After a three-month battle that, for some, was never in doubt, the “Heads Up Challenge” between Poker Hall of Famer Daniel Negreanu and online legend Doug Polk has come to an end. More than 25,000 hands of poker were played and, in the end, both players were complimentary of the other. Compliments aren’t the scoreboard, however, and that read out that Polk had won the Challenge, finishing with a $1.2 million victory in the event.
One of the most challenging forms of poker in the world is, without a doubt, heads-up No-Limit Texas Hold’em. Besides a little luck, it demands players to have a set of skills that are different from those seen when playing a table full of opponents. Typically, the best poker players in the world are experts in heads-up play. Heads-up poker sites will provide you with a wide selection in stakes as well as game variation giving you the ability to play heads up poker in Hold'em, Omaha, and Stud. Heads Up refers to playing one opponent and this page focuses only on the poker sites offering Heads up tournaments or cash games. The basic heads up poker strategy section provides newer players with a good overall understanding of the game. It's good to start with a solid foundation, and build your skills from there. Do you want to play heads up poker online? If so, we suggest you check out Ignition Poker - the #1 US poker site with heads up games. Heads-up Hyper Turbo Tournaments (HU-HT) are fast-paced 1on1 poker tournaments that you can play on most online poker sites with a buy-in of up to $1000. Headsup hypers are an action-packed game.
Wednesday Action Closes Out the Fight
When the duo came to the virtual felt on WSOP.com on Wednesday afternoon, they knew that this was probably the last day of the battle. With two tables of $200/$400 action going and a little more than 1000 hands left on the clock, the end was nigh with Polk holding a safe edge of over $900,000. The question wasn’t whether Polk was going to win the challenge, it was whether he would break the million mark in doing so.
The opening salvos went in the favor of Negreanu. In a key hand, Polk would river a straight, but Negreanu caught a flush with the same river card to scoop up a decent pot of nearly $40,000. The good fortune would continue for Negreanu as he won by making hands (a full house for over $25,000) and by playing some power poker (a jam on a three-spade, double paired board). Over the first few hours of action, Negreanu was able to chop around $150,000 off the Polk edge.
As typical of the action throughout the Challenge, Polk was able to respond quickly. He was the beneficiary of a four-flush, holding the Ace when Negreanu held the King, and Polk got a key double up in a pot of $180,000. That, along with some other action through the day, would see Polk end up with a $255,722 edge over the final 1718 hands and close out the Challenge.
Newfound Respect Between the Players
After an acrimonious start between the twosome (and some tense moments through the Challenge), the close came almost as a relief to the players. Over his Twitter account, Polk recounted the final score and, in an understatement, simply said “We won, guys. We did it.” Negreanu was also complimentary of the play of Polk, saying over the GGPoker stream, “He played well, no question about that.”
The two players commiserated over Twitter prior to the close of the Challenge and, it seems, they are willing to discuss the overall event in more depth:
That discussion would be VERY worthwhile.
In looking back at the Challenge, Negreanu obviously made a few mistakes. First off, he probably should have gotten more of the action to be played in a live setting, which is much more his game. Even after a year of retirement, Polk’s game took little time to get into shape and to have nearly all the play at WSOP.com (the first 200 hands were played live on PokerGO) was definitely an advantage for Polk.
Taking on a Heads-Up master like Polk was also an error in judgment for Negreanu. Heads Up poker has never been the Hall of Famer’s forte, whereas it was the very subject that Polk mastered when he was one of the dominant players in the online game. But it is part of poker that someone believes that they’ve got a chance in any game, so you must give kudos to Negreanu for taking the shot.
Where do the two men go from here? Polk may just drift back to retirement after backing the truck up and Negreanu will probably be playing poker when he’s 80 (and, like Doyle Brunson, still be playing at a high level). But the two men have given the poker world an entertaining three months of action and, for that, we’ve got to show our appreciation.
Once heads up is achieved in a home game or pub poker tournament, the most common questions that I hear is, “who goes first?” “who gets dealt the first card?” or “who has the button?” In fact, the most common time that gameplay rule violations occur at the poker table is when I am down to heads up. This is because the rules for heads to head or one on one play in Texas Hold’em can be a bit confusing.
According to heads up poker rules, the dealer posts the small blind and the other player posts the big blind. The first card is dealt to the player in the Big Blind. The dealer acts first pre-flop and the big blind acts first on the flop, turn, and river. The dealer always goes last on the flop, turn, and river.
Why Does the Dealer Post the Small Blind?
If the blinds were reversed and the player on the button posted the big blind, the rules for order of play would be violated. In Texas Hold’em, the Big Blind is required to act last before the flop. Therefore, by default, the player on the button must post the Small Blind in heads-up play.
Additionally, if the dealer was the big blind and decided to fold, he would be folding his big blind to the small blind; another violation of the basic rules. Some might also argue that this “discounted” price of folding is part of the basic advantage of the button
Why Does the Dealer Go First Before the Flop?
