The 2008 WPT Legends of Poker tournament started late last month. So far they’ve played 24 events, and the $10,000 main event started on Saturday. It will run for four days, and wind up some time on Thursday. All the events before the big main event were $1000 or smaller buy-ins.

Behzad Teranie won the $1000 no-limit hold’em event #24, and took home $51,570 for his efforts. Second-place prize money of $25,270 went to Ian Kim. In the $1000 no-limit hold’em event # 21, Ablahad “Fast Eddie AS” Salim won first-place prize money of $97,620. Second-place money of $48,545 went to Tu Huynh.

Men “The Master” Nguyen added another first-place finish to his long list of cashes when he won the $500 Omaha High/Low event #15. He took home a modest $20,535 after outlasting second-place finisher John Bessent, who won $10,050 as the runner-up.

Having a poker nickname is important for one simple reason - table image. When people refer to you by your nickname it tells other people that you’re an experienced player that has been around for a long time. You don’t get a nickname that sticks when you’re a novice player. It tells everyone around that you know what’s going on at a poker table, and opponents should think twice before messing with you.

Having a nickname will also help you promote yourself. Players with nicknames seem to get more press than other players. The nickname offers a little more into the personality of the player, and sometimes even into the style of play that person may employ.

Besides, having a nickname is cool. If you’re lucky enough to be given one by an established player it can only help you and your table image. Even bad ones get noticed and remembered.

There are lots of ways to have fun. You can go to a bar or party, or maybe a hike or bike ride is your idea of a fun time. We all have our own things that we like to do, but Texas Hold’em seems to be something that just about everyone likes these days. It makes a lot of sense that’s it’s so popular. People can get together with family and friends and enjoy an entire evening of fun and excitement for a fraction of the cost of a night out.

Poker tournaments give dedicated players an opportunity to show how they match up against other local players, and a chance to win a nice prize pool that could impact their lives. Everyone is playing; even that guy who said he hates to play cards now sits in regularly to try his luck and have some fun.

Before poker had its boom in 2003, Fremont St. was the place for poker action. It still has some great poker rooms, but they don’t compare to the new big rooms on the Strip. Poker was grown at Binion’s, and the WSOP was held there until Harrah’s bought it and moved it to the Rio.

The Golden Nugget has a mixture of locals and tourists floating around the poker room. The room is small, but you’ll find diverse action and a great poker atmosphere. The Plaza has a large poker room that will take you back a few decades. They offer daily sit-and-go tournaments, as well as the regular cash game action.

The El Cortez is the other downtown poker room. It has a limited number of tables, and is a favorite with the old timers because a spread-limit $1-$3 or $1-$6 Texas holdem game is played there.