Is it just a case of taking the flight money with no intention of turning up/can't get time off work?
Maybe they were afraid they would lose the money if they said they weren't going.
Seems a shame that 2 amazing experiences were wasted.
If only there was something in the t&c's about taking the money (and running).
Oh, hang on.........
Idk who the other one was but I was playing Froozle at spin ups earlier today. He didn't say why he wasn't there but did acknowledge that he was supposed to be!
Speaking generally, sometimes there are genuine reasons, other times it's just folk gaming the system.
It's hard to prevent the latter without making the whole customer experience more difficult for everyone. Which would be unfair, of course.
Have to agree it's a shocking waste of packages, though if there are genuine reasons (family bereavement etc) then it's unavoidable.
Contrary to popular belief, if players don't turn up, Sky Poker don't make any extra money. The SPT Prize Pool remained unchanged (so better value for those who did show up), the social occasions (Top Golf, Welcome Party, end of trip dinner) are all paid for in advance, so the money just sort of disappears into a black hole.
Most Sky Poker players would happily eat their own arm if they had the chance to go to Vegas, so yes, it's a proper shame really.
Not sure I know the answer, or even if there is one.
I do know those who came have had an absolute ball - & that's what matters.
Fingers crossed Sky Poker do the same thing next year. There's a lot of doom & gloom from some about our future, but as I wrote a few days ago, don't be giving up on Sky Poker (as we know it) yet awhile.
Got home today from Vegas today. This experience has been amazing. I would highly recommend if Sky do something like this in the future that you try and take your chance to qualify. It was a great mix of players from some that play for a living to a few that have never played live before. The SPT was great. The Venetian Poker Room was quite comfortable and the way it was run was top notch. Well done to Granite for the win and all the others who cashed.
Although I didn’t get to meet all the players properly those that I did were fabulous.
I would like to thank Mark, James and Kirsty who were in Vegas with us and Have really done SkyPoker and the community proud. Also to the rest of the team involved that stayed back in the UK. The Palazzo was the most amazing place to stay and a great choice to make it extra special.
Lastly a massive thank you to Tikay, I’ve known Tikay for the last 5 years not just from Sky but mainly from Blonde. When I say I know him I guess it’s like a lot of forum friends you mainly know them online, so although I have known him for 5 years we have never met. Tikay made a point of coming and saying hi when he knew what table I was on during my very first tournament. He was most welcoming and fascinating to talk to, so thanks Tikay for making me feel so welcome during my first trip to Vegas.
I would like to join omm and say a belated thank you to Sky for the brilliant promotion that gave the 50 winners and their guests the chance to go to Vegas. I got there by playing 3 MTTS ( 2x£3 and 1x £1) which qualified me for a free roll which I won which in turn got me into the Sunday SNG final which I also won ( with a little help from Donttelmum who had already qualified). As anyone who has been on my tables will know I am a small stakes player so this was a big deal for me . This was not only my first trip to Vegas but was also my first trip to the US. It was great to meet Tikay and the rest of the Sky team who were all very welcoming.It was also good to meet David whose company organized things in the US on Sky's behalf - he was a man with a lot of interesting stories! I would also like to thank his charming assistant(sorry,can't remember her name) who looked after us at the welcome and leaving party and also at the Top Golf night out. Of course it was also good to meet the other winners -everyone was very nice and friendly. The tournament with $40,000 prize money was obviously a big highlight of the trip.This was my first ever live poker so along with a few others I was feeling a little nervous but Tikay did his best to relax people by saying that this was a fun tournament and saying that the dealers had been asked to be a little lenient and understanding. Having said that the first dealer on our table was Mr Grumpy - If he won the lottery twice and married Miss World I still don't think we would have got a smile out of him. Luckily they changed every 1/2 hour or so we got to meet quite a few including Steve who was hilarious in a very dry laid back way. I was lucky to win a few hands early on so that helped a lot and meant I was able to relax a little and get used to live poker without too much stress. After around an hour Tikay announced that Neil Channing would be joining our table direct from his flight! He was seated next to me - he was a very shy retiring man who never said much... Of course he was very funny and chatty and it was a pleasure and an interesting experience to share a table with him although I am glad he wasn't there from the start! As for the poker I think I got my chips up to around 30,000 from 20,000. As always in poker there are regrets - shortly before moving tables I got dealt pocket 8's which after a raise and a call I folded preflop thinking that I was doing the right thing by protecting my stack.Of course an 8 comes on the flop and then another on the turn which was the one that really hurt. The 2 players involved were betting....oh,not to have folded! I also had the misfortune to have been dealt pocket aces twice on the big blind with no takers either time. The table I moved to was tough with a lot of action and the blinds getting bigger. IrishRose went all in and it came round to me on the big blind - I had AQ and as a result of my inexperience of stack management and probably not realising how many chips it would cost me I called. Rose had AK suited which was good and held with no AK or Q on the table. That left me short stacked and and inevitably I was shortly all in with pocket 7's - called by J4 with a J coming on the table. Game over - I had lasted 4 1/2 hours or so and finished 23 rd. Not too bad for my first live experience ..... buts those quad 8's were floating around in my head for the rest of the night and indeed they are still there now! I would like to thank AJ(ajmilton) who sent his best wishes via Tikay who passed them on when we met in the toilets! Also wee(not as in toilets but as in weecheez1 lol) and pompeynic for their comments on the forum which I did not access while in Vegas.Also thanks to several others who wished me luck before leaving the UK. I took the opportunity while there to take a helicopter trip to the Grand Canyon which was a fab experience . I also took in a couple of shows ,walked The Strip a few times and of course spent a fair bit of time feeding my dollars into slots . On the plus side I got free coffee and pina coladas bought to me by very attractive waitresses wearing very little and on my last day I got a free breakfast courtesy of the casino loyalty card! All in all a very enjoyable trip with a lot of new and fun experiences - now if only I can qualify again!
Here are a couple photos from the trip - in one I definitely look a little sheepish!
I would like to join omm and say a belated thank you to Sky for the brilliant promotion that gave the 50 winners and their guests the chance to go to Vegas. I got there by playing 3 MTTS ( 2x£3 and 1x £1) which qualified me for a free roll which I won which in turn got me into the Sunday SNG final which I also won ( with a little help from Donttelmum who had already qualified). As anyone who has been on my tables will know I am a small stakes player so this was a big deal for me . This was not only my first trip to Vegas but was also my first trip to the US. It was great to meet Tikay and the rest of the Sky team who were all very welcoming.It was also good to meet David whose company organized things in the US on Sky's behalf - he was a man with a lot of interesting stories! I would also like to thank his charming assistant(sorry,can't remember her name) who looked after us at the welcome and leaving party and also at the Top Golf night out. Of course it was also good to meet the other winners -everyone was very nice and friendly. The tournament with $40,000 prize money was obviously a big highlight of the trip.This was my first ever live poker so along with a few others I was feeling a little nervous but Tikay did his best to relax people by saying that this was a fun tournament and saying that the dealers had been asked to be a little lenient and understanding. Having said that the first dealer on our table was Mr Grumpy - If he won the lottery twice and married Miss World I still don't think we would have got a smile out of him. Luckily they changed every 1/2 hour or so we got to meet quite a few including Steve who was hilarious in a very dry laid back way. I was lucky to win a few hands early on so that helped a lot and meant I was able to relax a little and get used to live poker without too much stress. After around an hour Tikay announced that Neil Channing would be joining our table direct from his flight! He was seated next to me - he was a very shy retiring man who never said much... Of course he was very funny and chatty and it was a pleasure and an interesting experience to share a table with him although I am glad he wasn't there from the start! As for the poker I think I got my chips up to around 30,000 from 20,000. As always in poker there are regrets - shortly before moving tables I got dealt pocket 8's which after a raise and a call I folded preflop thinking that I was doing the right thing by protecting my stack.Of course an 8 comes on the flop and then another on the turn which