Omaha Strategy

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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 favored poker games. It’s a variation that, even more than regular Omaha poker, invites play from every level of players. This is the main reason why a once irrelevant game, has grown in popularity so quickly.

Omaha/8 begins exactly like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are dealt to each player. A round of betting ensues in which gamblers can wager, check, or drop out. Three cards are given out, this is referred to as the flop. A further sequence of betting ensues. Once all the players have either called or folded, an additional card is flipped on the turn. Another round of betting ensues and then the river card is revealed. The entrants will need to make the best high and low 5 card hands based on the board and hole cards.

This is the point where a few entrants often get flustered. Contrasted to Holdem, in which the board can be everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi lo the player has to use exactly 3 cards on the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. Not a single card more, no less. Contrary to regular Omaha, there are two ways a pot may be won: the "higher hand" or the "lower hand."

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

A lower hand is more difficult, but really opens up the play. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that might be put together, with the lowest being A-2-3-4-5. Since straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the smallest value hand possible. The lower hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and below. The low hand takes half of the pot, as just like the higher hand. When there is no low hand available, the higher hand takes the entire pot.

It may seem complex at the outset, after a few hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the base nuances of play easily enough. Since you have people betting for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as so many cards are in play, Omaha hi/low provides an exciting collection of betting options and because you have many players battling for the high hand, and many trying for the low. If you love a game with a lot of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to play Omaha/8.