09-30-04, LearnTexasHoldem:

Suited Connectors In No Limit Holdem

Question: Hi,

I'm kinda new to holdem and I have a question about preflop betting. We are playing no limit holdem. I have 8h9h and we start preflop betting. We all have about 100$ each. The player before me raises 40$

What do I do. Should I call or should I fold. I assume he has something like

AA or KK.

My 8h9h gives me plenty of possibilities but is it strong enough to call that much ?

Thanks!

Jeff

Top 3 Beginner Rooms

Answer: On TV, the World Poker Tour specifically, I see them mention suited connectors and the way Mike Sexton talks you might think that they are strong hands to play heads up. They aren't at all. A suited connector does well against a large number of opponents, it doesn't do well in heads up positions -- especially if you have to call with it. Does that mean you'll never play suited connectors like these in your games? No, but it has to be for the right price.

You don't want to have to put in too much money to take a flop with 89s. If you only have $100 left, $40 of it is way too much. Chances are that you will totally miss the flop and then you'll have close to have of your remaining chips in with a hand that you can't continue with. Another point is that if you know your opponent has a big hand like AA or KK there isn't a hand preflop that you would want to play against him unless he will let you look at the flop for very cheap.

Poker is about getting money for your good hands and not giving money to other people on theirs. If on the other hand he only raised to $10 or maybe even $20 hen you would call in hopes to make a big pot, or you would need more players in to give you a better return on your investment. It is a gamble with that hand though because like I said, chances are you'll totally miss everything.

Let me finish up by stating again in this response that there is a difference between a betting hand and a calling hand. That is something that took me a very long time to understand because I didn't have anything to read other then hand grouping tables and crappy holdem books. I thought that a good hand was a good hand regardless of the situation.

Don't learn that way. Think of two kinds of hands, those that you can bet and those that you can call with. You can bet with a lot more then you can call with. Be careful being a caller -- you need better hands to call with because the only way you can win is if you show the best hand. By betting you can also make your opponent fold.

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