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Playing Suited Connectors

In Hold’em

One of the types of starting hands that players love to hate, but hate to love is suited connectors. The reason for this hate/love relationship is that when a player decides to enter a pot with these deviant little guys, either they are going to be way ahead or way behind in the hand with very little room in between.

So, what is a suited connector? Well, a suited connector is simply two consecutive cards that are of the same suit. For example, hands such as 5d-6d, 7h-8h or 10s-Js would be considered suited connectors. Hands that look like suited connectors would be something along the lines of Ad-Kd or Ks-Qs but these hands are not referred to that way simply because they are much more valuable. But anything around 10-9 or so and lower would count.

Now, these guys are great to play generally because when they connect with the flop, they connect hard and are difficult to detect. For example, if a player gets involved with a pot holding 10s-Js and the flop is Qd-Ks-Ah, then it is very likely that this player will take down a huge pot from someone who has connected with top pair or top two pair. Another good example would be holding 6s-7s seeing a flop of 5s-8h-9h; an opponent will have a hard time putting a player on a hand that connected with this board. On a board such as this, many players will pay you off holding an over pair, top pair or even a set.

On the other hand, suited connectors can be extremely dangerous because many players do not understand that suited connectors are not played because of the value of either of the individual cards, but the potential that they can bring on the flop. So, what tends to be the common scenario is players spewing chips chasing after draws or paying someone off when they managed to connect weakly holding a baby pair. This, as you can probably imagine, tends to get quite expensive and offsets any future value obtained the few times that these players do connect hard with the flop. It ultimately creates a break even or losing proposition.

So with that in mind, I have come up with a few tips that I hope will keep all of you on the up and up when, and if, you decide to play suited connectors.

Tips on How to Play

Position: Position is probably single handedly the most important thing to consider when deciding to play your suited connectors. The reason being is that in the event that you do see a flop, you do not want to try to play this kind of hand out of position. Chances are that you will be extremely uncomfortable if you do have to and it is highly likely that you will make more errors.

So to avoid this, it is a good idea to play suited connectors only when in later position like the hi-jack, cut-off or button. This way you can see the action unfold both pre-flop and on the flop and can make your decisions accordingly. It is always better to play in position (late) and this is even more true for suited connectors.

No Limping-Always Raise: Assuming everyone has folded to you, if you decide to enter the hand with your suited connectors, you should never do so by limping. The reason for this is that by limping in, you are asking in so many words to be re-raised and pushed off the pot pre-flop. And if you do not get pushed off the hand pre-flop, you will still have a hard time playing on the flop since you did not show any strength.

So, when entering the pot with suited connectors players should always to do with a raise. That way, they can win the by stealing the blinds or since they have established themselves as the aggressor pre-flop, they may be able to take the pot down with a continuation bet.

The only circumstance where it is really acceptable to limp in with suited connectors is when several other players have already limped ahead of you. There is no reason to raise here and since there are more players in the pot, you are getting better odds to limp in with your suited connectors.

Fold Them If You Miss the Flop: If you see a flop with your suited connectors and miss, fold them. When playing suited connectors you are not looking to make top pair or even two pair; you are simply looking to flop straights, flushes or some form of a combo-draw.

Too many players somehow feel committed when they catch a piece of the flop when in fact it is more costly to see a showdown with your baby pair than it is to see a flop and fold them. Treat suited connectors similar to pocket pairs when you miss on the flop; just let them go.

Draws: After you see a flop, then it is time to asses the situation. Obviously, if you flop a straight or flush then it is just a matter of how to get the money into the pot. However, more times often then not you will end up with draws.

In the scenario that you are faced with calling a bet and chasing a draw, simply do the math. Gut-shots and the top/bottom of straights are simply automatic no-no’s. But if you flop an open-ender, do the math and if you’re close enough in pot odds, go ahead and see the turn. If you miss there, fold to any more action.

Lastly, another thing to consider heavily when faced with a draws is your reversed implied odds. Since most times you will not be drawing to the nuts you will want to keep in mind that your hand is still susceptible to better draws; however, this is more likely in the situation that you’re drawing to a flush than a straight.

Overall, when faced with a bet and a draw to your straight or flush, be sure to consider the pot odds, implied odds, reverse implied odds and the board texture before continuing on to see the turn.

Although these little guys are sure fun especially when they connect with the flop, they can also be dangerous and very damaging to a players stack if misplayed. However, if a player sticks to the tips we outlined above and focuses on playing in position, opening for a raise and just learning how to let their hands go when the miss the flop, then players will find that suited connectors can be quite an enjoyable hand to play, and most importantly, to win with.

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