these tables?
Yuri: No. That's one of the biggest advantages of Vegas cash games. But at some point you're going to pay taxes on that money, otherwise how are you going to use it? Not paying at source is good because poker has variance. It wouldn't make sense to pay taxes when you win and not pay them when you lose. In any case, when you buy a car, a house or bring the money to Brazil, you're going to have to pay.
- What did you think of your Top 10 in the WSOP Player of the Year? [Ed. Yuri finished in 9th place] Did you feel like it could have been better?
Yuri: The WSOP is a small series in terms of the number of tournaments compared to online series. So there is a lot of variance involved. The Player of the Year (POY) has a huge variance. So what I try to do is stay consistent. I'm always among the top. And the difference between 10th and 1st is that some tournaments sway in the other direction and he ends up winning. The POY really rewards first place, so you need to win tournaments. In the middle of the series, I had more final tables than Scott Seiver, and more ITMs, but he made it to three tournaments and won all three. The important thing is to stay up there, who knows, maybe one day I will win if the wind blows my way?
- How do you bring money to Brazil?
Yuri: Legally, there is only one way: bank transfer. You just have to ask the WSOP to send it to your account in Brazil. Of course, you won't bring the money in cash; it makes no sense for you to arrive with $50,000, for example. But there are other ways that people do it, for example, exchanging it for cryptocurrencies, but this is not in accordance with the law.
Of course, you can also leave it in your US bank account. This is 100% legal if you declare it on your income tax return.
- Are the rake of the cheapest WSOP tournaments/taxes high?
Yuri: The rake of the cheapest tournaments at the WSOP is very high. In fact, the most expensive ones are too. For example, the $10K Championship has a rake of 7%. And the cheapest tournaments have an even higher rake. And there's also a 30% tax, but you can recover a good part of it later. But you'll still have to pay some tax. Unless you play very cheaply, then you can recover 100%. That's why Vegas is not an alternative for those who play $1,000 or $2,000 tournaments. Someone who comes here to play these tournaments, to stay for a month, for example, will hardly be able to have a series with a positive profit expectation. In addition to the very high rake, you have to pay for accommodation, flights, taxes and everything else. So, for Brazilians, Vegas is only for those who play very, very expensive games.
- Was the trip profitable?
Yuri: I can't find a reason to show my numbers. This year, I even thought about making a post showing everything, but after thinking about it for a while, I came to the same conclusion as always: I have no reason to show them.
Did you win or lose at Bobby's Room?
I played for 12 hours in total. That's roughly 300 hands. Any kind of result in this sample size is a pure illusion. It simply doesn't make sense to focus on it.
Let's say my expected profit is 3 big blinds per 100 hands. Here are the 20 possible outcomes in 300 hands:
What matters is the profit expectation. If I think I will win 3 bbs every 100 hands, in 300 hands/12 hours my profit expectation is 9 bbs. Whether you win or lose $300k in one session doesn’t change anything at all”:
