Sunday morning Sandra, Chris and Jennifer slept in so it was just Rod and I for breakfast today. We headed back over to LaSalsa Cantina, so far it has been our favourite breakfast destination of the trip.

This morning we splurged taking advantage of the full breakfast menu. For just $13.99 I enjoyed two eggs, two strips of bacon, a slice of ham, a sausage round and hash brows with fried red onion & peppers. For just $1 I added Texas toast.

For a similar price Rod had an omelette served with southern style beans and the same delicious hash browns.

After breakfast we grabbed the pool cues and met the rest of the crew at the Monorail station located at the back of our resort. This would transport us to the Westgate Hotel which was the host property for the APA World Championships. Rod was scheduled to play at 3pm.

The ride over was uneventful taking a little over 10 minutes stopping at other properties along the way.

The tournament setup was quite impressive, totalling three regular tournament halls, one championship hall, and 6300 participants playing on 369 Diamond tables over the course of a week!

It was well organized and quite easy to find your way around. The table you were scheduled to play at was released via the Compusport app 15 minutes ahead of your match.

The vendor area was quite extensive and offered up every billiard playing accessory imaginable, pool cues, pool cue repairs, swag and so much more.

One of the big draws for this year's event was the hosting of meet and greets with some of the top professional pool players in the world. Today we met and had our photo taken with current world number 1/2 Fedor Gorst. We've watched him play all over the world on TV including the infamous Masconi Cup, it was a true honour to meet such a legend of pool.

Next we got to watch him play challenge matches which were open to any and all players who were lucky enough to sign up.

As a group we nominated Chris Duke to challenge Fedor, he didn't have his cue with him so he borrowed my Predator.

They had a fantastic rack, while Chris didn't win he managed probably the very best use of his time at the table. Chris had Fedor coach him on a shot after he hooked himself on the 4-ball. What an opportunity to discuss a shot and learn from the highest calibre of player!

Chris even managed to have Fedor sign my chalk holder, something I will cherish for a very long time.

Next it was time for Rod's first match of the tournament.

Rod played very well but as much as I hate to shit on another player, as a skill level 6 (out of 7) the opponent played dreadfully slow. So slow that the match ran into the time slot for the next bracket, a ref really should have put them on a shot clock. Rod lost on the hill with an equal chance to take victory.

Wade summarized the match best during the hill-hill battle as a random gentlemen walked by with a baby in a stroller. "That kid wasn't even born at the start of Rod's match"!  LoL

After the match we met up with two more NL players (Wade and Jackie) who were also participating in the tournament then headed to Fremont Street to grab a bite to eat.

We decided to try 8-East which is an Asian inspired restaurant inside Circa.

A bunch of us tried one of the specials which was fried rice with green & yellow onion, topped with a ground pork patty, an over easy egg then garnished with crispy strips and green stuff. Finally it came with a side of gravy which was beautifully seasoned and made the dish truly epic.

The stages on Fremont were on full blast with three different acts all performing at once on each of the three stages along the street.

Monday morning Rod had his next match scheduled for 9am sharp. Sandra slept in while I headed down with Rod to cheer him on against his next opponent. As we arrived it was awesome to see a sneak peek of Elon's tunnel project, a Vegas Loop station just outside the Westgate.

The early morning match started right on time and was much better than the first.

Rod's opponent was tough but they both shot well and in good time. It was another hill-hill finish where Rod's opponent just barely edged him out for the win. He had a lucky pocket on the 3-ball having initially missed the shot, this lead him to finish out the rack.

Rod stayed behind to watch some of the other NL players compete while I headed back to the hotel to relax and grab a bite to eat with Sandra.

Later that afternoon the crew headed back to Fremont Street eager to try out the infamous Tony Roma's prime rib special for just $15.99. The deal only runs from opening at 4:30pm to just 6:30pm, a line-up began to form at 4pm so we hopped in to secure our seats.

Needless to say, all the hype was right on. The prime rib was fantastic as was the baked potato. The side of mixed vegetables was not fancy, but was really not a concern especially at this price point. Service was very friendly and efficient, it was quick without feeling rushed.

By the time we were finished our meal the lineup ran well back through the casino, likely over an hour wait.

We hung around and enjoyed some time next door at Circa. Some of the crew hit the machines while Rod and I enjoyed the comfy chairs watching the hockey playoffs in the sports book on it's 120' screen, a truly epic experience for our crew's top sports fan: Rod.

A couple of complimentary cosmopolitans never go astray!

After Fremont Street Chris and Jennifer headed back to the hotel while Sandy, Rod and I went over to Harrah's. Our good buddy Brad Ethridge was due to arrive shortly so we hung out on the comfy seats in the sports book.

"The Eagle has landed" Brad arrived just after 11pm, got settled into his room then we hit the strip for his first night in town.

We had a great time seeing some sights and enjoying a few adult beverages before finally heading back to the Horseshoe for some well deserved rest after a long day with an early start.

Load Part 4

Venetian Tour and Meeting & Efren Reyes!

Cheers, MIKE

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