Heads up, no-limit hold'em tournaments are just two people, playing head to head, until one player has all of the chips. I usually get into a session on my lunch hour and they can last anywhere from one to thirty minutes (depending on my opponent's skill). They're a lot of fun and easily my biggest money maker per hour. But it takes a lot of concentration to pull off, since you're playing every hand.
Against weaker opponents, I've found a pretty nice standard strategy that works out well and figured I'd share with you all. Surprisingly, this strategy works better at the $50 to $100 heads up matches than it does with the $30 heads up matches. I'm still not sure why, but I suspect my opponents at $50 are trying harder, while the guys at $30 are willing to get a lot more creative.
Keep in mind that this strategy is mainly for heads up tournaments. In a multi-person tournament, when it's down to just two people, you usually have to get more creative than this. But this should at least give you some insight into the things you need to think about.
The core of the strategy is simply:
On the button
1.) Minimum raise 80% of the time.
2.) Bet half the pot on the flop.
3.) Check the turn, unless you have a real hand.
4.) Check the river or bluff it, depending on how you "feel".
5.) If you're ever raised or bet into, give up the pot unless you really have something.
6.) If you get raised and have a good hand, re-raise the size of the pot.
In the big blind
1.) Don't call raises of any size, unless you have a truly playable hand.
2.) Raise the size of the pot if you have a strong hand.
3.) Check/fold any hand that doesn't hit the board.
4.) Bet half the pot any time you hit the board. If you're confident your opponent is going to bet no matter what, go for a check/raise. Make sure you always raise the size of the pot.
The heart of this strategy is to create pots that are slightly larger when you're in position and slightly smaller when you're out of position. Being on the button gives you a huge advantage. You'll win a majority of the pots when you have position and neither you nor your opponent hit the board. If you're making small, callable raises on the button, but not calling any raises from the big blind, the chips will slowly slide your way over time.
This is small ball poker, keeping the pots small while putting constant pressure on your opponent. You're like a boxer, throwing a series of jabs. All you're trying to do is pad your stack so that when you both get a strong hand, you'll either knock your opponent out or at least survive for the next confrontation.
What's also interesting is that this is a very aggressive strategy, you're constantly betting no matter what cards you have, but since you're only getting aggressive from position, it looks like you're just getting aggressive 50% of the time. Which is about what you would expect between two people, so it doesn't look like you're getting too out of line.
Eventually, your opponent will likely get tired & frustrated. They'll probably push all-in a few times. This is exactly what you want, so just fold and let them get away with it. You have an edge with your constant little bets, so there's no need to take them up on their gamble. Plus, the more you fold to all-in bets, the more likely they are to start pushing all-in with weak holdings. Eventually, you're going to have a real hand you can happily call with. Be patient.
A few other notes. I find it usually works out better if I raise from the button around 50% of the time at first, but end up raising nearly 100% of the time when the blinds get large. That way, they'll give my bets slightly more credit when it hurts them the most.
There are some counters to this strategy. If you're up against someone who will constantly bet into you from out of position, or someone who will check/raise you frequently as a bluff, you're going to have a tough time. On the plus side, this will also make them more vulnerable. When you do get a strong hand, they'll probably have way too many chips committed and won't be able to get away from the hand.
You'll also want to do a few "weird" actions, just to throw them off. Occasionally, check a hand down to the river without betting. Check/raise as a bluff when the pot is small. Don't always raise with a big pocket pair before the flop. Don't get carried away, though, you're just doing this to confuse them. Playing this way too often will hurt you in the long run.
Also, don't back down from your constant aggression just because you got check/raised a few times. If you start playing too passive all of a sudden, you're going to give up any edge you had. Continue to bet into every flop. Since your bluffs on the flop only have to succeed 1/3rd of the time to break even, your opponent could check/raise you 2/3rd of the time (making you fold, of course), and you'd still be in decent shape. Plus, if they're actually check/raising as a bluff 2/3rds of the time, you're going to be in great shape to punish them when you pick up a real hand. Don't get frustrated and just stick to your game plan.
If you can spot any holes in this strategy, know of any counters, or have an even better strategy, please let me know. I'm curious what other people actually think about this line of play.