Late Stage Heads-Up Play
As Texas Hold ‘Em poker tournaments progress, the blinds go up and it takes a lot of chips to call. In the later stage of the poker online tournament, many rounds are apt to be “heads up” — a battle between just two players, often the big and small blind. This type of heads-up play requires a different approach than games where more players are in the action. In heads up play, aggression is critical to winning the hand. And because there are only two of you, any two live cards in your hand have far more value than when up against several opponents. In heads up poker online play, any pair is most likely a winner, especially pocket pairs, so bet out big with them. Even a solitary Ace or other face is a powerful card in heads-up matches. The all-in shove is most commonly used in heads-up battles. The game is definitely a coin-flip at this stage since any two cards really can win. Be prepared for psychological warfare at this point. It is impossible to put your heads-up opponent on a hand when you are the small blind. Don’t play raggy low ranked cards from the small blind. It’s better to concede your small blind and move onto the next hand, where you will be the big blind. Small blind calling with small cards will cripple your chip stack. You are giving your opponent the opportunity to raise when you have no clue as to what your opponent is holding. If you do have a pair or high ranking cards in the small blind heads-up, then raise or go all in.
