In the last Once Upon A Time, Isabelle Mercier reminisced through her beginnings and the time when she decided to become a pro player. Today she takes a glance at the near future and her return to the City Of Lights.

At the end of this year, I will be in Las Vegas to participate in the WSOP because YES, the WSOP will happen. It cannot be otherwise!

This idea helps me keep smiling and I can already project myself into the world as we knew it before, the one in which we went to Sin City every year, craving for bracelets.

I’m projecting myself so hard in Vegas in a few months, that I’ve already made a list of the things that I’m missing and that I will find first thing off the plane.

1. The Noise Of Poker

The first time you play a live poker tournament, there is one thing that surprises and can even annoy you, and that is the noise.

Besides the occasional howls of joy or the thunderous demonstrations of players wiping bad beats, there is the deafening noise of chips!

Hundreds of hands who manipulate them, play with them, it is a max of decibels, it is an incessant roar that can, it must be said, drive you mad after several hours.

Nonetheless, I miss that sound terribly and I can’t wait to hear it again.

2. Chat Without Smoking

For me, the WSOP is of course the game, the atmosphere at the tables, the adrenaline of the bubble, the long hours of folding crappy cards while waiting for a playable hand or an advantageous position, but it is also the breaks!

This incredible moment when we leave the table and the icy Rio to take a wall of heat in the face thanks to the testosterone sun.

I no longer smoke, but I will gladly join my player friends who have not given up on this addictive passion to go and talk with them about poker, about their life, about everything except this f-word confinement…

3. The Strip With a Smile

Another thing I vowed to do when I will get to Vegas is to walk the Strip without a mask. Smile at the people I pass and breathe the too hot Nevada air.

I’m even going to go stare at the Bellagio fountains, like a tourist visiting Las Vegas for the first time. Unless I do better and simply cross the street to…

4. To See Gabi Again

Indeed, on the other side of the Bellagio is one of my favorite restaurants in Vegas, Mon ami Gabi.

Not only is there the view of the famous fountains which show off to wow the gallery, but there is also a very comforting Parisian brasserie menu which allows you to take a healthy break in between two tournaments.

I have dozens of memorable memories at dear Gabi’s, and I plan to create new ones in a few months. Gabi, get my table ready on the terrace, I’m coming!

The foundation of Mon Ami's success. 🙌🏼 Our teams work day in and day out to ensure our (FIVE!) locations across the nation run smoothly. We are forever grateful. #EmployeeAppreciationDay https://t.co/YHgB6Rbj5e pic.twitter.com/rEXtqoA2bp

— Mon Ami Gabi (@MonAmiGabiLV) March 6, 2020

5. OFC My Love

For many players, the WSOP is synonymous with Hold’em and all the variations that are on the schedule for this event.

For me, going to the WSOP is also an opportunity to sit and play Open Face Chinese Poker (OFC) at the Wynn to spend endless hours grinding on this game that has become MY game over the years.

6. Long Live The Old Man!

Since my last visit to the WSOP in 2018, I have had a particular fondness for Old Las Vegas, the legendary Downtown.

The last time I was in Vegas, I had my hotel there, actually one of the few in Vegas that accepts cryptocurrency, and it allowed me to dust off all the clichés I had built on this part of the city that is, whatever we say, formidable.

It’s less trendy, less modern than the Strip and its ultra-modern casinos, of course, but it’s authentic and there is in this part of Vegas, a soul, an atmosphere that I miss and that I want to find again.

Freemont Street with its attractions, country concerts, and the $ 5 Blackjack tables at the Binion’s or the Golden Nugget, here I come!

My suitcase is ready. The count can begin. In the meantime, I’m going to binge watch Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, The Hangover and Ocean’s Eleven…

Meet me at the tables on CoinPoker to practice your skills and enjoy the action. Open yourself a CoinPoker account today.

Isabelle “No Mercy” Mercier

WPT Winner & OFC “Progressive” World Champion