Heads Up Poker Dealing Rules
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34: Button in Heads-up. Heads-up, the small blind is the button, is dealt the last card, and acts first pre-flop and last on all other betting rounds. Starting heads-up play, the button may need to be adjusted to ensure no player has the big blind twice in a row. 35: Misdeals and Fouled Decks. When there are only two players the game is called 'Heads Up'. First Dealer To determine who begins the game, a single card is dealt face up to each player; high card will be the first 'Dealer (D)'. (High card is Ace, followed by; K, Q, J, 10 etc.) The Dealer position is indicated by a white plastic chip referred to as the button. Get the Official Rules of Tournament Poker. Sign In / Register. The new limits apply on the next deal. (A deal begins with the first riffle of the shuffle.). In heads-up play with two. When you enter a game, you must make a full buy-in for that particular game. 7 Card Stud Heads Up Poker Strategy Playing any heads up poker game is a huge challenge, and is a completely different animal compared to a regular full table or even short handed play. I personally love playing heads up at AbsolutePoker.com where the population in the 7 Card Stud tables let me really get to know most of the players.
Introduction
Poker Dealing Rules
Heads Up Hold 'Em is an Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em variant by Galaxy Gaming, based on Texas Hold 'Em. The player may raise his bet one time, and has three opportunities to do so. The earlier he raises, the more he can bet. The main differences between Heads Up Hold 'Em and Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em are in the former the player may raise only 3x his Ante bet before the flop, but the game includes bad beat bonuses for losing with a straight or higher.
Rules
Following are the rules for Heads Up Hold 'Em. For those used to the terminology in Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em, what is called the Blind there called the Odds bet here.
- The game is played with a single ordinary 52-card deck.
- The player must make an equal bet on both the Ante and Odds.
- Two cards are dealt face down to the player and dealer. The player may look at his own cards.
- The player can check or make a Play bet equal to three times the Ante.
- The dealer turns over three community cards.
- If the player previously checked, then he may make a Play bet equal to two times his Ante or check again. If the player already made a Play bet, then he may not bet further.
- Two final community cards are turned over.
- If the player previously checked twice, then he must either make a Play bet equal to exactly his Ante, or fold, losing both his Ante and Odds bets. If the player already raised he may not bet further.
- The player and dealer will both make the best possible hand using any combination of their own two cards and the five community cards.
- The dealer will need at least a pair to open.
- The following table shows how the Ante, Odds, and Play bets are scored, according to who wins, and whether the dealer opens.
Scoring Rules
Winner Dealer Opens Ante Play Odds Player Yes Win Win See rule 12 Player No Push Win See rule 12 Dealer Yes Lose Lose See rule 12 Dealer No Push Lose Lose Tie Yes or No Push Push Push - Winning Ante and Play bets pay 1 to 1. Winning Odds bets pay according to value of the hand and whether it wins or loses. The following pay table shows what winning Odds bets pay.
Winning Odds Bet Pay Table
Hand Pays Royal Flush 500 Straight Flush 50 Quads 10 Full House 3 Flush 1.5 Straight 1 All Other Push Galaxy Gaming, the game owner, has four different pay tables for losing blind bets, as follows.
Losing Odds Bet Pay Table
Hand Pay Table 1 2 3 4 Straight Flush 500 500 500 500 Quads 50 50 50 25 Full House 10 10 10 6 Flush 8 6 5 5 Straight 5 5 4 4 All Other Loss Loss Loss Loss - In addition, there are two side bets, that pay based on the player's cards only, the Trips Plus and Pocket Bonus. These side bets are explained after the analysis of the base game.
Strategy
The player should make the 3X raise with any pair except deuces. Otherwise, use the following table shows when to make the large 3X raise.
.jpg "Heads Up Poker Dealing Rules")
The strategy for the medium and small raise are the same as in Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em, as follows:
Medium Raise: Make the 2X raise with any of the following:
- Two pair or better.
- Hidden pair*, except pocket deuces.
- Four to a flush including a hidden 10 or better to that flush
Dealing Poker Cards
* Hidden pair = Any pair with at least one card in your hole cards (thus the pair is hidden to the dealer).
Small Raise: Make the 1X raise with any of the following, otherwise fold:
- Hidden pair or better.
- Less than 21 dealer outs beat you.
For a more powerful small and medium raise strategy, I recommend the James Grossjean strategy card for Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em.
