Just to clear my head from ring games mainly, I've been playing a bit HU online lately. For one thing, I really need to work on my short-handed game at lower stakes and have at least a bit of an idea where to begin in HU play (I feel like I'm decent HU, but certainly not anything like a HU monster). Anyhow, here are a few ideas I've been experimenting with:

1) From the button, raise any hand that you want to play. As a general rule, I like about 3xBB, and it really doesn't matter if you're getting too many or too few calls. What this basically does is make those pots bigger where you have position. You also have some hand selection going on here, whatever it may be, and you force your opponent to think about his hand selection.

Only thing here is that you don't want to get tempted into making frivolous continuation bets. This is just a pure position raise. True, if you have enough control over your opponent to know he'll bet out if he improves and fold otherwise, you can bet to any check, but that's at least not part of the plan here. The idea is simply creating bigger pots on those hands where you have the positional advantage.

I will say that what got me started with this idea was a guy I played HU at the casino who would straddle every time from the button and play very tough from that position--often raising when I called his straddle. I found this very difficult to deal with but didn't really like the straddle myself since it seems like it has to be an advantage to see your cards before you take action. So, the "raise every time you want to play" was my own variation on it.

2) Out of position, autobet the turn (full pot). I've been liking this play in conjunction with a (for me) somewhat different way of playing the flop. If I flop 1st or 2nd pair (or obviously also, anything better than that), then I just check with the intention of checkraising if my opponent bets. If I bet out out of position, then I have bottom pair or something like A- or K-high. Obviously, you need to vary this strategy if you feel like your opponent is catching on, but that typically doesn't happen in the course of one match.

But this flop play gives a lot more power to your turn bet, which occurs when you have absolutely nothing, OR when you flopped a strong hand, OR when you actually did make some kind of hand on the turn.

Anyhow, these were just a couple of ideas that kind of came together as I was playing a little online this morning. I'd be interested in hearing what others think of these moves.

I mix up my play to better play my opponents strategy against him. If he is too weak, I raise it up like you describe, constant raising and banging at the flop, simmering down if the weak player finally wakes up or gets sick of me running over him. If he is too passive but willing to call with middle and bottom pair, I show him at least top pair. If they must see the turn no matter what I don't slow down but keep plugging away, if I think they have a draw and it misses I keep betting on the river.

If he is loose and aggressive, like the opponent you describe, I slow down a lot and pick spots to raise with something that figures to stand up, and see how that goes. If he doesn't go ape on me playing back at him, I let him steal a little and then find a spot with a hand or with out to take it back. If he goes ape when I have a strong enough hand to play back, I know I'm going to be able to break him if not this hand soon. Opponents that you put on the win a little lose a lot plan look like they have momentum but you are actually controlling them.

The best thing that can be said for raising any playable hand is that it inflates the pots that you win. I like it a lot more in tournament play, especially limit hold'em to always raise the SB/Button if you are going to play. NL cash game there is a time for limping and a time for raising and it has little to do with your cards and more with your opponents tendencies.

An example of when your ideas won't work in an aggressive HU game. .50/1 NL

My opponent doesn't like me raising his BB, I've given raising a go and always encountered resistance, I've decided to pass on the preflop raising and let him raise and play a flop. I'm a better post flop player than him and don't mind playing his raised pots and decided to wait for a hand to be making my moves. I've put him on the steal $5, lose $15+ plan in his raised pots, and try to break him in my raised pots.

I have about 250 and he has about 150ish. I catch AA in the SB/Button and raise it up to $4, he comes over the top for $15, I expected this and smooth call. Ragged undercard flop, I lead for $30 he raises to $100 even and I put him in. He shows 77 unimproved and doesn't get help. I assume he thought I had big A or would be willing to lay down TT/JJ.

An example of when it works well. .25/.50 NL the six max table is just me and this guy as the game has broken up I have about $100 and he has $75. A nice guy and we have been chatty and friendly while playing. I like chatty guys, and don't mind yapping it up.

I have been raising 3:5 hands and limping or folding once or twice in between. I've been taking a flop to a reraise with most anything that I'm raising unless my hand is caught in the cookie jar and he re-raises huge. I have a definitive chip advantage over this opponent and he is letting me steamroll him. I've been beating him with either a continuation bet or turn bluff with regularity. He falls into the weaker category of opponent and my read is pretty solid on him. I haven't really lost much nor won much. The problem is to win any real money outside of my raise, he is going to have to catch something to gamble on, and I probably can't beat his raise. I've shown him one bluff recently to generate action and have opted to tighten down for a few hands and pick it back up with a good starter or in a little bit.

I pick up QQ and pump up the pot my standard raise, he comes over the top, my raise and a bunch, I think it was about $10 to see the flop. I smooth call and intend on playing any flop that doesn't contain an A or K fast. Flop comes T high he leads for $10, I make it $30 he pushes I call and he shows AT and no help comes.

Relentlessly pounding this guy is the best approach, he will laydown a majority of hands. Being aware of your timing of when to slow it down and when to pick it up is crucial. You want to be the one dragging the stacked off pots and figuring out how to stack him. The raising him constantly is going to be annoying, and if I raise my bad hands I'm raising my good ones too, no reason to make a limp look strange.

i think both of those plays have a lot of merit. the most important thing hu is to get inside you opponents head and exploit his tendencies. thats why, in some sence, set plays like you use in a ring game are not as effective.
your absolutely right that you should be raising most of your playable hands from the sb/button. if its backwards like on some sites that changes your strategy considerably.
that said IMO there are lots of times when you want to deviate from this. if im playing against someone who plays weakly, and in specific, goes to far with mediocre hands and will lose a lot of money with weak hands irrespective of pot size, i will often limp. i do everything i can to try to manipulate him into limping every hand. this is my favorite situation in poker.
ii find i win a higher percentage in this situation then any other. as long as he can be manipulated on the later streets and the blinds are not inhibitive (like at the end of a tourny when all out aggression is your only way to play correctly) you can chip away, keeping the pot relatively small until a good situation comes around and then play a big pot with little risk.
that is just one example of player dependant situations where i vary from normally sound strategy.
heads up is psychological warfare, and while aggression, esp. from the sb/button is absolutley generally correct thair are times to deviate from everything even that.
gl
matty