Right before Steve Wynn opened his eponymous hotel, which threatened to steal away the Big Game, the Bellagio opened Bobby’s Room. Named after Mirage Resorts’ president/CEO Bobby Baldwin (an occasional high stakes player in his own right and a four-time WSOP bracelet winner), it’s a posh room within the poker room and serves as a well-insulated home for the Big Game.

After a year of playing in there, Antonius can’t see himself pokering anywhere else. ‘They make it so easy for us,’ he says. ‘We order food from any restaurant at the Bellagio and they bring it over. We watch the plasma screen TVs and listen to whatever music we want. If we shut the door, we don’t hear the endless sound of people riffling chips in the main poker room.

It’s quiet, private and you don’t have to worry about somebody grabbing money off the table and running. Nobody’s watching us except for friends and a few sweaters. It’s the greatest way to play poker.’