Analysis
The following table shows all possible outcomes of each hand, what it pays, the probability, and contribution to the return under the losing Odds bet pay table number 1 (the one that goes 500-50-10-8-5). The lower right cell shows a house edge of 2.36%.
Return TableExpand
| Player | Raise | Dealer Qualifies | Winner | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fold | -2 | 5,498,078,560,920 | 0.197674 | -0.395349 | |||
| Less than pair | 1 | No | Dealer | -2 | 60,518,663,424 | 0.002176 | -0.004352 |
| Straight flush | 1 | Yes | Dealer | 498 | 20,279,100 | 0.000001 | 0.000363 |
| Four of a kind | 1 | Yes | Dealer | 48 | 1,726,735,980 | 0.000062 | 0.002980 |
| Full house | 1 | Yes | Dealer | 8 | 10,082,720,220 | 0.000363 | 0.002900 |
| Flush | 1 | Yes | Dealer | 6 | 49,072,032,216 | 0.001764 | 0.010586 |
| Straight | 1 | Yes | Dealer | 3 | 47,952,010,720 | 0.001724 | 0.005172 |
| Less than straight | 1 | Yes | Dealer | -3 | 3,006,630,550,164 | 0.108098 | -0.324295 |
| Anything | 1 | Y/N | Push | 0 | 455,081,939,824 | 0.016362 | 0.000000 |
| Royal flush | 1 | No | Player | 501 | 6,914,880 | 0.000000 | 0.000125 |
| Straight flush | 1 | No | Player | 51 | 279,004,320 | 0.000010 | 0.000512 |
| Four of a kind | 1 | No | Player | 11 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Full house | 1 | No | Player | 4 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Flush | 1 | No | Player | 2.5 | 43,096,215,600 | 0.001549 | 0.003874 |
| Straight | 1 | No | Player | 2 | 145,034,240,580 | 0.005214 | 0.010429 |
| Less than straight | 1 | No | Player | 1 | 816,981,676,824 | 0.029373 | 0.029373 |
| Royal flush | 1 | Yes | Player | 502 | 46,580,760 | 0.000002 | 0.000841 |
| Straight flush | 1 | Yes | Player | 52 | 2,023,968,588 | 0.000073 | 0.003784 |
| Four of a kind | 1 | Yes | Player | 12 | 964,337,328 | 0.000035 | 0.000416 |
| Full house | 1 | Yes | Player | 5 | 46,108,374,192 | 0.001658 | 0.008289 |
| Flush | 1 | Yes | Player | 3.5 | 202,016,746,236 | 0.007263 | 0.025421 |
| Straight | 1 | Yes | Player | 3 | 421,268,280,080 | 0.015146 | 0.045438 |
| Less than straight | 1 | Yes | Player | 2 | 1,600,861,520,204 | 0.057556 | 0.115113 |
| Less than pair | 2 | No | Dealer | -3 | 11,023,268,784 | 0.000396 | -0.001189 |
| Straight flush | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 497 | 16,724,460 | 0.000001 | 0.000299 |
| Four of a kind | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 47 | 311,575,460 | 0.000011 | 0.000527 |
| Full house | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 7 | 18,705,932,580 | 0.000673 | 0.004708 |
| Flush | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 5 | 27,615,003,664 | 0.000993 | 0.004964 |
| Straight | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 2 | 21,031,977,440 | 0.000756 | 0.001512 |
| Less than straight | 2 | Yes | Dealer | -4 | 1,979,644,169,384 | 0.071175 | -0.284699 |
| Anything | 2 | Y/N | Push | 0 | 214,144,135,720 | 0.007699 | 0.000000 |
| Royal flush | 2 | No | Player | 502 | 11,938,680 | 0.000000 | 0.000215 |
| Straight flush | 2 | No | Player | 52 | 397,598,400 | 0.000014 | 0.000743 |
| Four of a kind | 2 | No | Player | 12 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Full house | 2 | No | Player | 5 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Flush | 2 | No | Player | 3.5 | 45,718,738,920 | 0.001644 | 0.005753 |
| Straight | 2 | No | Player | 3 | 53,068,201,380 | 0.001908 | 0.005724 |
| Less than straight | 2 | No | Player | 2 | 1,207,385,216,712 | 0.043410 | 0.086819 |
| Royal flush | 2 | Yes | Player | 503 | 147,692,880 | 0.000005 | 0.002671 |
