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When
playing
against
a full
table of
opponents
in NL
Texas
Hold em
poker,
a small
pocket
pair or
even a
hand
like K8
doesn't
seem to
be a
good
starting
hand.
Hands
like
these
aren't
very
good
because
you have
8 other
players
with 2
hole
cards as
well and
more
times
than
not,
there
are a
much
better
hands
out
there.
The
rules
drastically
change
when
playing
heads
up,
or 1 on
1. Hands
that
don't
seem
good
when at
a full
table
are
killer
hands
when
heads
up. |
When I first
started playing
heads up I
folded A LOT,
searching for
big slick or a
big pocket pair,
letting my
opponents run
right over me.
After playing
more and getting
into more heads
up situations I
became
accustomed to
playing lesser
value hands.
When heads
up, both players
are putting
blinds in the
pot every single
hand, so if
there is no
raising going on
you are seeing
the flop more
often than you
might expect.
This is where
you must try to
outplay your
opponent - no
matter what
cards you are
holding. It
is easier to bet
a bluff into 1
set of hole
cards rather
than a full
table of 9.
Heads Up
Hold Em Poker
Strategies
When you do
get your good
hands - AK, AQ,
AJ, A10, any 2
face cards and
just about any
pocket pair - is
when you want to
throw out a
hefty raise
pre-flop. Even
if your needed
card or cards do
not flop, you
need to bet
again,
representing the
best hand. If
your opponent
calls your flop
bet and the turn
still doesn't
help you, it is
now time to
decide if your
hole cards are
better than
their cards and
whether or not
they flopped
something on
you.
At this point
I go to my
"firing 3 times"
strategy -
keep betting and
keep
representing the
best hand. You
may fire once,
twice and miss
but that 3rd bet
may win you the
pot. In this
situation, you
would think that
if your opponent
had some kind of
a hand they
would have
raised you on
the flop. Firing
bets at your
opponent is ok,
but do not put
your whole stack
into this
procedure, just
in case they
actually have a
better hand than
you.
Going all-in
when heads up
can make or
break a good
hand. Say you
are in a heads
up tournament
and the blinds
are very small
when you pull
pocket aces.
Betting all-in
pre-flop is just
going to scare
your opponent
out of the pot.
You must raise
small and milk
your good hand
(see
slow playing).
All-ins are most
effective when
the blinds are
very big because
your opponent
may feel that he
has to protect
his blind and
call your all in
bet.
When heads up
you must always
take into
consideration
that it is just
2 of you at the
table - 2 sets
of hole cards
rather than the
normal 9. It is
ok to limp in on
almost any 2
cards because,
after all, you
are trying to
outplay the
person sitting
across from you,
and you don't
necessarily need
good cards to do
so. |
