"YOUR WINNING STRATEGY FOR HEADS-UP poker can be "boiled down" to three simple steps:
1. Push The Action
2. Set The Stage
3. Trap Your Opponent
Step one: PUSH THE ACTION:
In heads-up poker, the blinds are often substantial and the FASTEST way to build your stack and gain momentum is to win the blinds as much as possible. Be the player to push the action...
Consistently raise when you're the dealer. This is a wonderful position because you get to act FIRST pre-flop but last post-flop. You can represent a hand by raising... and then get a read on your opponent after the flop.
The more you push the action, the more blinds you'll win. Of course, this behavior will also keep your opponent OFF BALANCE... while he tries to adjust to YOUR GAME. As soon as he gets a hand, he'll start coming back over the top of you. And that's when you back off.
Step two: SET THE STAGE
Now that you've been aggressive, it's time to set yourself up for some BIG pots. Heads-up poker is usually determined by one major hand...maybe two. You want to SET YOURSELF UP for that hand.
In normal multi-player poker, those "big hands" usually occur when two or more players have great cards-- like a straight versus a flush, or trips versus two pair. In HEADS-UP POKER, this doesn't happen nearly as much, because the odds of someone catching a hand like a straight or flush or whatever is much lower. That's why the SET UP is so powerful.
First of all, realize that what your opponent is trying to do is "figure you out". He probably KNOWS that he needs to take control and steal blinds in order to win the match. After setting the tempo and stealing blinds from HIM, it's time to give him a false sense of "hope" and "control". And it's time to show your cards once or twice...
After stealing a pot, show your bluff... just casually. You can say something like, "Jeeze, I'm bullying you here, you didn't have 9-5 offsuit beat?" Or maybe what you can do is "ACCIDENTALLY" show your cards after winning a hand...(This is sneaky)
Toss your hole cards into the muck after winning a hand so that they just "happen" to turn face up. "Oops." LOL.
This will surely get your opponent riled up. Then what you do is PRETEND to fall into a consistent betting pattern. Start checking the flop-- or betting very small amounts consistently.
Every time your opponent bets, let him steal the pot. But only let him steal it with BIG BETS... no "wuss" action allowed.
In other words, when you don't have a hand, bet on the flop the SAME EXACT AMOUNT a few times in a row. When your opponent RAISES, muck it.
The goal is for your opponent to think, "Wow, I've finally got this sucker figured out. He plays aggressively and bets a lot, but folds when I crank up the pressure."
Once he's thinking that... it's time for the KILL.
Step three: TRAP YOUR OPPONENT
What you do is wait for a good hand-- or a hand you're confident will be the winner.
Then play it EXACTLY LIKE YOU'VE BEEN PLAYING YOUR BAD HANDS. This is important. This principle is the "secret" that pros use for all heads-up poker.
When you catch something really good, play it like it's bad. Let your opponent come to you. Bet small, check the flop, or do whatever it is that will get your opponent to try to steal the pot. Then go over the top of him.
Act is if you're TIRED of getting pushed around.
Of course, there may be no need to go over the top of him. Often times in heads-up a single raise is already all-in...and if that's the case, you've won the game.
If not, then you just need to get your opponent to go all-in trying to bluff this pot from you. (Or maybe he has something OK.)
Remember-- your opponent must think you have NOTHING. That way he'll risk a lot of chips to win the pot... trying to "bully" you.
Obviously, your strategy is to make him feel pot-committed with the worst hand... that way his only way to win the hand is to go all-in.
Any time I win a heads-up match because my opponent goes all-in on a bluff when I've got a real hand, I know I've played the match well.
For whatever reason, most players make too many loose all-in bets heads-up... and that's exactly what you want to capitalize on.
This step-by-step process and these techniques are BEST USED when you go heads-up against someone with about the same starting amount of chips as you...
And of course, every heads-up situation is different, because every OPPONENT is different.
But the key is to know the OBJECTIVE in each stage of your match... and the ways to ACHIEVE that goal for any given opponent.
Your ability to "close the deal" and win at heads-up will be one of the most important factors in your poker profits and career.
Roy Rounder
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