| Straight flush | 2 | Yes | Player | 53 | 3,016,851,612 | 0.000108 | 0.005749 |
| Four of a kind | 2 | Yes | Player | 13 | 20,440,911,312 | 0.000735 | 0.009554 |
| Full house | 2 | Yes | Player | 6 | 320,575,227,408 | 0.011526 | 0.069155 |
| Flush | 2 | Yes | Player | 4.5 | 183,447,763,404 | 0.006596 | 0.029680 |
| Straight | 2 | Yes | Player | 4 | 158,035,798,360 | 0.005682 | 0.022728 |
| Less than straight | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 3 | 2,415,318,761,280 | 0.086839 | 0.260516 |
| Less than pair | 3 | No | Dealer | -4 | 66,873,993,600 | 0.002404 | -0.009617 |
| Straight flush | 3 | Yes | Dealer | 496 | 14,499,400 | 0.000001 | 0.000259 |
| Four of a kind | 3 | Yes | Dealer | 46 | 316,891,120 | 0.000011 | 0.000524 |
| Full house | 3 | Yes | Dealer | 6 | 13,387,474,080 | 0.000481 | 0.002888 |
| Flush | 3 | Yes | Dealer | 4 | 20,484,007,080 | 0.000736 | 0.002946 |
| Straight | 3 | Yes | Dealer | 1 | 22,371,396,720 | 0.000804 | 0.000804 |
| Less than straight | 3 | Yes | Dealer | -5 | 3,136,124,565,400 | 0.112754 | -0.563771 |
| Anything | 3 | Y/N | Push | 0 | 223,641,379,520 | 0.008041 | 0.000000 |
| Royal flush | 3 | No | Player | 503 | 86,472,360 | 0.000003 | 0.001564 |
| Straight flush | 3 | No | Player | 53 | 180,911,880 | 0.000007 | 0.000345 |
| Four of a kind | 3 | No | Player | 13 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Full house | 3 | No | Player | 6 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Flush | 3 | No | Player | 4.5 | 41,791,833,360 | 0.001503 | 0.006762 |
| Straight | 3 | No | Player | 4 | 64,386,219,840 | 0.002315 | 0.009260 |
| Less than straight | 3 | No | Player | 3 | 1,317,173,128,560 | 0.047357 | 0.142070 |
| Royal flush | 3 | Yes | Player | 504 | 556,552,440 | 0.000020 | 0.010085 |
| Straight flush | 3 | Yes | Player | 54 | 1,444,036,640 | 0.000052 | 0.002804 |
| Four of a kind | 3 | Yes | Player | 14 | 21,003,399,360 | 0.000755 | 0.010572 |
| Full house | 3 | Yes | Player | 7 | 261,421,403,040 | 0.009399 | 0.065793 |
| Flush | 3 | Yes | Player | 5.5 | 199,160,655,360 | 0.007160 | 0.039383 |
| Straight | 3 | Yes | Player | 5 | 195,058,020,480 | 0.007013 | 0.035065 |
| Less than straight | 3 | Yes | Player | 4 | 3,140,424,343,760 | 0.112909 | 0.451635 |
| Total | 27,813,810,024,000 | 1.000000 | -0.023584 | ||||
As shown in the lower right cell, the house edge is 2.36%. This is the expected loss to the Ante wager only. For example, if the player bets $5 on both the Ante and Odds, then his expected loss would be $5 × 0.023584 = 11.79¢.
The average final wager per hand is 3.67 units. That makes the element of risk 2.36%/3.67 = 0.64%. This means for every dollar you wager in the game, on anything, other than the side bets, you can expect to lose 0.64¢.
By comparison, the element of risk in Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em is 0.53%.
The standard deviation, relative to to the Ante bet, is 4.56.
The next table shows the house edge and element of risk under all four losing Odds bet pay tables according to the pay table for a losing Odds bet.
House Edge Summary
| Hand | Losing Odds Bet Pay Table | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| Straight Flush | 500 | 500 | 500 | 500 |
| Quads | 50 | 50 | 50 | 25 |
| Full House | 10 | 10 | 10 | 6 |
| Flush | 8 | 6 | 5 | 5 |
| Straight | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
| All Other | Loss | Loss | Loss | Loss |
| House edge | 2.36% | 3.06% | 3.73% | 4.55% |
| Element of Risk | 0.64% | 0.83% | 1.02% | 1.24% |
This is full table cloth.
