Everyone loves to play suited cards, especially suited connectors and especially AA’s and KK’s. The problem is that most players get way too excited about playing suited cards and lose tons of money while doing so. I should know, I have been there many times. Now, before I tell you how to play suited connectors, I would like to discuss a few things you should always keep in mind with these cards.
This is actually the title of the song “Money for nothing” by Bob Charles. The point of this article is not to go out and fall off a cliff and sing along with Bob Charles, but rather to remind you of several important points you should keep in mind before you actually start playing. In this article, we will discuss middle and late position as well as pot odds.
Objective
The object of playing suited connectors is to hit your set. Whether that set is Jack, Ten, Nine, Eight or Three, you must have at least top pair with the best kicker. While this is the most common reason to play suited connectors, this isn’t the only reason you should do so.
Position
While in normal Hold’em you raise with your strongest cards in the middle and late positions, you can play suited connectors in any or all positions. The reason to do so is to hit a set. When you play suited connectors, you are hoping to hit a set since your cards wont be higher than a set.
pot Odds
Pot odds are considered by many to be the determining factor when playing suited connectors. That is, is it better to have suited connectors than cards of any other denomination? When playing suited connectors, you need to consider the ratio of the ratio of the odds of making a flush to the ratio of the odds of making a straight. Typically, you want to have a 40% chance of hitting your set, and a 60% chance of hitting your flush. For this reason, when you have suited connectors, you can call a reasonable bet, raise a reasonable bet, or even make a raise (if someone bets ahead of you). You are hoping the pot odd will be better than the odds against you of making your hand. But, you have to keep in mind that “card counting” requires a great deal of skill and, depending on your hand, could result in a loss of a lot of money. For this reason, unless you have the hand won already, you generally want to limit your playing to the later stages.
The alternative to playing suited connectors is playing the ace and king of the same rank. The ace and king are more valuable than the jack and queen and less than the king and queen. This combination results in a hand of three cards of the same rank. While playing suited connectors, you have to be alert in regards to the cards of your opponents. If you have a pair of aces, and your opponents have two kings, you have a hand that is about 73% to win. While the odds in the game may not be exactly 3:1, the percentage is slightly better than 1.5:1, which means you have about a 7:1 advantage over your opponents. While you will not win every time, in the long run you will win more than you will lose and that will result in a lot of money in your pocketbook.
Pot Odds
You can calculate pot odds by dividing the amount of money in the pot by the amount of money you must put in to call. While this technique is good and will help you to decide whether or not to stay in the hand, you should not use it as a reason to stay in the hand. While this is a way to measure the relative strength of your hand, you need to step back and realize that sometimes you will beat your opponents but not by much. Therefore, while you may be playing perfectly, there is nothing wrong in folding at the bluff stage when your hand is strong.
Comparing Play
Based on the comparison of the relative strength of your hand against your opponents’ hands, you should play to your advantage and not worry about your hand being weaker than anyone else’s. If your hand is strong, you should play aggressively and try to steal the blinds or punting people with your strong hand. You’ll have to give up on the play the blinds and only play your hand.
While this strategy is good and will help you win some hands, it will not win in the long run. You should not invest too much in the strategies outlined in this article. Like all other poker tips, these should only be taken as additional knowledge and nothing more. You should develop your own way to win poker hands and play them according to your postion and not according to some prearranged formula.