Most poker players know the best poker room in Vegas is at the Bellagio. They spread the widest selection of games there, but sometimes it can be hard to get on a Holdem table. Some players think that if you’re looking for Holdem action, the Wynn poker room might be a better option.

The new poker room at the Wynn has limit Holdem games starting at $4/8 and going to $100/200 and above. They also offer no-limit Texas Holdem starting at $1/3. They have 26 tables with most of them dedicated to holdem games. You can buy into a $1/3 no-limit game for $100 minimum, or $200 will get you a seat at $2/5 no-limit.

If you’re staying in the Wynn Hotel there is a poker perk. You can put your name on the waiting list and watch the queue on the in-house poker channel right in your room.

The WPT World Championship has wrapped up at the Bellagio and David Chiu is the big winner for 2008. Chui was able to battle back from a 6:1 chip deficit against Gus “The Great Dane” Hansen to win the $3,389,140 first prize. He also gets a new WPT bracelet and an entry into the $25,000 WPT Season 7 Championship.

Hansen had to settle for the $1,714,800 second-place money, and will likely take a little while to deal with a loss that should never have happened. Even on the last hand, Chiu had to hit a river ace to beat Gus.

Chiu is no stranger to the winner’s position. He has numerous victories including four WSOP bracelets to his credit. He was already considered one of the world’s best players, and now this impressive win solidifies his presence in the elite category of the world’s best poker players.

The hottest poker player of 2008 is eight-time WSOP bracelet winner Erik Seidel. He’s widely considered to be one of the best all-around poker players in the world, with bracelet victories in five different variations of the game. This year he’s been on fire so far, to the dismay of his opponents. Seidel just won his first WPT championship at the Foxwoods Poker Classic on April 9th, pocketing $992,890. That was just over a week after finishing 16th at the World Poker Challenge for a payday of $28,099.

Those two cashes, added to his second-place finish in the Aussie Millions last January ($880,000) has given Seidel a sizable lead on the professional leaderboards. He currently has a 660-point lead over Michael Binger.

With Seidel winning a WSOP bracelet almost every year, he could carry his lead all year long. It’s not a surprise to see him atop the tournament leaderboards.

Jerry Yang is not your average WSOP main event champion. He has shunned the spotlight since his win, which makes little sense to me. You don’t see him all over the poker shows like the other champions, and he has become known as the “Shadow” on the professional circuit.

Why this man has not taken advantage of his marketability is a surprise, but maybe he’s just quietly enjoying his newfound wealth. Yang’s appearances are random and unannounced, and he’s only had one cash since his big win. He finished 14th at the Binions Poker Open last October.

Yang remains dedicated to his family and has not let poker dominate his life since his win. Many in the industry think he has not been a good ambassador to the game since becoming champion. But he has shown the world that family comes before poker, even when you’re the champion.

Over $2M was spent on the poker room at Planet Hollywood. They have 14 tables that offer a variety of Texas Holdem and Omaha variations. It’s a spacious smoke-free room located in the main casino and managed by Director of Poker Operations, Brad Bryant, who is a veteran of many years in the Vegas gaming industry. It’s popular on weekends, but the usual wait is no more than 30 minutes to get a seat.

Situated on the Strip, Planet Hollywood was once the Aladdin. Since the buyout and renovations, the resort is finally living up to its potential. The $2M poker room investment includes 100-inch plasma televisions and cushion seating for the players.

A variety of cash games are spread including $2-$4, $4-18 and $10-$20 Limit Holdem. Omaha comes in $3-$6, $5-10 and $10-$20 structured limits. No-Limit Holdem offerings are $1-$2 with a $50-$200 buy-in, $2-$5 with a $100-$500 buy-in.

Texas Holdem first showed up in Vegas when Texas poker legends Amarillo Slim, Doyle Brunson and Crandell Addington introduced it to the casinos in the late 1950’s. It was only called holdem in those days. At first, the only casino where you could find the game was at the Golden Nugget downtown. When a poker room opened up at the Dunes in 1969, the game’s popularity began to grow.

An annual “Gambling Fraternity Convention” was a collection of professionals playing different variations of poker to decide the best player in the world. In 1970 Benny and Jack Binion bought the rights to the convention and turned the event into the World Series of Poker. Journalist Tom Thackrey decided that the main event should be Texas Holdem, and the Binions agreed.

In 2004 Harrah’s Entertainment bought Binion’s Horseshoe and the rights to the WSOP, and the tournament was moved to the Rio.

So are you getting addicted to holdem yet? Are you telling your girlfriend that you don’t feel well so you can stay at home and play? Or are you playing when you should be doing something more important? It doesn’t take long for the game to grab you and consume you. It’s not like all of your buddies aren’t playing all the time; poker games are more common on the weekends than house parties.

The successful players learn how to juggle the action with a life. They’re usually not perfect lives, but who lives a perfect life? Don’t let the game control your life or it will sink you fast. It’s no different than any hobby, it can’t consume you. Set reasonable limits to your play and stick to them. It’s tough, but it’s important to have structure. If the game stops being fun, you need to step away for awhile.

If you’re heading to Vegas for the WSOP 2008, there are a couple of things you can do to get ready. You can adjust your schedule to include more multi-table tournaments. If you have chosen a specific variation of tournament, it would only make sense to get in as many events – in that variation – as you can between now and then.

It wouldn’t hurt to read up on some tournament strategy before heading into the WSOP. Dan Harrington’s books on tournament holdem will teach something to anyone who reads them. “Tournament Poker for Advanced Players”, by David Sklansky, is another sure bet.

The other thing you can do is dream about winning. Picture yourself deep into an event, getting to the final table or winning the whole thing. Envision yourself being successful; it’s more important than most people realize. Realities begin with a thought, and then with effort become experiences.

Everyone knows the golden rule of life is “treat others as you would like to be treated.” However, that doesn’t really fit in poker. If you treated the other players at the table the way you wanted them to treat you, then you would be dumping your chips to them throughout the entire game.

If you do a quick Internet search of poker and the golden rule you’ll find some very different definitions then the one cited above. You’ll find rules that tell you to maximize the pots you win and minimize the size of pots you lose; always use pot odds when deciding whether to call or not; know your fellow players and adjust your play accordingly; and so on. Unfortunately there’s no one “golden rule” of poker that will make you a winning player overnight. But there is a list of “golden rules” to follow at the table that will keep you afloat while you improve your game.

Analyze the weaknesses in your game and develop your own list of customized golden rules; follow them and take your next step toward playing winning poker.

Vegas is always the place for poker action; even in March there’s lots to be found. If you’re in Vegas this month there are lots of tournaments to choose from. The Wynn Classic is underway and will run until the 19th. There is a wide array of action for different poker variations, with the $10,000 main event running from the 16th - 19th.

The major poker rooms run weekly and daily events if you’re not there for the Wynn Classic. The Mirage has daily $115 & $175 no-limit holdem / 10-player sit and go tournaments starting at 9:00 am.

Caesar’s Palace has a weekly $200 no-limit holdem on Mondays, and players start with 7500 in chips with 40-minute blinds. The Bellagio has their $500 no-limit holdem event on the same day. You can also find a $122 no-limit holdem tournament at the Luxor if the others are full.