Play NL HE post-flop can be pretty tricky. I think what you've encountered and what most people struggle with is people leading into you when you've raised pre-flop. The reason this is such an effective play is because it puts your opponent to a decision. For you, it must be a raise or fold spot. You need to have a pretty good line on your opponent. For instance, if he is the sort of player who will only bet with a legit hand, then you just gotta' lay it down and move on to the next hand. If the bet comes from a player who leads into flops frequently, especially when it looks like the flop doesn't hit the raiser, then maybe you should think about playing back at him all the way. Another instance where a raise might be appropriate would be when someone bets a small amount into you. This (most of the time, though be careful of traps) suggests weakness. A raise will probably win the pot for you.

Secondly--you wanted to know what hands you should play when play becomes shorthanded. Generally speaking, any A is probably good four-handed. If you're on the button, any medium-K or higher is usually a good semi-steal hand. Blind vs. Blind the rule I've stuck to is the Q8 rule. Any hand Q8 or stronger is better than your average blind hand.

Finally--Heads up is sort of a coin flip. You need to flop good to your hands heads up.

I would also recomend raising almost every time you have the button heads up. You don't have to make a huge raise, but just an average raise will suffice. You want to steal blinds, but also you want to represent strength when you have the advantage of acting last in a hand.


Hope this helps,