was the one that really hurt. The 2 players involved were betting....oh,not to have folded! I also had the misfortune to have been dealt pocket aces twice on the big blind with no takers either time. The table I moved to was tough with a lot of action and the blinds getting bigger. IrishRose went all in and it came round to me on the big blind - I had AQ and as a result of my inexperience of stack management and probably not realising how many chips it would cost me I called. Rose had AK suited which was good and held with no AK or Q on the table. That left me short stacked and and inevitably I was shortly all in with pocket 7's - called by J4 with a J coming on the table. Game over - I had lasted 4 1/2 hours or so and finished 23 rd. Not too bad for my first live experience ..... buts those quad 8's were floating around in my head for the rest of the night and indeed they are still there now! I would like to thank AJ(ajmilton) who sent his best wishes via Tikay who passed them on when we met in the toilets! Also wee(not as in toilets but as in weecheez1 lol) and pompeynic for their comments on the forum which I did not access while in Vegas.Also thanks to several others who wished me luck before leaving the UK. I took the opportunity while there to take a helicopter trip to the Grand Canyon which was a fab experience . I also took in a couple of shows ,walked The Strip a few times and of course spent a fair bit of time feeding my dollars into slots . On the plus side I got free coffee and pina coladas bought to me by very attractive waitresses wearing very little and on my last day I got a free breakfast courtesy of the casino loyalty card! All in all a very enjoyable trip with a lot of new and fun experiences - now if only I can qualify again!
Here are a couple photos from the trip - in one I definitely look a little sheepish!
Excellent write up bear lad, so glad you had a ball in Vegas. couldn't even tell you were looking sheepish ,with those two fine lady's, hiding your sheepishness, with there knee caps. Not jealous one bit, (have lady's trying to wrap there legs around me all the time ) Oh , one thing, we have the exact same hair style, (only I'm so much better go looking than you obv's)
Regards Alan (still the best plo8 player on Sky ever champ)
Comments
I hope it was nothing serious.
Is it just a case of taking the flight money with no intention of turning up/can't get time off work?
Maybe they were afraid they would lose the money if they said they weren't going.
Seems a shame that 2 amazing experiences were wasted.
If only there was something in the t&c's about taking the money (and running).
Oh, hang on.........
Can't believe your 'don't eat whilst working rule', crazy.
Morning all.
Will catch up on replies tomorrow, bit busy today, am playing a WSOP PLO8 jobbie at 11am (7pm UK). All very exciting.
We are not jealous at all.
GL
I don't, no, but I daresay Sky Poker do.
Speaking generally, sometimes there are genuine reasons, other times it's just folk gaming the system.
It's hard to prevent the latter without making the whole customer experience more difficult for everyone. Which would be unfair, of course.
Have to agree it's a shocking waste of packages, though if there are genuine reasons (family bereavement etc) then it's unavoidable.
Contrary to popular belief, if players don't turn up, Sky Poker don't make any extra money. The SPT Prize Pool remained unchanged (so better value for those who did show up), the social occasions (Top Golf, Welcome Party, end of trip dinner) are all paid for in advance, so the money just sort of disappears into a black hole.
Most Sky Poker players would happily eat their own arm if they had the chance to go to Vegas, so yes, it's a proper shame really.
Not sure I know the answer, or even if there is one.
I do know those who came have had an absolute ball - & that's what matters.
Fingers crossed Sky Poker do the same thing next year. There's a lot of doom & gloom from some about our future, but as I wrote a few days ago, don't be giving up on Sky Poker (as we know it) yet awhile.
Although I didn’t get to meet all the players properly those that I did were fabulous.
I would like to thank Mark, James and Kirsty who were in Vegas with us and Have really done SkyPoker and the community proud. Also to the rest of the team involved that stayed back in the UK. The Palazzo was the most amazing place to stay and a great choice to make it extra special.
Lastly a massive thank you to Tikay, I’ve known Tikay for the last 5 years not just from Sky but mainly from Blonde. When I say I know him I guess it’s like a lot of forum friends you mainly know them online, so although I have known him for 5 years we have never met. Tikay made a point of coming and saying hi when he knew what table I was on during my very first tournament. He was most welcoming and fascinating to talk to, so thanks Tikay for making me feel so welcome during my first trip to Vegas.
