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Omaha Hi-Low: General Outline
Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is commonly viewed as one of the most complex but favored poker variations. It’s a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites play from every level of players. This is the main reason why a once obscure variation, has expanded in acceptance so quickly.
Omaha Hi-Lo starts exactly like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are handed out to each player. A sequence of wagering follows in which players can bet, check, or fold. Three cards are dealt out, this is referred to as the flop. A further sequence of wagering happens. After all the players have in turn called or folded, another card is flipped on the turn. Another sequence of betting follows and then the river card is revealed. The entrants must attempt to make the strongest high and low 5 card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is where a number of players can get baffled. Unlike Holdem, where the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha hi/low the player must use exactly three cards on the board, and exactly two cards from their hand. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Contrary to regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot could be won: the "higher hand" or the "lower hand."
A high hand is just what it sounds like. It’s the best hand out of every player’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house. It’s the same notion in just about all poker games.
The lower hand is more difficult, but certainly opens up the action. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that can be put together, with the lowest being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Because straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest value hand possible. The lower hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and lower. The low hand wins half of the pot, as does the higher hand. When there is no lower hand presented, the higher hand takes the whole pot.
Although it seems complex at the start, following a couple of hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the fundamental nuances of play easily enough. Since you have individuals betting for the low and wagering for the high, and since such a large number of cards are being used at once, Omaha/8 provides an overwhelming assortment of wagering possibilities and because you have many individuals trying for the high hand, and many trying for the low hand. If you love a game with a plethora of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to participate in Omaha/8.