Playing Connectors in Texas Hold'em

 

Any player who has played poker for any period of time will know that you can't always just sit around and wait for premium starting hands to come your way before you decide to play. This is especially true in tournament play (single table and multi-table) when sustained periods of inactivity can see a player's stack of chips being whittled away by the ever-increasing blinds.

It's at times like these when a player needs to broaden their horizons and begin looking at other ways in which they can win some hands and increase their chip stack. Bluffing and stealing are some ways this can be accomplished and played connectors is another.

Connectors are typically described as two non-picture cards, next to each other in rank such as 5-6 or 9-10 and are usually played in the hoping of being able to construct a straight. Ideally, you would prefer your connectors to be of the same suit, as this adds another way for a player to win, with the possibility of a flush.

There is an art to playing connectors, suited or not, and it can become an extremely profitable pursuit if you get it right. Under the right circumstances the pay-off can be enormous. The real trick is knowing when to play them and in which circumstances to fold, which will actually be most of the time!

It's all about timing with suited connectors. You should be looking to use them in pots where you can get in cheaply, or if the pot odds are in your favour. This usually means entering into the betting in late position, when nobody has raised, there is only a small raise or you're in the blinds and only have to contribute a bit more to call. Unless you're a great post-flop player, with nerves of steal and an ability to frighten opponents out of pots, it is rarely advisable to go raising from an early position with suited connectors.

Once you're in the pot you have to show real discipline. You either hit the flop or you don't and there shouldn't be too much doubt about which it is. You are looking either to make your straight on the flop, or at least flop an open-ended straight draw. Ideally, you'd also like to be four to the flush as well, as this gives you an extra nine outs. If you're in this position then you have a very real chance of going on to win the hand and can play confidently and aggressively.

There are also occasions when you'll flop two pair, or three of a kind and you'll then need to use you best instincts and powers of deduction to determine what your opponents may be holding. Most of the time though you'll be in good shapes to continue playing the hand.

The biggest dangers from playing connectors and suited connectors though come when a player hits some of the flop, or even too much of it. If a player is holding 7-8 and the flop comes down K-8-2. Hitting middle pair will often persuade a player to stay in the hand and can end up costing them a lot of their chips.

Another real problem comes if you catch the bottom end of a straight or a straight draw. Again, if you're playing 7-8 then a flop of 9-10-J would give you the straight but would be losing against someone with K-Q and in grave danger of being outdrawn by anyone holding just the Queen.

There is also the danger of any flush you make being smaller than somebody else's flush. This is especially the case when you flop your flush straight away. If you had the 5-6 of Hearts and the flop came down 3-8-J of Hearts you'd have your powerful flush but would then be in danger of someone holding the Ace or King of Hearts staying in the hand to try and make their own more powerful flush.

So long as you are aware of the dangers inherent in playing suited connectors and are prepared to let them go when they don't hit (which will be most of the time) then they can be very profitable hands in the long run.

Players with big pairs and even three of a kind will often have no idea that somebody has stayed in the hand with lower cards and will not suspect that a straight or a flush is being played against them when low and middle ranked cards appear on the board.

 

More Texas Hold'em Lessons

01. TEXAS HOLD'EM STT STRATEGY	ANDROID POKER - HTC, Samsung, LG, SONY
02. DON'T CHASE LOSSES
03. ONLINE TELLS
04. PLAYING CONNECTORS
05. CONTINUATION BETS
06. PLAY YOUR OPPONENT
07. IMPLIED ODDS IN TEXAS HOLD'EM
08. POKER CHARACTERS
09. TEXAS HOLD'EM MTT STRATEGY TIPS
10. IMPORTANCE OF KEEPING POKER NOTES