by Most, The
The last thing most of you want to see is another diatribe by me, The Most. Humor me here, as I have something meaningful to say, and it's poker related. Even the most fervent Most-hater is likely to read this because what else do you have going on at work that's more important than a fresh, piping-hot 4SPT article, eh?
Furthermore, this one concerns an aspect of poker I feel I have a decent working knowledge of: Heads-Up Endgame. I cannot deny that the Poker Gods have been kind to me in the wee hours of Thursday eve, but by the same token, one-on-one I haven't given many absurdly, even mildly bad beats to any of my myriad of victims. In addition, savoryyode has recently woven himself into the fabric of UB and has enjoyed many a fruit of victory in the Heads-Up arena.
This is all due in large part to my inner gambling beast and lack of patience. But when you're heads-up, is a willingness to gamble and put the pedal to the metal really a bad thing? The answer is a resounding maybe. The name of the game is pressure, and if you're applying it consistently, you're in the driver's seat even when your opponent is a skilled player with a better hand. For me, Heads-Up play revolves around four central tenets: Your opponent's style, the blind levels, chip lead and Balls (or guts).
Your Opponent:
Before engaging in HU battle, you should always take a moment to consider who your opponent is, and what approach he(/she) will likely be taking during your battle. More importantly, if you are a loose player who will certainly be pounding away preflop, how will he be playing YOU? Against a tight player, it is important to apply pressure early and very often. You will pick up a grip of blinds, and there's always a chance he will get frustrated and call or raise you all-in when you have a monster. The flip side of this is that an astute, skilled player will let you steal some blinds in an attempt to trap you later on. You must be aware of this, but don't lose focus. A weaker, loose player will simply respond to your aggression by playing himself out of the match, probably moving all-in with a draw or a weak hand. So if you are consistently pounding away at him, you can rest assured your King-high or mid pair is good, esp. on a drawingboard. If your opponent thinks he sees right through your bullshit and tries to outmaneuver you, you have to come at him from a different angle. But that's where we get into the whole "what's he thinking i'm thinking he's thinking" debate, and all of you have your own instincts to draw from at that point. My point here is simply that it's best to immediately establish control of the match (even dropping some chips early) and follow those instincts from there.
Blind Levels and Chip Lead:
This is surely a major part of what should determine your strategy. If the blinds are low, proceed with caution and have a smidge of patience; the blinds will be large soon enough. If the blinds are high, it is much more important to assert your dominance IMMEDIATELY by making a few early, aggressive raises. You might drop a lot of chips early, but at least you are planting a seed and laying your balls on the table. And to be honest, more often than not you will find yourself in the chip lead pretty quick when taking this approach. You could even reach across the table, poke your opponent in the neck and go "Tsch!" When the blinds are high and you have a healthy chip lead, it is in your best interest to begin moving all-in on his/her blind, or at least make calculated raises with hands that can stand up to a preflop all-in. Psychologially, your opponent is much less likely to call your all-in with anything other than a decent pair or strong ace if his night will be over when he loses the hand. Which brings us to my final tenet:
Balls:
This is simply the most important Mcgillacutty when playing heads-up. By balls I obviously mean a willingness to gamble and trust your instincts. Think of all the times you've heard someone complain about a bad beat. Why not be the boy to give 'em one? If you put someone on an unmade hand and you've already committed 1/3 of your stack preflop, I just don't see the logic in folding a suited 89 or even 67, especially when you have a decent chip lead. If you're up against it, outchipped by a mile, then, sure, go ahead and fold. It's still all situational. But that's not what this article's about. God forbid I would tell any of you guys how to play poker; I only have ten wins. When it comes to balls I'm simply talking about a willingness to LOSE. To achieve glory, you have to ride the dragon. If you fold your suited connector and take a few blows, then all of a sudden you're losing and all you can think about is, 'why didn't i call with those rags when i had the chance?'. If you're willing to lose, you'll probably win, and if you lose, hey! At least you were willing to do so. And when you lose and you're not willing to, it hurts that much more. Although i think it might hurt even MORE the next day when you lose and were willing to than it would have the night before when you lost and weren't willing to... anyway, there it is. Peace.
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