Day 4 of Mixed Game Festival X at Resorts World Las Vegas got off to an early start with a morning stud workshop for ladies eager to expand their mixed game knowledge.
The workshop started at 10am, which is very early by Vegas standards, but that didn’t influence the turnout, as two full tables of ladies (and two gentlemen) showed up for a workshop held by Lupe Soto and Jeanne David, both members of the Women in Poker Hall of Fame.
Following the morning seminar, those in attendance stuck around for another couple of hours to put their newly acquired skills to the test, while Dealer’s Choice action kicked off around noon. Once again, there were two full tables running, and the action extended into the late hours of the night.
Women’s Wednesday: Spreading Love for Mixed Games
The day’s focus was on the free stud workshop for the ladies interested in learning more about popular stud variations and expanding their horizons: 7 Card Stud, Razz, and 7 Card Stud 8.
Lupe Soto, founder of the Ladies International Poker Series (LIPS), and Jeanne David, an accomplished player and mixed game aficionado, took it upon themselves to dispel some mysteries surrounding these popular stud variations and provide some very useful tips for beginners and more experienced players alike.
The two-hour lesson went by quickly in a friendly and chilled atmosphere that has become a hallmark of mixed game festivals. After that, one table’s worth of players were eager to put their newly found knowledge to the test, so they spent another hour and a half playing some low-stakes stud mix.
Women’s Wednesday is underway at Mixed Game Festival X.@WIPHOF-ers @PokerLupe and @jeanriders instructing Stud, Razz and Stud 8 to ladies (and gentlemen) eager to learn mixed games 🔥
Lessons until noon here at @PokerRoomRWLV, followed by Dealer’s Choice cash games. pic.twitter.com/WULe52h10N
— Cardplayer Lifestyle (@PokerLifeMedia) February 19, 2025
Simultaneously, the player’s list of Dealer’s Choice mix was filling up, and it wasn’t long before there were two tables running at full capacity.
RunGoodGear.com Dealer of the Day: Barbara Brower
There are many amazing ladies in poker found on both sides of the felt. Barbara Brower has been a poker dealer since 2012 and she’s loved every minute of it, but her personal and professional journey has had many twists and turns along the way.
She fell in love with casinos and the casino atmosphere at 18. Like so many young people, Barbara was at a crossroads, deciding what she wanted to do in life. A chance encounter at a restaurant in Atlantic City turned out to be a key moment on her path. As she was having lunch with her family, the maître d’ asked her what her plans were for the future and if she was interested in working there. Soon after, she took up the job and loved it, especially the chance to take care of people and bring smiles to their faces.
Barbara in her new RunGoodGear Mixed Game Festival shirt
Barbara spent the next 18 years working in the food and beverage business, building quite a career for herself. Then, she met her husband and they started traveling all over the country for his job. The two had a son, and she spent a number of years at home, taking care of the family.
After Barbara’s son had graduated, she wanted to get back in the casinos, but she wasn’t keen on returning to restaurants, primarily due to very long working hours. Seeing poker on TV, she was intrigued by the game and, just like that, figured she’d do well as a poker dealer.
After attending an eight-week dealer’s course, Barbara got her certificate and landed her first job in Kansas City shortly after relocating there.
Barbara admits there were many challenges along the way that made her question her career choice. Being someone who was used to making thousands of restaurant customers happy on a daily basis, she struggled with the fact that it was nearly impossible to always make the eight or nine players at a poker table happy.
Barbara refused to quit, though. Understanding that poker players are different from a majority of other casino customers (since they don’t actually win any money from the casino), she started to adjust to the environment.
She landed in Las Vegas in 2019, once again moving for her husband’s work. Over the years, Barbara has lived in 11 different states. When the Resorts World opened in 2021, she knew this was the place where she wanted to work, but there were so many applicants, and the director at the time (Gary Hager) brought a big team of dealers with him. Even so, things worked out and she was given a full-time position with Resorts World from Day One.
Barbara shared that the best part about her job is the variety of games and players she encounters on a daily basis. From low-limit $1/$3 games to million-dollar buy-in tables, there is such a wide scope of characters and interactions. As for her role in all of it, besides dealing cards and handling chips, she says that she tries to bring a bit of light to every poker table.
PokerCoaching.com Player of the Day: Sean Valken-LeDuc
Over the years the Mixed Game Festival has been running, you’ve probably heard it said many times that the best way to start with mixed games is simply to join the action at low stakes and get a taste of it. Sean Valken-LeDuc, today’s PokerCoaching.com Player of the Day, is a perfect example.
Sean fell in love with poker back in 2009 when he was invited to a small-stakes home game. The game in question was, of course, Hold’em, and he was immediately enamored by the challenge. As an analytical person working in cyber security, he enjoys the process of trying to connect many different dots to arrive at a correct decision.
When it comes to mixed games, Sean is very much self-taught. His first encounter with mixed games was through online poker content, which inspired him to join some $8/$16 mixed games at the Resorts World back in 2022.
Fully aware that he would be an underdog, he was willing to risk a couple of hundred dollars at a time to get some hands-on experience and learn about different games in the mix by playing.
This is his first time at the Mixed Game Festival, which was suggested to him by a fellow player, and he says the event lived up to and exceeded his expectations. He sees it as a perfect opportunity to play many different games at low stakes, and he’s very happy that all players are so friendly and willing to help along the way.
For Sean, poker isn’t just a profitable hobby. He’s had more serious ambitions about the game for a long time, wanting to go pro, and he’s taking a few months off work right now to focus on playing every day and give his dream a proper chance.
So, it seems that the PokerCoaching.com prize of a one-month free subscription is going to the right hands. The wealth of knowledge available on the site will certainly help Sean overcome some obstacles on the way to achieving his poker dream!
It’s Time for the Grand Finale!
All good things come to an end and so does this festival, but not before the grand finale taking place on Day 5m Thursday, February 20.
We’ll wrap things up with a $300 H.E.R.O.S. tournament that kicks off at 12pm. The late registration will be available for 10 levels, so you can get in until about 4:15pm.
From past experience, the event tends to attract 60-80 runners, and there will likely be around $5,000 up top, so there will be plenty to fight for.
On top of this, during the tournament, two participants will receive $750 satellite seats for the PGT Mixed Games series, and the Pokercoaching.com last-longer competition will be on, with the final player wearing a Pokercoaching.com patch remaining in the tournament receiving a free one-year membership.
The cash game action should be going strong as well, with it being the final day and all, so if you happen to be in the neighborhood, make sure to pop over to Resorts World for a few hours at least and see what all the buzz is about!
*Our coverage of Mixed Game Festival X is brought to you, with much appreciation, courtesy of our presenting sponsor, the PokerGO Tour.
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