The 7th iteration of the Cardplayer Lifestyle Mixed Game Festival is underway at Resorts World Las Vegas, bringing another fun-filled week of low-stakes, player-friendly mixed game fun to town.
Action got underway just after noon with the first table of play led by host Robbie Strazynski, along with Poker Hall of Famer Linda Johnson, and Women in Poker Hall of Famer and Founder Lupe Soto.
Lupe Soto
Plenty more partakers of multi-card madness made their way through the Resorts World poker room throughout the day including “The Poker Boss” Sean McCormack and MGF sponsor PokerGO’s Tim Duckworth.
With the opening day pizza party and cupcakes generously provided by Soto, players ate well throughout the day as they partook in a mix of more traditional stud, flop, and draw games.
The @PokerLifeMedia Mixed Game Festival is off and running with two $4/8 dealer’s choice tables at @PokerRoomRWLV
Pizza, giveaways… Good times 😁
Get on the wait-list with @PokerAtlas or call in (702) 676-7680 pic.twitter.com/Y3LYjN4QIW
— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) February 25, 2024
These included Razzdugi, Omaha 8 or Better, and 2-7 Triple Draw, respectively, along with some more exotic fare like Badugi Hi-Lo, Drama-dugi and our Banana Game of the Day…
Banana Game of the Day: Archie 49/0
Like other versions of Archie, this game is a triple draw variant, but hands are determined strictly by the number of pips on the cards, as they would be in Drawmaha 49 or Drawmaha Zero.
Half the pot goes to the player with the most pips up to 49 with a minimum qualifier of 35, with the other half going to the fewest pips down to zero with a maximum qualifier of 10.
Players receive five cards and a betting round ensues, followed by a round of discards and draws. A second round of betting followed by another draw takes place, then a third of each before hands are revealed after a final betting round.
Archie 49/0: The left hand wins low with 2, the right hand wins high with 44
PokerCoaching.com Player of the Day: Tim Duckworth
PokerGO Director of Live Events & Content Tim Duckworth is a veteran of the Las Vegas mixed games scene and a longtime supporter of the Cardplayer Lifestyle Mixed Game Festival having played in them since their inception in 2021.
Duckworth thoroughly enjoyed his day at the Mixed Game Festival recreating his version of a “Vos”, the term given to his Australian countryman and WSOP bracelet winner Mark Vos, who was known for building sizeably vertical towers of chips.
👀 What’s your @PokerLifeMedia Mixed Game Festival stack of choice?!
Our fave might be ‘The Duckworth’ 🔥 but someone tell @Tim__Duckworth this ain’t a winner’s photo 😂
📍 @PokerRoomRWLV pic.twitter.com/XlqjqL3239
— Poker Org (@pokerorg) February 26, 2024
“It was great. I won money, I got a massage, and then I got free ice cream from Robbie Strazynski. There’s not much that can beat that kind of day.”
Duckworth did however clarify that while he scooped many a pot Sunday, that tasty vanilla / chocolate scoop wasn’t really “free”.
“If you dive really deep into this, I gave Robbie like $60 (losing a pot) and then he gave me the free ice cream, so essentially it was really a $60 ice cream.”
Tim Duckworth
Duckworth has been playing mixed games for about 10 years and is a strong proponent of them, including adding them to the PokerGO Tour schedule wherever possible. Later this week they’ll be running their own much higher stakes PGT Mixed Game Series starting on Wednesday here in Las Vegas. Duckworth talked about how he developed his love for non-Hold ‘em games.
“It began maybe a year after moving here (to Las Vegas). I used to play $1/3 (No-Limit) non-stop and I hated it. I got sick of No-Limit Hold ‘em and I couldn’t do it anymore. I found a mixed game and I just went there. The first time I was super nervous, I wrote down all the rules on my phone, like Badacey, what wins the high and what wins the low. I didn’t want to ask people, I just went in and played and I enjoyed it so much. I feel like it’s just so much more fun you know, you sit there with everyone, you can play a lot of hands, you don’t get buried in hoodies, headphones, etc. That’s why I like it. “
Duckworth’s advice for players considering dipping their toes into the mixed game pool, potentially at the Mixed Game Festival?
“Do it! If you want to jump into the mixed game world, it’s best to start in as small of stakes as possible, $4/8, whatever your casino is spreading. Maybe you’ll lose $200 but it’s not going to happen in one hand and the people that play these, the dealers, the staff, they’re willing to teach you. I think the beauty of mixed games is that the general population of players want more people playing so they don’t want to scare them off. If you want to try, come down to the Mixed Game Festival, bring a couple hundred bucks, ask as many questions as you can, and just figure it out. Figure out what the best hand is and then just go from there.”
Mixed Game Festival VII Day 2 Preview
Along with another day of cash games, the first of two tournaments during the festival runs on Monday at noon with the $300 O/E event (half Omaha 8 or Better / half Stud 8 or Better).
Players will start with 20,000 chips in this single-day event and registration and a single re-entry will be available until the start of Level 7 at approximately 2:15 p.m. local time.
Complete rules and structure are available here.
*Our daily coverage of mixed Game Festival VII is brought to you, with much appreciation, courtesy of PokerStars.
