Beating HU SNGs

ThePortuguee · #1 08-10-2006, 01:23 PM

Would favor a highly aggressive style, especially preflop, with the intent to capitalize on the difficulty of hitting flops, or a more passive style designed to extract value from made hands?

I realize this is player dependent, but my statistics have me winning around 70% of hands within the SNGS, but breaking roughly even on the tournament winrates.

Are there effective strategies going in? Any thoughts at all?

Consider in the context of $10, $20, and $50 SNGs.

[Phill] · #2 08-10-2006, 01:28 PM

Try the HU forum.

Indiana · #3 08-10-2006, 01:33 PM

[ QUOTE ]
Would favor a highly aggressive style, especially preflop, with the intent to capitalize on the difficulty of hitting flops, or a more passive style designed to extract value from made hands?

I realize this is player dependent, but my statistics have me winning around 70% of hands within the SNGS, but breaking roughly even on the tournament winrates.

Are there effective strategies going in? Any thoughts at all?

Consider in the context of $10, $20, and $50 SNGs.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes to both of the styles that you mention. You need to be aggro but not blindly aggro. One problem with newbie HU players is that they raise preflop, cbet the flop, and cannot slow down later in the hand when their opponent has shown that they cannot be bet off the hand.

General aggression is the way to play these HU matches. Lots of raising preflop and popping the flop for sure. After about 10 hands or so you will see what kind of opponent you are up against. If this opponent will let you rape him then just keep pounding. If he's playing back at you, you will have to slow down and try to pick up a hand and counterpunch.

There is absolutely no recipe to HU matches to be honest. The best way to get good at them is to play tons of them...and I mean like 1000 of them at the $20 limit and learn via failure. Believe it or not, there will come a time when you can just "smell out" what your opponent has or doesn't have and you will be in such a rhythm that you won't need any advice. This will come after many many matches. HU are not as profitable as SNGs because of the deep stacks. Its very hard to get all your opponents chips away from him match after match so you will have to practice to get good at hand reading.

I personally [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] HU and if I had more time I'd be playing them at the higher limits. I feel very comfortable at the $50s and am currently coaching a friend at the $20s.

Indy

ThePortuguee · #4 08-10-2006, 02:18 PM

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Try the HU forum.

[/ QUOTE ]

I should consult the HU Limit Hold Em cash game forum for advice on HU NL Hold Em sit and goes?

Thanks for the advice.

Indiana · #5 08-10-2006, 02:22 PM

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Try the HU forum.

[/ QUOTE ]

I should consult the HU Limit Hold Em cash game forum for advice on HU NL Hold Em sit and goes?

Thanks for the advice.

[/ QUOTE ]

That HU forum sucks by the way. I appreciate you bringing your ?s here. We are a diverse SNG group here

Indy

AMT · #6 08-10-2006, 02:25 PM

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Try the HU forum.

[/ QUOTE ]

I should consult the HU Limit Hold Em cash game forum for advice on HU NL Hold Em sit and goes?

Thanks for the advice.

[/ QUOTE ]

That HU forum sucks by the way. I appreciate you bringing your ?s here. We are a diverse SNG group here

Indy

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i agree, and i also think learning deep stacked heads up play is PRICELESS to any form of hold em

[Phill] · #7 08-10-2006, 02:25 PM

The heads up forum deals with HU NL SnGs as well.

If people took their Qs there the traffic would prolly increase, but meh.

jeffraider · #8 08-10-2006, 02:28 PM

The real trick is to figure out your opponent and then tailor your preflop game to him. I just played an entire 80 hand HU SNG without putting in a single preflop raise. My postflop skillz are generally pretty god-like compared to my competition so playing pots after the flop is good for me.

PS the HU forum has NL SNGs as well.

Indiana · #9 08-10-2006, 02:47 PM

[ QUOTE ]
The real trick is to figure out your opponent and then tailor your preflop game to him. I just played an entire 80 hand HU SNG without putting in a single preflop raise. My postflop skillz are generally pretty god-like compared to my competition so playing pots after the flop is good for me.

PS the HU forum has NL SNGs as well.

[/ QUOTE ]

80 hands? Hell u better start raising it up man! That's an hourly rate issue.

Indy

citanul · #10 08-10-2006, 03:16 PM

sounds like you're winning lots of small pots and losing lots of big ones.

you should probably stop that.

no, really, this is very opponent specific, but many of the best hu players are the ones who are excellent lag players. the thing that they do so well is they make the other guy play big pots when they shouldn't, thinking that they are playing back well, when really they've chosen the time you have the nuts. at the lowest stakes this might not be reasonable as your opponents might just be so ignorant they don't change to what you're doing at all.

if you get in to the higher blind levels of these things, they become much more like normal sngs, instead of as they start, like medium stacked hu poker. in those situations well, don't do stupid stuff like throw away all your money.

citanul