Really hope this is done again next year.
I got there by playing 3 MTTS ( 2x£3 and 1x £1) which qualified me for a free roll which I won which in turn got me into the Sunday SNG final which I also won ( with a little help from Donttelmum who had already qualified). As anyone who has been on my tables will know I am a small stakes player so this was a big deal for me . This was not only my first trip to Vegas but was also my first trip to the US.
It was great to meet Tikay and the rest of the Sky team who were all very welcoming.It was also good to meet David whose company organized things in the US on Sky's behalf - he was a man with a lot of interesting stories! I would also like to thank his charming assistant(sorry,can't remember her name) who looked after us at the welcome and leaving party and also at the Top Golf night out.
Of course it was also good to meet the other winners -everyone was very nice and friendly.
The tournament with $40,000 prize money was obviously a big highlight of the trip.This was my first ever live poker so along with a few others I was feeling a little nervous but Tikay did his best to relax people by saying that this was a fun tournament and saying that the dealers had been asked to be a little lenient and understanding.
Having said that the first dealer on our table was Mr Grumpy - If he won the lottery twice and married Miss World I still don't think we would have got a smile out of him. Luckily they changed every 1/2 hour or so we got to meet quite a few including Steve who was hilarious in a very dry laid back way.
I was lucky to win a few hands early on so that helped a lot and meant I was able to relax a little and get used to live poker without too much stress. After around an hour Tikay announced that Neil Channing would be joining our table direct from his flight! He was seated next to me - he was a very shy retiring man who never said much...
Of course he was very funny and chatty and it was a pleasure and an interesting experience to share a table with him although I am glad he wasn't there from the start!
As for the poker I think I got my chips up to around 30,000 from 20,000. As always in poker there are regrets - shortly before moving tables I got dealt pocket 8's which after a raise and a call I folded preflop thinking that I was doing the right thing by protecting my stack.Of course an 8 comes on the flop and then another on the turn which was the one that really hurt. The 2 players involved were betting....oh,not to have folded! I also had the misfortune to have been dealt pocket aces twice on the big blind with no takers either time.
The table I moved to was tough with a lot of action and the blinds getting bigger. IrishRose went all in and it came round to me on the big blind - I had AQ and as a result of my inexperience of stack management and probably not realising how many chips it would cost me I called. Rose had AK suited which was good and held with no AK or Q on the table. That left me short stacked and and inevitably I was shortly all in with pocket 7's - called by J4 with a J coming on the table. Game over - I had lasted 4 1/2 hours or so and finished 23 rd. Not too bad for my first live experience ..... buts those quad 8's were floating around in my head for the rest of the night and indeed they are still there now!
I would like to thank AJ(ajmilton) who sent his best wishes via Tikay who passed them on when we met in the toilets! Also wee(not as in toilets but as in weecheez1 lol) and pompeynic for their comments on the forum which I did not access while in Vegas.Also thanks to several others who wished me luck before leaving the UK.
I took the opportunity while there to take a helicopter trip to the Grand Canyon which was a fab experience . I also took in a couple of shows ,walked The Strip a few times and of course spent a fair bit of time feeding my dollars into slots . On the plus side I got free coffee and pina coladas bought to me by very attractive waitresses wearing very little and on my last day I got a free breakfast courtesy of the casino loyalty card!
All in all a very enjoyable trip with a lot of new and fun experiences - now if only I can qualify again!
Here are a couple photos from the trip - in one I definitely look a little sheepish!
@bearace
That's a terrific TR Mr Bearrrrrrrr, glad you enjoyed it.
Thanks Danny, appreciated. Fun update to do, too. Fancy being sent to Vegas to work, eh? WAL.
couldn't even tell you were looking sheepish ,with those two fine lady's, hiding your sheepishness, with there knee caps.
Not jealous one bit, (have lady's trying to wrap there legs around me all the time
Oh , one thing, we have the exact same hair style,
(only I'm so much better go looking than you obv's)
Regards Alan (still the best plo8 player on Sky ever champ)
Done the ploppers proud
Regards
JB