Playing some Poker
So, I gave it a go today at the online poker tables. Not too much to talk about, just a crappy day at Mansion Poker. This poker room is increasing it's traffic, but it's still a little low. I played lower limit poker at
Mansion Poker today, so it wasn't hard finding a decent poker table.
Suited Cards in Texas Holdem
The probability of being dealt any two suited
Texas Holdem cards is a whopping 23.5% , and each player is likely to get many suited hands every session. A strategy that properly takes into account when being suited positively changes your hand expectation is needed, as new or weak players that choose to play all of those hands will often find their starting requirements are too loose to profit in a game when facing selective aggressive opponents.
When most players think of suited cards, small and middle suited connector hands like 8s,9s often come to mind first. It is totally correct that being suited adds a lot of positive expectation to a hand like 8,9 but more so in un-raised pots with many players rather than short-handed. These type of hands are meant to make straights and flushes which are usually needed at the end of any loose multi-way action, and being suited gives you an extra way to win.
Aside from connectors, many players find it wise to use a general suited guideline when holding big hands when facing raises from players ahead of them. An example of this is a player holding Ad,Jd when in late position and facing a raise from early position. Many will choose to call or re-raise with this hand, but would fold if their two cards were not suited (i.e. Ac,Js). Hands dealt in the blinds are also often played with the same strategy; for example players will call a raise in the blinds with a hand like Ah,6h while folding with a similar As,6c.
While it's true that junk hands like 9s,3s, can occasionally hit a flush and win a pot, it's far more likely that it will be tossed away on the flop, or trap the player for even more bets in a weak draw or with a small pair. Worse yet, the player will make their flush only to lose a ton of chips to another opponent with a bigger flush. Although you may witness others at your table limping in with anything and everything suited, trash hands like these should routinely be tosses away in most circumstances.
One of the best ways to learn to play poker is online at one of the many poker rooms. For some extra poker money, use a
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