It has been proven time and time again that there are very few things that poker players love more than a friendly meet-up game. Day 7 action at the Mixed Game Festival XI further solidified this belief, as the Bellagio Poker Room was buzzing with excitement in anticipation of the Pokercoaching.com Meet-Up Game set to kick off at noon.
While most players had to come gather in the casino, there were a few who never left! Namely, one of Day 6’s tables kept playing through the night and well into the next day, marking the first full-time all-nighter of this year’s Festival.
As that game continued, three more tables were quickly formed, and the MUG got underway as scheduled, kicking off at noon, with Alex Livingston and Justin Saliba in the crowd and some more valuable prizes up for grabs.
Big Prizes, Bigger Names, and Heaps of Fun
Although it’s not always easy to quantify these things, it certainly feels like Day 7 was one of the most exciting days of MGF XI, with a big crowd of players and a lot happening throughout the day.
In addition to Pokercoaching.com guys, a few other notables joined the action, including the Poker Hall of Famer Linda Johnson, who was welcomed to the room with a big and loud round of applause.
When a Poker Hall of Famer enters the room, everyone should applaud! ☺️
Welcome to Day 7 of Mixed Game Festival XI, Poker Hall of Famer @FirstLadyPoker. pic.twitter.com/7Syv4rhcfV
— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) June 16, 2025
Once more, there were many valuable prizes up for grabs for those in attendance, including a seat in the $800 H.O.R.S.E. event at the Aria Poker Classic. One Darius Bukowski was a lucky winner of the top prize, and he’ll get the opportunity to showcase his mixed game skills in a tournament setting.
Congratulations to Darius Bukowski, winner of our $800 HORSE seat giveaway here at the @PokerCoaching_ mix! 🐎
He’ll be at the felt at the @ARIAPoker Classic tomorrow 🎉
So many wonderful giveaways here at @BellagioPoker for Mixed Game Festival XI ☺️ pic.twitter.com/tnwQvPeVfZ
— Robbie Strazynski (@cardplayerlife) June 16, 2025
While this was the only tournament seat up for grabs, there were a few more valuable prizes on offer, including a one-hour coaching session with Alex Livingston, which went to Victor Bershinsky.
Alex Livingston Interview: Bringing Mixed Games to the Masses
One of the people spearheading the Day 7 Meet-Up Game was Alex Livingston, a mixed game specialist who recently joined Pokercoaching.com, primarily to help them expand the training platform with some mixed game strategy materials.
Cardplayer Lifestyle founder Robbie Strazynski caught up with Alex for a short interview to pick his brain about mixed games in general, his impression of the Festival, and some tips for those considering giving non-Hold’em variants a chance.
You’ve been playing mixed games for a while. When did they first pique your interest?
I did play a bit online way back, but my first live session was around 2011. I played a 24-hour session. I was running hot and really enjoying it; got dealt number-one/number-one in Badeucey. I won a bunch of racks playing $20/$40 limit, and I thought it was easier than it really was.
What do you like about mixed games more than Hold’em?
I like that you are constantly activating different parts of your brain. With Texas Hold’em, it can become kind of static and dry. With mixed games, you are always thinking about new things, and a lot of poker concepts tie from game to game, which I like.
It is your first time visiting the Mixed Game Festival. As a long-time mixed game player and pro, what do you think about what you see here?
I think it’s great. What you’re doing is really cool – all the work you put into it, all the prizes, you clearly care about it a lot and have a lot of passion for it. It’s great to see this turnout, and everyone seems to be having a lot of fun and in a good mood.
You’ve been sitting at $4/$8, which is obviously different than your usual $80/$160 and up. So, vibe-wise, what’s the difference or uniqueness here vs. there?
It seems like a really friendly crowd here. This isn’t to say that it’s not always that way in higher games, but it feels a little bit more lighthearted here.
About Pokercoaching.com – you joined them recently; what’s it like working with those guys?
It’s been great. Justin’s been a good friend for a few years now. I am building a mixed game course for Pokercoaching.com, and what I really like is that I’m bringing them something that they haven’t had before, which is mixed game content, and hoping to get more players into mixed games via the course.
Who would you say the target audience is for that course?
The goal of the course is to build it so that everyone, from beginners to advanced players, can get something from it. Every section is going to have introductory concepts, and then by the advanced videos, there’ll be a lot of high-level thinking. So, the target is anyone interested in mixed games, whether they are transitioning from No Limit or they’ve played a lot of mixed games already.
You play no limit yourself, and you may be a little bit known for your 2019 WSOP Main Event run, finishing in third place. So the question is, most people who play poker play Hold’em. Mixed games are growing, but it’s still a niche. What about those who are a little afraid, thinking it’s too much to wrap their head around? What would you say to them to give them a little taste and get them interested in mixed games?
I’d say start small. If you play certain stakes at No Limit, just drop down in stakes when you start with mixed games. Play an amount where you won’t be sweating financial swings. Start with one or two games, maybe. If you are learning online, try Omaha 8 or Better, which has some carryover if you play PLO already. Start small, work your way up, and see if you enjoy it.
As someone who plays Hold’em, PLO, and mixed games, which skills are sort of transferrable for someone who decides to try mix and starts learning that could be applied to Hold’em and vice versa?
A lot of poker games have a lot more in common than people think. A lot of it is about pushing equity edges, realizing your equity, and playing hands that allow you to realize your equity easily.
RunGoodGear.com Dealer of the Day: Michael Shvartsman
Michael Shvartsman, who also goes by his nickname Hobs, is the Day 7 pick for the RunGoodGear.com Dealer of the Day. He’s been living in Las Vegas since 2021. Michael started his dealing career at The Orleans, transitioning to Bellagio later on.
He’s been dealing cards on and off since 2016, and that flexibility to get in and out of the job easily is one of the things he loves about it, as well as all the table banter and players having fun, which sometimes makes him feel as if he were in the middle of a sitcom. He finds the opportunity to deal some mixed game poker a nice break from the routine of Hold’em.
Although he no longer plays as much poker as he used to, Michael still finds the game fascinating, especially the fact that poker puts you in a lot of interesting and unique situations where you need to figure out the player(s) you are up against more than anything else.
Hobs also has some words of wisdom for those thinking about joining poker on the industry side of things. He suggests playing some online games, even on free-to-play sites, just to get a feel for how hands work and what it is that players want. It makes it much easier to understand and cater to their needs once you start dealing.
Talking about his job at Bellagio, Michael says that one thing he enjoys the most is the international crowd, especially during peak poker time every summer.
Mixed Game Festival XI Day 8: A Calm Day Ahead?
Mixed Game Festival XI action will continue with Day, and although there are no major events in the cards, we’ve come to expect the unexpected. It could be a relatively calm day or we could have another day totally brimming with action – it’s anyone’s guess. One thing’s for sure: it’s pizza party time once again! 🙂
Whether it’s two, three, or four tables, there will be plenty of fun to be hand and some more memories to be created. So, call in ahead at 702-693-7291 and secure your seat at the tables!