Trips Plus
The Trips Plus bet will pay according to the poker value of the player's hand regardless of the value of the dealer's hand. Following is an analysis of the most common pay table.
Trips Plus Return Table
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal flush | 100 | 4,324 | 0.000032 | 0.003232 |
| Straight flush | 40 | 37,260 | 0.000279 | 0.011140 |
| Four of a kind | 30 | 224,848 | 0.001681 | 0.050420 |
| Full house | 8 | 3,473,184 | 0.025961 | 0.207688 |
| Flush | 7 | 4,047,644 | 0.030255 | 0.211785 |
| Straight | 4 | 6,180,020 | 0.046194 | 0.184775 |
| Three of a kind | 3 | 6,461,620 | 0.048299 | 0.144896 |
| All other | -1 | 113,355,660 | 0.847300 | -0.847300 |
| Total | 133,784,560 | 1.000000 | -0.033363 |
The next table shows four known pay tables for the Trips Plus.
Trips Plus Pay Tables
| Hand | Pay Table | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| Royal flush | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| Straight flush | 40 | 40 | 40 | 40 |
| Four of a kind | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 |
| Full house | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 |
| Flush | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 |
| Straight | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 |
| Three of a kind | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| All other | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
| Total | -0.74% | -1.74% | -3.34% | -4.34% |
Pocket Bonus
The Pocket Bonus bet will pay according to the value of the player's two hole cards. The follow tables show what each two cards pays, the probability, and contribution to the total return for each known pay table for the Pocket Bonus.
Pocket Bonus — Pay Table 1
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pair of aces | 30 | 6 | 0.004525 | 0.135747 |
| Ace & face suited | 20 | 12 | 0.009050 | 0.180995 |
| Ace & face unsuited | 10 | 36 | 0.027149 | 0.271493 |
| Pair 2s - Ks | 5 | 72 | 0.054299 | 0.271493 |
| Loser | -1 | 1,200 | 0.904977 | -0.904977 |
| Total | 1,326 | 1.000000 | -0.045249 |
Pocket Bonus — Pay Table 2
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pair of aces | 25 | 6 | 0.004525 | 0.113122 |
| Ace & face suited | 20 | 12 | 0.009050 | 0.180995 |
| Ace & face unsuited | 10 | 36 | 0.027149 | 0.271493 |
| Pair 2s - Ks | 5 | 72 | 0.054299 | 0.271493 |
| Loser | -1 | 1,200 | 0.904977 | -0.904977 |
| Total | 1,326 | 1.000000 | -0.067873 |
Pocket Bonus — Pay Table 3
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pair of aces | 30 | 6 | 0.004525 | 0.135747 |
| Ace & face suited | 20 | 12 | 0.009050 | 0.180995 |
| Ace & face unsuited | 10 | 36 | 0.027149 | 0.271493 |
| Pair 2s - Ks | 4 | 72 | 0.054299 | 0.217195 |
| Loser | -1 | 1,200 | 0.904977 | -0.904977 |
| Total | 1,326 | 1.000000 | -0.099548 |
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank Charles Mousseau and Stephen How for their assistance, which confirmed my analysis. Thanks to Charles also for his advice on the medium and small raise strategy.
Internal Links
Poker Dealing Courses
Detailed calculations on some starting hands.
Extneral Links
Play Heads Up Hold 'Em at the Galaxy Gaming web site. One click and you're playing.
Written by:Michael Shackleford- Whenever possible, all rules are the same as those that apply to live games.
- Initial seating is determined by random draw or assignment. (For a one-table satellite event, cards to determine seating may be left faceup so the earlier entrants can pick their seat, since the button is assigned randomly.)
- A change of seat is not allowed after play starts, except as assigned by the director.
- The appropriate starting amount of chips will be placed on the table for each paid entrant at the beginning of the event, whether the person is present or not. Absent players will be dealt in, and all chips necessary for antes and blinds will be put into the pot.
- If a paid entrant is absent at the start of an event, at some point an effort will be made to locate and contact the player. If the player requests the chips be left in place until arrival, the request will be honored. If the player is unable to be contacted, the chips may be removed from play at the discretion of the director anytime after a new betting level has begun or a half-hour has elapsed, whichever occurs first.
