Anyone remember the NAPT Vegas that @PokerStars put on in 2010? Here's a cool story. I put $100 online & a saw a $33 2x rebuy for a 7k Main event package. I didn't know at the time that the average player would be in for 10-20x the buy in & a $100 bank roll wasn't going to work.

I somehow made it to the end of the rebuy period & think I had to put another $30 to afford the add on. It was late at night & my wife went to bed and I told her honey if I win this I have to go to Vegas next week for 5 days to play a $5000 event. She laughed & went to bed.

I remember 3 handed getting it in with 77 and flopping a set and shipping the package. I was super excited and scared at the same time. I had to pull strings to get it off of work and for my wife to let me go. We had a 2 year old and she was pregnant again with our second.

I tried to get some buddies to come since I had the room covered for a week at the Venetian but since it was last minute flights were super expensive and nobody could make it. So I went alone and didn't know anyone in the poker world at the time.

I get to Vegas and check into the Venetian and go unload my bag. The room was amazing/beautiful my wife and I had never stayed there before so I felt bad she wasn't with me.

@PokerStars had a welcome party at a nightclub featuring @TPAIN so I thought I'd check it out. Free food and I had nothing else to do so I thought I'd go and hang out for a bit. So I put my digital camera in my pocket and off I went. Yes an actual digital camera!

I hop on the escalator going up & guess who's ahead of me. Well none other than @RealKidPoker and a friend of his! I was stoked to see the legend so said hello. When we got off the escalator I asked him to take a photo with me and he did. His buddy took the photo on my camera

We then walk to an elevator to get up to the club and get in. It's just Daniel, his friend and I. The door almost closes when someone stops it with his hands and walks in. It was @JosephHachem. Are you kidding me?

They talk while I stand there until the door opens and we all walk out. The crowd sees the the stars walking in and rush over as we all walk in together. They get handed drinks as do I since it looks like I'm with them lol. Once inside they disappear & I'm all alone again.

I sit on a lounger where a few young guys were and they nod and ask me where I'm from. Turns out they were some high stakes guys from Montreal. We chat for a bit and then I go hunting for the free food.

I find the buffet spread and there is one guy there getting some grub. I walk up and it's @ChristianSlater! I had just seen him on an episode of Curb where he was getting yelled at by Larry for eating all the caviar so of course I say "Hey go easy on the caviar!" He chuckles

I hung out for a bit and drank a bit too much and then went and played some 1-2 & ended up a few hundred. It was an amazing night overall. I went back to the room and set the alarm to play the 5k event the next day. I was used to playing mostly $50-$100 average live buy ins.

I get to my seat and Jason Alexander is on the mic nearby yelling "Shuffle up and deal" and we were off. First prize was estimated to be 700-800k so this was huge. I was convinced I was going to be the next @CMONEYMAKER and take it down and go back home a champ.

Those feelings quickly evaporated as every hand was 3 and 4 bet and I felt out of my league. I was down a bit and then hit a flush to get back to starting stack when the following hand happened. EP opens, gets 3 bet, I look down at AKHH & 4 bet big. A guy in BB flats...

and the other two then fold. flop comes K72 with 2 hearts. it's checked to me and I bet. He check raises big and I call. He then pots blank turn, and I call with my top pair and nut heart draw. This leaves me only 4k behind. The river is another 7 and he puts the rest in.

I knew I was beat but called it off and he shows KK and I'm out. I was in shock that I had busted so early and felt like I had blown it. I went back to the room and moped and then went and played some small tourneys and cash games for a couple days before flying back home early

To this day it's still my biggest buy in ever (by alot) and hopefully one day I'll get another crack at it. Here's the photo I took with @RealKidPoker thanks for this Daniel. /threadend