After thinking about what to write on this issue, I came to the conclusion that it would take at least a poker book for each particular game. This would be a great endeavor and would take a lot of time on my part. But as I say, "you have to start somewhere".

 The games that most of the people on RGP are most familiar with is Holdem. The weakest part of 99.99% of the players in the world is their heads-up game or short handed game. Basically three or less is short to me, though many consider the number to be 5. We will be dealing with heads-up play, my specialty, in all shapes, forms and sizes. Let me give you a small out-line about heads-up poker. The best players will dominate in a fairly short period of time. The best player will choose "pot limit’ as their choice, since it is the most skillful way to play all these
flop games. It is also the most skillful way to play 7 card stud also, 7 card stud high-low and Razz. Draw poker should be played in a No-lomit style, being it high or low. However, with proper ante structure and blinds, draw poker can easily be played in a limit format.

The only game that really deserves to be played NO LIMIT is 5 card stud [no stripped deck]. This is a game where the best players can play for months at a time and not lose. On with the lesson for today. We will start with Limit Holdem, heads-up. First let me explain many people who are not excellent players will have a hard time understanding many of the concepts that I state. Concept one is this; you can play every hand in heads-up holdem and crush an
opponent who is not as good as you. In fact, it may not be a bad idea to
even play every hand against anyone, including WCP’s.  

If you want to become a REAL Heads Up Poker Professional on the Internet we suggest you take a real good look at this heads up poker profits poker course. It’s written by a very succesful online heads up player and he can teach you just about everything he knows. Click here to visit the heads up poker profit website to buy the course

The main thing about heads-up play is the aggression and the control of the betting. People that play heads up make decisions that are lightning fast. Speed kills in this situation and the faster you can play and comprehend the situation the larger your advantage is over your opposition. A period of no longer than 50 hours should determine the best player in this game, no matter how lucky the individual is. Normally it would not take this long.

Now I know you are asking the question already; how can you play every hand and win? I pose this question to you, what are you going to do with an opponent that raises every pot on the button and calls every raise when you have the button? Obviously we are not talking about idiots here. A person that sits and waits for a hand, like he is in a ring game, will soon find out he has lost numerous buy-ins in blinds. To fight a person who plays every hand, you must do the same thing. Swings will be very great, but the person who bets the best and reads the opponent the best will come out with all the chips. 

Receive $75 FREE + 30% Rakeback!
Think of heads up in this manner. What would happen if the game was played with the cards turned over, face up. Wouldn’t some one want to bet on every card? Obviously if they turned their cards face up, you could see the advantage and thus bet. Some one would definitely bet every time. Same can be said when the cards are face down. When there is not a bet on one of the streets, either the person is setting up a check and raise for a double bet
or someone is losing a bet with the best hand. The idea of the game is to realize when you have the best hand. Now this can’t be done every time or even close to every time. However, to beat the opposition, all you have to do is be able to recognize when you have the best hand more often than he does. Not that difficult if you know what you are doing. 

Main thing of playing heads up is the control of the betting. Now, controlling the betting does not necessarily mean you have to bet every time. The concept of this is that when you want the money in the pot, it gets into the pot, and when you don’t, there is no bet. It’s that simple. But to accomplish this, it takes great skills. To begin with, when playing heads-up, you determine the type of opposition you are facing. Is he aggressive, super aggressive, passive, tight, or will he battle every hand with you until the finish.

Here is where the skill really comes in. The best player has more styles for offense and defense than you can possibly imagine. He can stop on a dime and accelerate to light speed in a split second. One thing to remember about heads-up poker strategy: You are not betting on making your hand. You are betting on the opposition NOT making a hand. Totally different from the way your understanding of the game has been taught to you.

Random cards are what they are, random cards. Playing every hand is a reality you would face against many of the best limit holdem players in the world. How you play them is the difference. Obviously NO ONE can have a hand every time in poker. Here is where the jousting begins. Betting and raising, the key to controlling the game, in almost all situations. Here is the difference. Say you are both playing every hand. Say the hands come out with each winning the same amount, as theoretically it should, should you go to the end. Obviously the one that out bets the other will win the money. One of the keys here is not to make any pot too much different than any other pot. Put the same value on all of them. The winnings will be
the times you get the opponent to give you a free card and the times you value bet him to get an extra bet. But it is not a perfect world and the cards don’t break even. In heads-up,
it really doesn’t matter. The best players have so big an edge it is really incredible.

For an experiment, try this one day. Raise the pot every time on the button when playing heads up. Check every time after the flop. Bet or raise every time on fourth street. See what your results are. In fact, try without looking at your cards, just don’t let the opposition know you are doing this. See if they can adapt.

