diff --git a/consul/pool.go b/consul/pool.go
index 1c2f86fe5..e6c7220eb 100644
--- a/consul/pool.go
+++ b/consul/pool.go
@@ -135,8 +135,10 @@ type ConnPool struct {
 	pool map[string]*Conn
 
 	// limiter is used to throttle the number of connect attempts
-	// to a given address.
-	limiter map[string]chan int
+	// to a given address. The first thread will attempt a connection
+	// and put a channel in here, which all other threads will wait
+	// on to close.
+	limiter map[string]chan struct{}
 
 	// TLS wrapper
 	tlsWrap tlsutil.DCWrapper
@@ -157,7 +159,7 @@ func NewPool(logOutput io.Writer, maxTime time.Duration, maxStreams int, tlsWrap
 		maxTime:    maxTime,
 		maxStreams: maxStreams,
 		pool:       make(map[string]*Conn),
-		limiter:    make(map[string]chan int),
+		limiter:    make(map[string]chan struct{}),
 		tlsWrap:    tlsWrap,
 		shutdownCh: make(chan struct{}),
 	}
@@ -209,52 +211,57 @@ func (p *ConnPool) acquire(dc string, addr net.Addr, version int) (*Conn, error)
 	}
 
 	// If not (while we are still locked), set up the throttling structure
-	// for this address.
-	var wait chan int
+	// for this address, which will make everyone else wait until our
+	// attempt is done.
+	var wait chan struct{}
 	var ok bool
 	if wait, ok = p.limiter[addr.String()]; !ok {
-		wait = make(chan int, 1)
+		wait = make(chan struct{}, 1)
 		p.limiter[addr.String()] = wait
 	}
+	isLeadThread := !ok
 	p.Unlock()
 
-	// Now throttle so we don't pound on a server if there are a ton of
-	// outstanding requests to one server.
-	wait <- 1
-	defer func() { <- wait }()
+	// If we are the lead thread, make the new connection and then wake
+	// everybody else up to see if we got it.
+	if isLeadThread {
+		defer func() {
+			p.Lock()
+			delete(p.limiter, addr.String())
+			p.Unlock()
 
-	// In case we got throttled, check the pool one more time.
+			close(wait)
+		}()
+
+		c, err := p.getNewConn(dc, addr, version)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, err
+		}
+
+		p.Lock()
+		p.pool[addr.String()] = c
+		p.Unlock()
+		return c, nil
+	}
+
+	// Otherwise, wait for the lead thread to attempt the connection
+	// and use what's in the pool at that point.
+	select {
+	case <-p.shutdownCh:
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("rpc error: shutdown")
+	case <-wait:
+	}
+
+	// See if the lead thread was able to get us a connection.
 	p.Lock()
-	c = p.pool[addr.String()]
-	if c != nil {
+	if c := p.pool[addr.String()]; c != nil {
 		markForUse(c)
 		p.Unlock()
 		return c, nil
 	}
+
 	p.Unlock()
-
-	// Go ahead and make a new connection.
-	c, err := p.getNewConn(dc, addr, version)
-	if err != nil {
-		return nil, err
-	}
-
-	// Return the new connection, adding it to the pool. If the connection
-	// the throttle was waiting for fails then all the threads will then try
-	// to connect, so we have to handle that potential race condition and
-	// scuttle the connection we just made if someone else got there first.
-	p.Lock()
-	if existing := p.pool[addr.String()]; existing != nil {
-		c.Close()
-
-		markForUse(existing)
-		p.Unlock()
-		return existing, nil
-	}
-
-	p.pool[addr.String()] = c
-	p.Unlock()
-	return c, nil
+	return nil, fmt.Errorf("rpc error: lead thread didn't get connection")
 }
 
 // getNewConn is used to return a new connection