One of the worst things in the history of the world is happening right now, right here in America, right before our eyes. And you probably don't know about.
It took more than 10,000 years of social evolution to get where we are today. For most of us, it's the best civilization has ever been. There are rough edges still, and wars, and terrorism, and inequity. But we're free to discuss all this and we're proud of being beyond the dark ages. And we'd like to share what we have with less advantaged regions of the world. We'd like them to evolve, too, and be hopeful. We have developed a method of living that allows lots of freedom and still functions fabulously a lot of the time. And we're about to lose it, mostly because of poker.
Yes, I'm talking about the legislation that will ban online poker, but this isn't about poker or other forms of online gambling! We need to talk soul to soul. If we don't, then this is where it starts - the long trek back into the worst in history. We're not there, but we're opening the door. You might think I'm being overly dramatic, and - indeed - last time I talked about how sad it would be if United States poker players couldn't join the rest of the world online in bonding though poker. Wouldn't it be ironic if there were empty seats at those poker tables where players from the nation that holds poker as key to its heritage couldn't sit?
Failed again
But two weeks later the issue is much greater. Listen up. As part of my business, I just sent an e-mail the London Telegraph. It was an expected correspondence. Guess what happened? My message didn't get through. It couldn't get through. HughesNet (until recently known as Direcway) - the largest satellite based Internet provider in the world stopped it. It was because the text of the message contained the words "doylesroom. com." I couldn't believe it. I tried again. Failed again. And again. A long support call to the company confirmed that they were filtering outgoing mail. The representative mentioned the recent legislation that has passed the House and awaits a vote in the Senate. There was nothing he could do to resolve the problem, except to suggest I write to HughesNet. Well, consider them written.
I'm not talking about spam sent as advertisement or subject lines that might be identified as spam. I'm not talking about e-mail that was misidentified as spam upon arrival and put into the wrong folder. I'm talking about my e-mail and HughesNet stopping it from being sent based on the content of my private communication. These were ideas being sent - and they wouldn't go out. I couldn't communicate freely. I was sending them from the United States and they couldn't reach anyone. They couldn't even be sent to people in countries who seem to suddenly enjoy more freedoms than we do.
The recent legislation passed by the U.S. House of Representative is scary. At a time when many of our beloved politicians criticize China for its repression regarding the Internet, how is it even possible that we travel that same road? But that issue now seems tiny. Where are we headed when we can't even communicate ideas involving online poker (or other gambling) sites or mention them in our most private person-to-person e-mails?
Maybe it isn't HughesNet's fault. Maybe it simply overreacted out of fear. But if that's the case, we should all be afraid - afraid of where fear of our own government will lead. Please think about this. This is really America; and this is really happening. Make it stop.
All about suited connectors
And now for poker strategy. This is the text of another of my favorite lectures from years ago.
I'm about to tell you the truth about suited connectors in hold 'em, but you might not like what you hear. Before you hear the truth, you need to know what suited connectors are. Actually, I don't much like the term, but most professionals have pretty much settled on it and know what it means, so let's use it.
Suited connectors are simply two cards of adjacent ranks of the same suits. Usually, the term is reserved for middle ranks that would not be high enough to be profitable, except that the extra chance of making a flush - the suited part - or making a straight - the connector part - is enough to turn the semi-weak ranks into winning combinations.
There are many things I could tell you about how to play suited connectors, but I want to share just a few very important things today. Suited connectors are usually not profitable if you face a field of aggressive opponents. The type of opponents you want to play suited connectors against are those who call with weak hands and who don't raise liberally enough. I call these players loose and timid. Loose and timid opponents are the easiest to beat, because they come into pots with the worst of it, keep calling when they should surrender, and fail to get good value even when they hold strong hands.
They're too timid to bet or raise for maximum value - except with very large hands.
Worst kind
If you could always play against loose and timid opponents, you could make a fortune in a short time.
But, sadly, you're not going to be playing against only this type of opponent. Some days opponents will be selective and aggressive. That's the very worst kind of opponents to face, because not only do they mostly play profitable hands, they get the most value out of them by being aggressive.
One thing about suited connectors is that you'd either like to take the pot without much of a fight, by raising the blinds out of the action from late position, or by raising from late position and ending up against just one opponent that you might draw out on, or you'd like to call a lot of players and see the flop cheaply before deciding what to do.
If everyone folds and I'm in late position, either the dealer position or the seat just before it, I'll usually raise with 10-9 suited, 9-8 suited, or even 8-7 suited. Suited connector hands lower than 8-7 suited, I'll usually fold with, because the ranks aren't high enough to win consistently, even if I'm lucky enough to pair. You see, the added advantage of raising in late position when everyone else has folded is that you might end up one-on-one and pair big enough to beat an unknown hand in the blinds. For instance, the big blind might call with queen-six and later pair sixes. If you're playing five-four suited and your opponent pairs sixes, you're going to need to make more than a pair to win. While this may seem obvious and insignificant, it turns out to be very significant when random trials are actually run on computer. The smaller suited connectors don't earn value raising the blinds from late position, simply because they don't often offer the additional opportunity of pairing and beating a smaller pair.
So, mid-range suited connectors are OK to raise with in late position, when you're first in the pot. Smaller suited connectors usually aren't. Sometimes you might just call with these small, adjacent, suited ranks, but often that's bad, too, so you should fold.
Big tips.
But, here's the big tip. Even medium suited connectors are almost always unprofitable in pots against aggressive, winning opponents.
And I'm talking about limit games mostly. In no-limit games, it can be even worse to play suited connectors, because sophisticated opponents often won't let you get good pot odds if you play these hands routinely.
They'll often make it too expensive to call before the flop, and - even if you see the flop -- if you don't completely connect right then, they'll often make it unprofitable to continue. The way to play suited connectors against that type of no-limit foe is selectively. Sometimes play them, but not too often, otherwise you'll motivate alert opponents to attack and get maximum advantage.
And finally, it's more profitable to come in with suited connectors after two or more players have already called than to barge in with them, not knowing if anyone else will call or raise. Suited connectors are significantly more profitable when played from late positions.
So, repeating, when you have suited connectors in late position and no one else has entered the pot, it's OK to raise. Calling is sometimes OK, too, but doesn't give you the opportunity to steal the blinds. If you're going to raise the blinds with suited connectors, make sure your ranks are high enough to beat a small pair if you make a pair. Remember that, in general, you don't want to play suited connectors against selective and aggressive opponents. And finally, remember that suited connectors will usually be more profitable if you call a long line of players than if you barge in from an early position. So, often, if you're in early position, you should just fold. This is "The Mad Genius of Poker" Mike Caro and that's my secret today.
