It may come as a surprise that some of your best pay offs result from unsuited gappers.



Under what circumstances do you attempt starting hands that typically should be thrown away. The hands we specifically are referring to are 5/7u, 6/8u, 7/9u and 8/10u.









The first condition is that the game is limit texas holdem.



As a practical matter we enter the pot knowing we are taking on over cards. Our objective is to see the flop as inexpensively as possible and no limit poses too many problems to achieve that end.



Player style is a critical element in attempting these kinds of hands.



Preferably we look for tables characterized with a good deal of limping, whether it take the form of tight passives or calling stations. If a maniac or tight aggressive remain in the hand it's best to wait for next time. Then again you might be aware of a tight aggressive player tendency to slow play big pocket pairs in which case you would want to stick around.



You want your card value entry point to be no less than 5/7u.



We know we are behind in the hand, however, the seven helps since there are more ways to make a straight with this card than any other card in the deck.



If the flop hits you with these types of cards it is very unlikely that anyone will put you on a monster.



This is especially true if you are playing outside of the blinds. Imagine flopping 3,4,6 and your opponent(s) has a big pocket pair or any two big desirables that warrant continued play.



OK, what if the flop misses you entirely with As, Kd and 10h?



No problem! You get out and cheaply too. It was worth the shot for concealment purposes alone.



We prefer no less than three players including you.



The reason for this is we want at least two premium hand types squaring off. The hope is that at least one of their outs lay dead in the other player's hand and all of your outs are live.



Your read on your opponents will dictate how you play the hand for the maximum pay off.



Chances are that if you are up against limpers you will simply bet out and not try anything fancy. On the other hand, if a tight aggressive has been slow playing a big pocket pair evidenced by his raise on the turn you should be able to extract a few more dollars.



The pay offs are nice and in limit doesn't cost a lot to get involved. My last endeavor involved 6/8u out of the big blind. Two other players slow played big starters and the flop came 10, 8, 8 rainbow. That was fun and rewarding.



Put this into practice and take down the big ones.

By: John Ruscio

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John Ruscio has been playing winning poker for 29 years and offers free instruction at his site Holdem Heights. You are invited to sign up for the free course instruction and ask any questions pertaining to Limit Texas Holdem at holdemheights.com/