On Preflop Play in Limit Hold 'em - Part III

By B. A. Winterhalter
9-19-06

Being Suited, Connectedness, and Being Paired

The next three aspects of starting-hand strength that we will want to consider are the following: 1) being suited 2) connectedness 3) being paired. I’ll discuss them in that order. In considering the first two attributes, it’s important to remember that high-card strength is by far more important than either of these two components. Thus, a hand like 32s, while it has these two favorable components, is still very weak and should be folded almost 100% of the time.

The importance of being suited is obvious to most players—namely, a suited hand provides a much greater chance of making a flush than its non non-suited counterpart. Specifically, the chance of making a flush by the river with a suited hand is approximately 6% greater than that of a non-suited hand. To continue the numbering scheme from earlier, we can say that a suited hand should get a “bump” of about 1.5 points in the table. So, for instance, if you have a hand like J8s, instead of counting its total value as 17, you would count it as 19.5, and thus see that it may occasionally be playable.

Just as being suited adds potential for making a flush, being connected adds potential for making a straight. However, unlike with suit, there are different degrees of connectedness in a hand—in other words, connected hands can have gaps of varying sizes. While playing at hand at www.FullTiltPoker.com, make sure to follow this advice closely: Notice that any hand whose members are not separated by more 4 or more cards is technically still connected (i.e. the two cards participate in the same straight), but the closer the cards are. (This fact, by the way, goes some distance toward explaining why it is 72o and not 32o that is the worst starting hand in hold ‘em). How can we systematize connectedness? In general, we will say that being immediately adjacent—for instance T9o—adds 1 to a hand’s value. The only exception to this rule is AK—for you cannot make a “round the corner” straight. You should not add 1 to the value of AK for being connected (though you should always still play it).

Being paired is a slightly more complex attribute than the preceding two. To really look at it clearly, we’ll have to divide the paired hands into categories: small (22 – 66), medium (77 - 99), and big (TT – AA). With small pairs, you are playing your cards primarily for the chance of making a “set” or three of a kind. The chance of doing so is often enough to compensate for playing low, weak cards. You will try to see a flop cheaply, and then collect a big pot by hitting a set—if you fail to do this on the flop, you should usually fold. With medium pairs, your chances of winning the pot without making a set are slightly better, and you can frequently raise these preflop. In the case of 99, your hand is even strong enough that you can play it against a raise most of the time.

With big pairs, your hand is already quite strong, and you will want to raise nearly 100% of the time. Some players play TT and JJ timidly, fearing that the flop will contain high cards. It is important to remember that these pairs are quite high and that many flops will not contain cards higher than them, and that the chance of hitting a set with a high pair will usually result in an enormous pot. As such, these pairs should be played almost as aggressively preflop as QQ – AA.

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