On the other side, in tournament style poker, players often do have really good hands. Therefore, good pre-flop hands, like Ace five, Ace six, Ace seven, and Ace eight, normally aren't strong after the flop. Other players could not only have an Ace, but also a better kicker. In tournament style poker, middle pair also isn't usually too strong. In heads up, however, having an Ace is a significant advantage for one of the players.
Playing heads up takes years to master, especially for players who feel more comfortable playing in a tournament setting. According to an article on tightpoker.com, "The weak of heart get steam rolled with extreme prejudice in heads-up poker." In other words, inexperienced players and players who simply crumble to aggressive bets would have an extremely hard time keeping pace in a heads up poker game. The format of playing heads up requires a player to constantly be aggressive, while maintaining his or her composure.
In regards for players who don't normally play heads up frequently, it is easy to get carried away. Most players don't realize how big of a discrepancy exists between playing in a tournament and playing heads up. In a tournament, the entire table is your enemy. You are forced to outcompete every other player at the tournament through wit, aggression, strategy, and even intimidation. In tournaments, players can usually succeed by playing their cards right and maximizing profits. However, in heads up, every hand is a toss up: a game of heads up is usually player one versus player two, whereas in a tournament, players won't raise the pot with bad hands.
In tournament style, players hardly ever bet or raise a lot with middle pair. However, in heads up, catching middle pair could potentially be a huge advantage. In a recent tournament that I played, my opponent raised 3 times the big blind pre-flop. I look down at my hand and see a suited 7 and 8 of clubs. I put my chips in and called his bet, already expecting him to make a continuation bet regardless of the flop.
The flop comes: 8 J 3. My opponent raises about half of the pot, I call. The turn card is a 4. This time he checks, and in my haste I throw out a bet about three-fourths the pot in a semi-bluff. Although I know I hit my eight, there is that chance that he could have trapped me with a monster hand. My opponent, however, took one last glance at his hand and folded. In heads up, I often raise with suited connectors: seven-eight, five-six, etc. However, in tournaments, players usually don't play these hands with large raises.
Sources: http://www.tightpoker.com/articles/heads_up_poker.html
http://media.cardplayer.com/
http://www.smh.com.au/ffximage/2007/07/06/poker_narrowweb__300x399,0.jpg
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