Omaha Secrets

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Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most complicated but well-loved poker games. It is a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for play from every level of players. This is the primary reason why a once obscure variation, has expanded in acceptance so quickly.

Omaha Hi-Lo starts just like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are given out to every player. A round of betting follows in which gamblers can bet, check, or drop out. Three cards are handed out, this is referred to as the flop. A further sequence of wagering ensues. After all the gamblers have in turn called or folded, a further card is revealed on the turn. Another round of wagering ensues and then the river card is flipped. The entrants will need to make the strongest high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.

This is where some players can get baffled. Unlike Hold’em, in which the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha hi-low the player must use exactly three cards from the board, and precisely 2 cards from their hand. Not a single card more, no less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are two ways a pot can be won: the "high hand" or the "low hand."

A high hand is exactly what it sounds like. It is the best hand out of everyone’s, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It’s the same notion in almost every poker game.

The lower hand is more difficult, but certainly free’s up the play. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. the lowest hand is the weakest hand that can be made, with the lowest value being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Seeing as straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the smallest value hand possible. The low hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and below. The lower hand takes half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there’s no lower hand available, the high hand takes the entire pot.

It may seem complex at the start, following a couple of rounds you will be able to get the basic subtleties of play with ease. Seeing as you have individuals wagering for the low and betting for the high, and since so many cards are being used at the same time, Omaha/8 provides an overwhelming collection of wagering possibilities and because you have many individuals shooting for the high, and several battling for the low. If you like a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it’s not a waste of your time to play Omaha/8.