Heads Up Cash Games

Players who are able to avoid tilt will often find that they experience much more success in heads up games than players who are tilt monkeys. The ability to control your emotions is much more important in a heads up game than a  6-Max or full ring game because you can potentially lose a lot of money very quickly. Successful heads up cash game players rely on players who are prone to tilt. Once you start to tilt in a heads up cash game it is very easy for the losses to pile up.

Players who tilt in 6-Max or full ring games will often realize that what they are doing is very detrimental to their bankroll and will stop after (hopefully) only having lost a small amount of money. Players who tilt in a heads up game, however, are likely to get more and more frustrated with every dollar that they lose. This is when players will sometimes go to the lobby and try to find a higher stakes heads up game that they can play so that they will be able to recoup some or all of their losses. Bankroll management is incredibly important in heads up cash games because of the volatile nature of the swings that players are virtually guaranteed to endure.

Variance in Heads Up Poker

There is no form of poker that is more prone to variance than heads up cash games. You can’t prevent the wild swings, you can only hope to contain and manage them. In the end, though, it all comes back to the player’s ability to control their emotions. There has been an untold number of poker players who have rifled through their entire bankroll just because of one or two rough heads up sessions. Heads up poker really plays with players’ minds, it can make even the calmest player go crazy.

Players who try to make the switch from 6-Max or full ring games to heads up games often find that they would rather take a lower win rate than be forced to deal with the torture in heads up games. Even the best heads up poker players in the world realize that they have chosen a cruel game, but they are able to deal with it. Take Tom Dwan, Phil Ivey, or Patrik Antonius for example. They are all incredibly talented heads up cash game players, but they are also known for their calm demeanors. Now, take Phil Hellmuth and place him in a heads up environment. He would be beside himself for the entirety of the session, unless of course he was winning.

There are some players, however, who have found success as both 6-Max or full ring players and as heads up players. The competition in heads up poker, particularly at any limit above the small stakes, is incredibly fierce. Long time heads up players have put in tons of hands and have all types of knowledge that just can’t be compensated for. Don’t jump into heads up cash games if you are not absolutely positive that you are going to be able to handle it.

SUMMARY: Heads Up Cash Games

Heads up cash games are extremely fun to watch, but the players themselves are often dealing with volatile swings, both emotionally and financially. The high risk, high reward nature of high stakes, or even low stakes, heads up cash games has helped to make it as popular as it is today.