Hi folks,
I'm having serious trouble with heads-up play. Online, I seem to be able to get lucky with the cards about 25% of the time and manage a win, but I never feel like I'm in control of the game. Offline, I just get hammered. Played in two offline tourneys recently and made it into the final two, only to get my chip lead cut down and down and down until I'm beat.

Is there anywhere I can get a good tutorial on heads-up play, or any books you'd recommend, please?

I consider myself a fairly good heads up player live, the reason I say this is because its what I'm told and I'm not just being a cocky prick. Anyway, I feel that heads up poker is "post-flop poker." By this I mean you have to see flops heads up, if you keep playing tight heads up blinds are going to kill you. If you look down at K8o with a 3x raise coming into you, I feel you have to see a flop. Once the flop comes down you will usually have a better read on the player than you did preflop, and if you sense weakness you can take down a decent sized pot. I never really read any books on how to play heads up poker, so I'm writing from personal exp only. Heads up you have to loosen up play dirty and obviously slow play your monsters.

Good Luck

You have to really defend your blinds and any pair after the flop is good.

Bet, bet and then bet some more.

never fold your SB............always at least call unless your opponent is constantly raising back on you.

Most people are looking for a hand but they forget any 2 cards are playable heads up. Typically the agressor wins.

Be aggressive, but be prepared to put on breaks when opponenet fires back at you and u don't have a hand.

Remember this....most flops will completely miss both of you.....1st to bet will win the pot.

Slow Play your big hands and fire away with marginal/no hand.

I like to play heads up with a tight-agressive format. Let me explain. Play hands you know can win. Most likely the oppenent you are playing against will call raises with any pocket pair, and not that good starting cards so start off tight. Flip over you cards after he folded against you. Show him you only play good hands. Once you got him down and you are almost near half over him change to loose-tight format. Play mostly hands, and then start to check-raise. He might be impatient and start to make errors. He might even make the error that you will pick up on him and force him all in once you got him beat.

When your on the SB you fold or raise, NEVER JUST CALL unless your setting a trap.

learn.........

I totally disagree. You should never fold the SB unless you are playing someone who has a pattern of raising when you call.

If your playing anyone who has a clue about heads up there going to raise you if you just call unless they have a really really crappy hand. Come play me and I will show you what happens when you just call from the SB.