- A starting stack of chips can be placed in a seat to accommodate late entrants (so all antes and blinds have been appropriately paid). An unsold seat will have such a stack removed at a time left to the discretion of the director.
- Limits and blinds are raised at regularly scheduled intervals.
- If there is a signal designating the end of a betting level, the new limits apply on the next deal. (A deal begins with the first riffle of the shuffle.)
- The lowest denomination of chip in play is removed from the table when it is no longer needed in the blind or ante structure. All lower-denomination chips that are of sufficient quantity for a new chip will be changed up directly. The method for removal of odd chips is to deal one card to a player for each odd chip possessed. Cards are dealt clockwise starting with the No. 1 seat, with each player receiving all cards before any cards are dealt to the next player. The player with the highest card by suit gets enough odd chips to exchange for one new chip, the second-highest card gets to exchange for the next chip, and so forth, until all the lower-denomination chips are exchanged. If an odd number of lower-denomination chips are left after this process, the player with the highest card remaining receives a new chip if he has half or more of the quantity of lower-denomination chips needed, otherwise nothing.
- An absent player is always dealt a hand, and is put up for blinds, antes, and the forced bet if low.
- A player must be present at the table to stop the action by calling 'time.'
- A player must be at his seat when the first card is dealt on the initial deal or he will have a dead hand. “At your seat” means within reach of your chair. This rule is not intended to condone players being out of their seats while involved in a hand.
- As players are eliminated, tables are broken in a pre-set order, with players from the broken tables assigned to empty seats at other tables.
- The number of players at each table is kept reasonably balanced by the transfer of a player as needed. With more than six tables, table size is kept within two players. With six tables or fewer, table size is kept within one player.
- In all events, there is a redraw for seating when the field is reduced to three tables, two tables, and one table. (Redrawing at three tables is not mandatory in small tournaments with only four or five starting tables.)
- A player who declares all in and loses the pot, then discovers that one or more chips were hidden, is not entitled to benefit from this. That player is eliminated from the tournament if the opponent had sufficient chips to cover the hidden ones (A rebuy is permitted if allowable by the rules of that event). If another deal has not yet started, the director may rule the chips belong to the opponent who won that pot, if that obviously would have happened with the chips out in plain view. If the next deal has started, the discovered chips are removed from the tournament.
- If a player lacks sufficient chips for a blind or a forced bet, the player is entitled to get action on whatever amount of money remains. A player who posts a short blind and wins does not need to make up the blind.
- All players must leave their seats immediately after being eliminated from an event.
- Showing cards from a live hand during the action injures the rights of other players still competing in an event, who wish to see contestants eliminated. A player may not show any cards during a deal (unless the event has only two remaining players). If a player deliberately shows a card, that hand may be ruled dead and the player penalized.
- Inappropriate behavior like throwing cards that go off the table may be punished with a penalty such as being dealt out for a length of time. A severe infraction such as abusive or disruptive behavior may be punished by eviction from the tournament.
- The deck is not changed on request. Decks change when the dealers change, unless there is a damaged card.
- In all tournament games using a dealer button, the starting position of the button is determined by dealing for the high card.
- The dealer button remains in position until the appropriate blinds are taken. Players must post all blinds every round. Because of this, the button may stay in front of the same player for two consecutive hands.
- New players are dealt in immediately unless they sit down in the small blind or button position. In these two cases, they must wait until the button passes.
- In heads-up play with two blinds, the small blind is on the button.
- At stud, if a downcard on the initial hand is dealt face up, a misdeal is called.
- If a player announces the intent to rebuy before cards are dealt, that player is playing behind and is obligated to make the rebuy.
- All hands are turned face up whenever a player is all in and betting action is complete.
- If two (or more) players go broke during the same hand, the player starting the hand with the larger amount of money finishes in the higher tournament place for point and cash awards.
- Management is not required to rule on any private deals, side bets, or redistribution of the prize pool among finalists.
- Private agreements by remaining players in an event regarding distribution of the prize pool are not condoned. (However, if such an agreement is made, the director has the option of ensuring that it is carried out by paying those amounts.) Any private agreement that excludes one or more active competitors is improper by definition.
- A tournament event is expected to be played until completion. A private agreement that removes all prize money from being at stake in the competition is unethical.
- Management retains the right to cancel any event, or alter it in a manner fair to the players.