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Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is frequently seen as one of the most complicated but popular poker games. It’s a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites play from all levels of players. This is the chief reason why a once irrelevant game, has grown in acceptance so rapidly.

Omaha 8 or better starts exactly like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are handed out to each player. A sequence of betting follows where gamblers can wager, check, or drop out. 3 cards are handed out, this is referred to as the flop. One more sequence of wagering happens. After all the gamblers have either called or folded, a further card is flipped on the turn. a further sequence of betting follows at which point the river card is flipped. The players will have to put together the strongest high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.

This is where some entrants get flustered. Unlike Texas Holdem, in which the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha Hi-Lo the player must utilize exactly 3 cards on the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. No more, no less. Contrary to regular Omaha, there are two ways a pot could be won: the "high hand" or the "lower hand."

A high hand is exactly what it sounds like. It’s the strongest hand out of everyone’s, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It is the identical notion in almost all poker games.

A low hand is more complicated, but certainly free’s up the play. When determining a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. the lowest hand is the weakest hand that could 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 worst possible hand. The lower hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and lower. The low hand takes half of the pot, as just like the high hand. When there is no lower hand available, the higher hand takes the whole pot.

It may seem difficult at the outset, after a few hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the basic nuances of play easily enough. Since you have players wagering for the low and betting for the high, and since so many cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better provides an overwhelming range of wagering choices and seeing that you have several players battling for the high hand, as well as many trying for the low hand. If you love a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it’s not a waste of your time to participate in Omaha/8.