The player on the button acts first for the same reason he posts the small blind, to maintain the correct order of play. Some might argue that acting last before the flop offers a type of position advantage and that the button should have that edge in heads-up. However, the button does not have that type of favor when there are 3 or more players at the table, so why should the rules alter when it’s down to heads up? The button never acts last pre-flop, no matter how many players are at the table.
Why Does the Big Blind Go First After the Flop?
The rules of poker state that the button must always act last after the flop. While this might seem like a departure from the rules, since the small blind does act first after the flop in non-heads-up play, it really isn’t. Indeed, it doesn’t matter what position a player sits in, if the button is involved in the hand, they are required to go first.
What If the Button Open Folds Before the Flop?
When the button folds, he relinquishes the small blind to the player in the big blind, the button moves, and the next hand begins. If the button just calls, the player in the big blind has the option to check back or raise. You may have heard the dealer say “option” to the big blind before.
Are Poker Odds Different in Heads-Up?
No. The math of poker remains exactly the same, no matter how many players are involved in the game. The cool thing is that calculating the odds is simplified since there are never any multi-way pots when you are playing one on one.
Are the Heads up Rules the Same for Cash Games and Tournaments?
Yes, the order of play and the rules for posting blinds remains exactly the same, no matter the format. The only real difference you will see, when watching cash versus tournaments, is that the latter often has antes paid in on top of the blinds.
Are These Rules the Same for Pot Limit Omaha?
Yes, the rules of heads-up play remain the same for all flop-style games that have a button and two blinds, including limit hold’em, no-limit hold’em, and Omaha.
Strategic Adjustments For Heads-Up Play
Once you have the rules of how one on one gameplay works, you can focus all of your attention on winning. The key to crushing the competition is in making targeted adjustments based on your opponent’s style of play.
The biggest adjustment that should be made when playing heads up revolves around how often you raise and call and how assertive you should be when it comes to fighting for pots. As a rule, as tables become more short-handed, your overall level of aggression should increase. When play is down to just you and one other people your level of aggressiveness should range anywhere from combative to downright maniacal. What controls your frequencies in this regard is the nature of your opponent.
In order to thrive in and succeed one-on-one, you have to drastically loosen your requirements for getting involved and continuing into later streets. As the old saying goes, it’s very hard to make a pair. Often, high card will be the best hand on the flop in a heads-up battle. Therefore, you definitely do not want to play fit or fold when there is only one other opponent.
Feel Out Your Opponent Early
The early stages of a heads-up match are very similar to boxing. Unless you are really familiar with how your opponent plays, you will need to feel him or her out in the first few hands. For the most part, my general strategy is to raise any two hands from the button but defend a bit on the tight side in the big blind. By using this method, here are a few things you are looking to find out along with the adjustments that you can make as a result:
Pre-Flop Heads-Up Adjustments
- Your Opponent Is Folding to Steals Often
Count your blessings if this is the case. Playing against a fit or fold opponent when down to two players is the best case scenario. Keep stealing any two cards until he or she adjusts. You may find that you have the majority of the chips before this happens! - Your Opponent Seems to Be Defending Every Time
If you open your first 5 hands and get called or raised 5 times, it may be time to re-evaluate your strategy. Even so, I would almost never reduce my opening frequency down below 50% in a heads up match. - Your Opponent Is Stealing Often
So your opponent has open-raised the first 8 hands or so in the match. It is time to start playing back at him and the best way to do this is to flat call all of your high card hands, even Q2o, and anything that is suited or has any flopability (is that a word)? For example, something like 74o is an easy flat against someone who opens practically any two cards. - Your Opponent Is Folding the Button Often
If your opponent is open-folding the button more than half the time, it is safe to tighten up your flatting and 3-betting range substantially. The free money you are getting from your opponent’s folds means that you are practically free rolling the big blind. How cool is that? Ramp up the aggression on the button and the match will be over soon (usually in your favor).
Post-Flop Heads-Up Strategy
Heads Up Poker Championship
Your opponent’s pre-flop tendencies will tend to bleed over into their post-flop play. Therefore, if a person is stealing wide pre-flop expect them to bluff a lot and take very weak ranges to later streets
Summary
Heads Up Poker Rules
In live games where the players do the dealing, heads up play is the most common part of a tournament that the gameplay rules of poker are violated. More frequently than you might think, either the incorrect person gets dealt to first or the order of play is reversed.
It makes sense that sometimes people forget the heads-up rules since it can be rather rare to make it to heads-up in a tournament. It’s easy to see how the rules can be forgotten when a player might only achieve heads up once every few months. Even so, once the reasons behind why the dealing and playing order are understood, it all makes perfect sense.
Heads Up Poker Blinds
Once you have the rules down, I suggest that you spend a few hours practicing at home with a family member. That way the heads up rules will be followed to the tee next time you find yourself as one of the last two players in your next local event. Besides, you should be focusing on adjusting your strategy and beating your opponent, not on who goes first or whatever. Good luck, now go win that thing!