This final week of may and first couple of days of June means only one thing: The 2012 World Series of Poker is upon us. To the average Vegas visitor, this week may seem like any other early summer week in Vegas: heat, steady casino action, and pretty standard mix of convention attendees and entertainment options. The WSOP is a pretty limited market in the grand scheme of Las Vegas, but it is a foundation of the Las Vegas poker world that means that if the casual Vegas tourist looks a little deeper, they will see that the tides have changed in this town. The poker rooms are busier, the level of pit game degeneracy is a bit higher, and the Rio seems to be oddly booked, even mid-week. Today's article will discuss some of the special events going on in Las Vegas this week, and touch on some of the conventions, entertainment options, and general Vegas news. Should prove to be a great week to be a poker player in Vegas!

Obviously on the forefront of all Vegas related casino news today is that the 2012 World Series of Poker started up yesterday. Cash games, daily deepstack tournaments, and bracelet events all started Sunday, with the first being the usual Casino Employees closed event. Today, Monday, is the first open event of the WSOP, a $1500 NLHE event, that may very well stretch into a 3 day ordeal. The Rio is offering more tables than ever before, 80+ of which are dedicated to cash games. The WSOP standard of 1/3NL, 2/5NL, PLO, and even 5 card PLO8 (known as Big O) have already started and are expected to run continuously throughout the series.

In addition to the WSOP, several casinos are running their own events that tend to draw quite large crowds, many of which came here for the WSOP, but end up never leaving their chosen venue. Venetian has started up their DeepStack Extravaganza, Caesars has started their Mega Stack Series, and Binion's is running their Binion's Classic. Plus, next week the Golden Nugget will start up their Grand Poker Series, which offers many non-Hold'em events. When it comes to being a poker player in Las Vegas, this is the week that all poker players have been waiting for. The action will be crazy everywhere, so be sure to be mentally and financially prepared before you decide to play poker in Vegas this month!

On the lighter side, away from the WSOP and the poker rooms, this week is also a pretty busy week for conventions in Las Vegas. Largest technical, this week is expected to bring over 25,000 conventioneers to Las Vegas for an International Electronics Recycling Expo that is held at Bellagio as well as over 8,000 attending 5LINZ, which is a home based business products and services at the Convention Center. At The Mirage, a Gem and Lapidary convention is hosting nearly 2,000 guests, and at MGM Grand, Hexagon Capital Markets is hosting their annual convention with over 3,000 attending.

The entertainment side of Vegas this week is largely comedy based, with Wayne Brady hitting up The Mirage this weekend, as well as Ron White midweek. Phantom at Venetian is rounding off their performance shortly, and is expected to close this year. Also around town are Bill Haley and the Comets, Carlos Santana, and Gilbert Gottfried. Lots of entertainment options to choose from round out this packed Vegas week.

The final week of May, ushering in June is an exciting time in Las Vegas. School is getting out, the WSOP is starting, and family vacations are all starting to hop in the Family Truckster and head to Sin City. Watch your wallet and be careful out there, and good luck!

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--LasVegasMichael