Realize that any one that waits for a hand in a heads up situation will lose many blinds while waiting. Also, when he gets involved in betting, the opposition will know he has some thing and will be waiting to check- raise him and trap him, or let him win the minimum. Heads-up players that win, bet their own hands, they don’t bet yours. You have to learn to do this yourself. Object of the game is to get the money called when you have the best of it and have free cards given to you with the worse of it. I wrote a post a while back called the rule of 7. This applies greatly in this game of limit heads-up holdem.
Heads-up, is not a game for callers. callers will go broke quicker than they can pull the money out of their pockets. Feeler bets, those made on the flop, will give you some kind of information about the oppositions hand. Check raising is a major part of this game. Check raising with nothing is a major part of this game. This is why I have written that post about the rule of seven. In heads up, you must be prepared to bet with nothing as many times the plays are going to be nothing against nothing, with the one that does the betting the best winning the pot.

Remember, the game of heads up poker is not to make hands. The game is betting your opposition is not making hands. Here is where position comes into play. As a rule of thumb, never 3 bet on the big blind in heads up holdem. As a rule of thumb never 4 bet on the button in heads up holdem. Think about what I just stated.

Any one who three bets on the big button, will come out betting on the flop as he has already told you he wanted to establish dominance in the hand. He will come out swinging to either try and steal or continue with the play the hand he is representing. Either way, no matter what you have or had, you are setting him up. If you had Aces on the button, and did raise, and were reraised, do you think it would be smart to make it four bets? You are setting the victim up to bluff the pot or trap himself. Patience please.

Same thing goes if you have Aces on the big blind and get raised. By calling, you are not telling the opposition anything and know he will attempt to steal it after the flop if he hasn’t a hand or will bet it if he does have a hand. Here is where the trapping comes into play. Besides, I have told you that the object in limit is not to make any hands much different than other hands.

Not having the opposition able to read your style is the difference between winning and losing. The key, is being able to have so many different styles that the opposition doesn’t know how to combat it. All heads up players are aggressive. But in a horse race, the speed of the speed is the one to fear. However, do you always want to be the speed, if the pace of the game is fast enough? The answer is no. The name of the game is knowing how to bet to get the most information about a players hand. Sometimes it is best to lay off the pace and punish him in the last quarter of a mile, meaning the river. Remember, many things are a given in heads-up poker, just as in ring game poker. Expect a person who raises on the button to expect to bet when the flop comes high cards. Also expect that he is going to bet no matter what in
this situation, or check to make you think he is sand bagging. Then when you check on fourth street, he comes out betting, knowing you have the image in your mind that he was trying to trap you. 

Remember, there are no gimmees. Playing poker means playing poker. Learning to adapt is the key to heads up play. The pot must be the right size that it is supposed to be when you win it. If it is over what it is supposed to be, give your self a high five as your opponent shall soon fall. Key to success at limit heads up holdem, is make all pots about the same as if you hold aces or a 7-2 off suit. By this I mean don’t make the pots so big that it takes four or five to get the money back. Never underestimate the opposition. Better to over estimate him and adjust later on. For if you have to adjust, he is yours any way.

Speed in playing is very beneficial to heads-up. Same as in many sporting events. Many opponents don’t have the computer chips able to process the information as well as the best player. The faster you play, and I don’t mean by betting or raising, but by making the moves, the less information the opposition gets to absorb. Some people will say they are tells, but this is BULLSHIT. It is a sense of how long the opposition takes to respond. It can only be a nano second, but it is not a tell. It is a gift for only the ones that have really paid attention to poker.

A tell is some one who picks his nose when he has the nuts, or doesn’t when he is bluffing. All these MORONS tell you they picked up a tell, but they never tell you what it is. I state, THEY ARE JUST GUESSING, and some of the time they have to be right. Just remember, the ones that are always in the position of calling are the ones that will lose. Yes, tells do exist, but
not with WCP.

If you never called and always lost your money betting, you would be far better off. As long as the decision is in the other corner, you are in control. You determine the percentage of bluffs and the percentage of times you are betting with the best hand. When they state they have picked up a tell in the high limits of professional poker, it is a bluff to vindicate
why they called. Have you seen their hands when they call and they lose? If you had that information, then you could make an accurate analysis.

The rule of the game is this, those who are calling will soon be losing. It takes a certain skill to even be in a position to have the opposition calling you all the time. If they are capable of doing this, they are capable of adjusting to less bluffing and having the opposition calling more
with the worst hand. The edge is always with the bettor. For he can have the best hand, or the others may fold.