Omaha Strategy

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Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is frequently viewed as one of the most complicated but favored poker games. It’s a game that, even more than regular Omaha poker, aims for play from all levels of players. This is the chief reason why a once invisible variation, has increased in acceptance so quickly.

Omaha/8 starts just like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are dealt to every player. A round of betting ensues in which players can wager, check, or fold. Three cards are given out, this is referred to as the flop. A further sequence of betting ensues. After all the players have either called or dropped out, another card is flipped on the turn. Another round of betting happens at which point the river card is flipped. The entrants will have to put together the best high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.

This is where a number of players get confused. Contrasted to Holdem, in which the board can make up everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi lo the player has to use precisely 3 cards from the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. Not a single card more, no less. Contrary to regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot can be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."

A high hand is just what it sounds like. It’s the strongest hand out of every player’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It is the identical concept in just about all poker games.

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

It may seem difficult initially, after a couple of rounds you will be able to pick up on the fundamental subtleties of play simply enough. Since you have individuals betting for the low and betting for the high, and since such a large number of cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better provides an amazing assortment of wagering choices and because you have several individuals battling for the high hand, as well as many battling for the low. If you prefer a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it’s not a waste of your time to play Omaha 8 or better.