A good Heads-Up poker strategy is not only needed if you want to make a lot of money in this form of Texas Holdem; it's a great deal of fun to master. In Heads-Up poker, there are two players playing one-on-one poker. This might be a freeze-out tournament, or it may be the situation remaining when there are just two people left in a particular pot. As you might imagine, this can be intense, and it can be very much fun to watch--not to mention very educational for the poker student. Heads-Up poker strategy involves every aspect of the game of poker: The power of aggression; great bluffing; the importance of highly accurate pot-odds calculations; the skill with which excellent players mask their tells; knowing when to Texas fold'em!; understanding the probable winning hands; trapping...it's all here. When Heads-Up poker situations arise or will be featured at the World Series of Poker, they are heavily promoted.

Learning Heads-Up poker strategy, some pros believe, is the single best way to truly gain mastery over Texas Holdem. If you can stare down, scare, or bluff an opponent who has outlasted everyone else but you, or if you sit in and go head to head with a top player, you can surely hold your own in a game with nine players sitting and even win the pot often enough to increase your bankroll (and finance your Vegas hotel room).

Learn Texas Holdem

So what are the approaches and strategic techniques for Texas Holdem? Let's begin with the football cheerleaders: Be! Aggressive! B! E! Aggressive! Living legend Doyle Brunson has made his entire fame and fortune on being bombastically aggressive. He brings to mind an old Texas Holdem strategy known as not even looking at your cards. If he has junk, he' still apt to be all in (But make no mistake; he does know when to fold. He just doesn't like it!). When he chooses to play, he plays no differently if he gets a pair of aces or a junk hand. With Doyle, you just never know what the hell he's got and that is scary, especially for newbies. Anyone that "reckless" is just not someone most people want to go up against, and opponents fold often against over-the-top aggression. You cannot make any money in Texas Holdem without betting and raising.

But ultimately, you need to know what beats what in poker. At the end of the hand, you have to put money into the pot when it's too your benefit and not put money into the pot when it's not. Especially in a heads-up poker situation, always raise when you have the great pairs and those high cards. If you have stuff not so great, you can still practice aggression by calling and staying in.

The vast majority of hands in Texas Holdem are losers, and you (and all other players) can only expect to hit your flop less than 20% of the time. This is the austere reality of poker. But this is why you need to know how to bluff well. Remember: when you have junk, you win by making all others fold. Learn how to pay attention to your opponents' patterns; of course if they are new to you this requires several hands at least. But knowing when you should call your opponent's bluff and stay in or even raise him when you got nothin' is a very important aspect of your Heads-Up poker strategy. By having remarked when your opponent prefers to raise when it turns out he has junk, by noting how aggressive he is, and so on, you pick up his patterns and you can use that to trap him in the web of his own tells in a heads-up showdown, and cause him to make a mistake that gives you the game.

You do, however...gotta know when to Texas fold'em. And here's some more austere reality for ya: you are going to fold a lot more than you are going to stay in to win. Lady Luck is fickle and not at all faithful! If you get down the River and you really have no reason at all to doubt that your opponent has a hand to whip yours, it's time to fold and not give him any more of your money. As long as you don't lose your bankroll, in Texas Holdem there is always a next time.

But if you stay in you need to understand pot odds and value betting. With value betting in heads-up, you just make sure you get in a turn raise and a River bet when your cards are at least decent so that if you win, you earn a good pot--and, your opponent is not sure if you are bluffing, being strategically aggressive, or if you really do have him whipped. This takes some cuts, but the payoff is worth it when you win. Now, pot odds in a heads-up poker showdown are much simpler to calculate than in a game with three or more still sitting in: if you have decent cards before the Turn, and if you have strong cards at all, raise! There: simple enough for ya?

Playing Texas Holdem online is an great way to hone your Heads-Up poker strategy. Check out the top poker rooms to help you master this fun and possibly profitable game. May the flop be with you!

- Share this article via your favorite social network!

Submitted by learntowinholdem.com