Folding the button HU in 2-7 Triple Draw

I was playing 8-game on Stars heads up. It's important to put maximum pressure when heads up and raise frequently, but then I got dealt [Qh] [Tc] [Kd] [Ah] [Ac]. I raised from the button and the BB folded. Going back over it though, brought up these questions:

-Can you be too aggressive from the button?

-Should you limp in every once in a while to mix up your game?

-If you raise with an ultra-bad draw (like the one mentioned above) and get called, how do you react? Draw 5? Stand pat and try and snow the BB? Mix it up and do both?

Obviously heads-up is an incredible battle and against an opponent who is paying attention you will need to mix it up. But at the micro 8-game, even heads up, if your opponent isn't paying as close attention as you are then pulling these tricks might not work. Even worse, if you establish an image the game changes every 6-hands and you might need to shift gears for the next game.

First off, gee, I don't even know where to begin. Triple draw is usually (always?) a limit game. You don't say how your hand turned out. I'm guessing very badly. You get caught once pulling that kind of shennanigans, your raise will never be respected again. This is kinda stuff to used as a total bluff very sparingly, if at all. I know this game. Position is far less important in this game as it is in most others. I would never even let my opponent see what I had if checked to the end, it is that bonehead. Sounds to me, your last sentence made a lot of sense.

In the 8-Game tournaments when it gets HU you've got to be aggressive, but use some common sense. Folding your worst hands will gain you some credibility when you do raise. Obviously, it's a much different game HU and you'll need to go with some pretty ugly hands, but starting with TQKAA crosses over into suicidal. If he'll fold often go ahead and take a shot but if you get called just take your lumps and draw five.

It's really a bad idea to try a snow when you're holding high cards. Save it for when you are dealt trip 2s or 2 low pairs, something with low cards. The concept is that if you've got most of the twos the chance of someone else making a decent hand go way down. If you have all high cards and try to steal what do you think your opponent has when he calls? In a deck rich in low cards it would be foolish to think you could pull it off.

I like to hold a 2 or some kind of decent draw, 24, 835, 345, something to build on. Even a 467T 1 card draw, or a pat 5789J as a semi snow. These actually may play well heads up on a steal. Depending on how the hand plays out you'll know where you are at. As long as he's drawing you've got a chance.

goldog

Goldog said:

In the 8-Game tournaments when it gets HU you've got to be aggressive, but use some common sense. Folding your worst hands will gain you some credibility when you do raise. Obviously, it's a much different game HU and you'll need to go with some pretty ugly hands, but starting with TQKAA crosses over into suicidal. If he'll fold often go ahead and take a shot but if you get called just take your lumps and draw five.

It's really a bad idea to try a snow when you're holding high cards. Save it for when you are dealt trip 2s or 2 low pairs, something with low cards. The concept is that if you've got most of the twos the chance of someone else making a decent hand go way down. If you have all high cards and try to steal what do you think your opponent has when he calls? In a deck rich in low cards it would be foolish to think you could pull it off.

I like to hold a 2 or some kind of decent draw, 24, 835, 345, something to build on. Even a 467T 1 card draw, or a pat 5789J as a semi snow. These actually may play well heads up on a steal. Depending on how the hand plays out you'll know where you are at. As long as he's drawing you've got a chance.

goldog

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Great post. My bad, I didn't see that the opponent folded. On the 'draw 5', good chance your hand will improve markedly from the crap he was holding. But your opponent not only sees that but draws 1, be ready to fold immediately.

On the 5789J, if it's NL single-draw, that could easily be a winner at a 6-man table. The 'average' winner seems to be J or Q high. Triple draw, maybe a 9-high.