04-21-05, LearnTexasHoldem:

Sick Of Second Place

Question: I've recently began playing in a no-limit texas hold'em home game with five friends. Four of the last five games I've made it to heads-up only to finish in second place. This has been very frustrating and I have tried different strategies both before and during heads-up play. Any general guidelines for cinching the win? Also, should strategies for a six-person table be different?

Thanks,

Brian

Top 3 Beginner Rooms

Answer: Whenever you aren't getting the results you want in poker (or anything else for that matter), look at what you are already doing and see if you can figure out problems. How is it that you are beating the other players and getting to second and then losing? How are you losing? Sometimes the cards just aren't there and you have no route to winning, other times you can nail down the beat to one or two specific hands that you didn't play well. Are you getting blinded to death? If so, you need to play more aggressively.

What types of players are you losing to on the end? Are they very conservative and are just waiting you out? Are they more aggressive and stealing from you? Are you making it to second place with enough chips to put up a fight? And given enough chips, are you putting your chips in smart spots? Are you adjusting your starting hand selection for heads up play? All these questions can help you out next time. You don't need to play every hand perfectly to win, but if you aren't doing as well as you would like to, it is more constructive to analyze your game than it is to attribute it to unluckiness.

And yes, a six person table will play differently than a 10 person table will. A five and six should be comparable. You need to loosen up some.

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