Omaha Hi-Low: Fundamental Summary
Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is frequently viewed as one of the most difficult but popular poker variations. It is a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for action from every level of players. This is the main reason why a once irrelevant game, has grown in popularity so rapidly.
Omaha 8 or better starts like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are given out to each player. A round of betting ensues in which players can bet, check, or fold. Three cards are handed out, this is called the flop. One more round of wagering happens. After all the players have either called or folded, a further card is flipped on the turn. Another sequence of wagering follows at which point the river card is revealed. The gamblers will have to put together the best high and low 5 card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is the point where some players often get baffled. Unlike Texas Hold ‘Em, where the board can be every player’s hand, in Omaha hi-low the player has to use exactly 3 cards from the board, and precisely 2 cards from their hand. No more, not a single card less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot may 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 notion in almost every poker game.
The lower hand is more complicated, but really free’s up the action. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. A low hand is the weakest hand that could be put together, with the lowest being A-2-3-4-5. Seeing as straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the worst possible hand. The lower hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and smaller. The low hand takes half of the pot, as just like the higher hand. When there’s no lower hand available, the high hand wins the whole pot.
It may seem complicated at the start, after a couple of rounds you will be agile enough to get the base subtleties of play with ease. Seeing as you have people betting for the low and wagering for the high, and seeing as so many cards are in play, Omaha/8 provides an amazing range of wagering choices and owing to the fact that you have numerous players trying for the high hand, along with a few trying for the low hand. If you like a game with a lot of outs and actions, it is worth your time to participate in Omaha 8 or better.