How do you guys play the micor-pairs heads-up, like 22 and 33.

I really hate these hands. They are hard to play on the flop, but if you let your opponent see all five cards, you are 50/50 to lose.

My favorite way to lose with these hands is when the board double pairs a la Joe Awada.

hm... if its a tourni and the blinds are big i might try to make a raise to steal the pot, and if he calls i can represent a lot of different hands on the flop. If its the penny tables or something, limp with it every time, basically just play them for set value.

Strong preflop and back off a little flop?

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That's a helluva question, because I have the same problem. You're a favorite, but there WILL be overcards and since your HU your opponent could be in there with anything.

I usually do a raise and hope to drive out garbage, and hope I'm good if the flop is all low cards. Either that or just push and pray.

Depends on the betting position. If I'm first to act, I'll toss out a modest raise and then depending on the board and the player calculate my play accordingly.

If he's first to act, its a flat call by me every time and a whispered mantra for my set to hit.

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:cool:

To be successful in business, surround yourself with professionals. To be successful in poker, surround yourself with idiots.

Heh... he said heads-up... it's not like a penny table where you play for set value.

I'm a very aggressive heads-up player. I raise before most flops, knowing that I can easily get away from rags when my opponent plays back at me.

Keep this in mind, because it's the only reason my strategy works... but when I get 22 or 33, I raise preflop, and unless the flop is REALLY scary, I'm betting then too. Usually, late in a tournament once it's heads up, the stakes are high enough that even the smallest raise will get him out unless he has a hand. And if he does, you throw the ducks away, no biggie.

I am used to playing heads-up at the end of sit-n-gos where the blinds are pretty high and a standard raise could be half your stack.

It is a little easier when you have decent stacks.

Uhhh... if the standard raise is half your stack, you're playing with people that are way too passively.

Typically when I get to the end of a SNG, the BB is a 20th of the average stack.

Maybe 1/2 is pushing it, but 1/3 in not/

Starting chips 800 like on party average stack is 4000. That = about 200/400 which is typical for heads-up.

Do you even want to put in 1/4 of your stack with 22?

On UB that would be 200/400 about typical for heads-up.


And good poker grammer, people that play aggresively "play aggresive"

and people that are too passive are "too passively"

On pokerstars if you are at 20xBB for the average that means you are getting heads-up at 150/300, is that really typical?

I always fold them in early position, I don't like the idea of raising especially early in the tournament, you're pretty much in a bad situation if someone reraises you: at best you're 50/50.

LP I'll throw out a big raise if I think everyone left is very weak and usually not if there are too many people left. I may even call a raise into a multiway pot just hoping to catch a set but I'd be far more likely to fold to any pf raise