Part: Part Two - Playing Styles & Starting Requirements

A speculative hand, cheaply

Pre-flop
Blinds 100 / 200Pot 700 (3.5 BB)BTN7♠6♠● 25,000 (125 BB)YOUto actMP● 25,000 (125 BB)LimperlimpsHJ● 25,000 (125 BB)LimperlimpsSB● 25,000 (125 BB)posts 100 (0.5 BB)BB● 25,000 (125 BB)posts 200 (1 BB)D

Two players limp in and it folds to you on the button with 7♠6♠ - a small suited connector. With limpers in, you can see a cheap flop in position.

Two limpers; you're on the button with 7♠6♠. Best play?

WhyLimp behind. Small suited connectors are speculative hands that want cheap, multiway flops with position, where the implied odds of flopping a strong draw or two pair pay off. A big raise bloats the pot with a hand that wants to see a flop cheaply; folding gives up a profitable position spot.
What happensYou limp; the blinds come along. Four players see the flop.  Pot: 800 (4 BB).
Flop
4-way potPot 800 (4 BB)5♥8♦K♣BTN7♠6♠● 25,000 (125 BB)YOUopen-ended straight drawSB● 25,000 (125 BB)checksBB● 25,000 (125 BB)checksMP● 25,000 (125 BB)LimperchecksHJ● 25,000 (125 BB)LimperchecksD

Flop: 5♥ 8♦ K♣ - you flop an open-ended straight draw (any 4 or 9 makes the straight). It checks around to you.

You flop an open-ender and it checks to you on the button. Best?

WhyBet a semi-bluff. With eight outs to a straight and a king nobody bet, a position bet can win the pot now, and you still improve often when called. Betting also builds the pot for the times you complete the draw.
What happensYou bet 500 (2.5 BB); only the big blind calls.  Pot: 1,800 (9 BB).
Turn
Heads-upPot 1,800 (9 BB)5♥8♦K♣9♥BTN7♠6♠● 25,000 (125 BB)YOUmade straightBB● 25,000 (125 BB)Big blindchecksD

Turn: 9♥ - you complete your straight (5-6-7-8-9). The big blind checks.

You just made the straight. The big blind checks. Best?

WhyBet for value. You hold a strong, well-disguised hand on a coordinated board where your opponent can easily have a king, two pair, or a flush draw that pays you off. Build the pot now rather than risk a scary river killing the action.
What happensYou bet 1,300 (6.5 BB); he calls.  Pot: 4,400 (22 BB).
River
Heads-upPot 4,400 (22 BB)5♥8♦K♣9♥2♣BTN7♠6♠● 25,000 (125 BB)YOUthe nut straightBB● 25,000 (125 BB)Big blindchecksD

River: 2♣ - a blank, and no flush gets there. The big blind checks.

River bricks; you hold the nut straight and he checks. Best?

WhyBet for value. You hold the nuts, and a player who check-called the turn often has a king, two pair, or a busted heart draw that can pay a final bet. Size it to get called - checking the nuts in position throws away a clear value bet.
What happensYou bet 2,600 (13 BB); he calls with K-J.  You win a big one with the speculative hand.
You took a cheap, in-position flop with a speculative hand, semi-bluffed your draw when checked to, and got paid when it came in. Suited connectors earn their keep exactly this way - cheaply, in position, with implied odds.

Speculative hands (small suited connectors) want cheap, multiway flops in position - play them for implied odds, not for raw pre-flop strength.