Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is frequently seen as one of the most complicated but popular poker games. It is a variation that, even more than regular Omaha poker, invites action from all levels of players. This is the primary reason why a once obscure game, has expanded in acceptance so amazingly.
Omaha/8 begins like a regular game of Omaha. 4 cards are dealt to each player. A round of wagering ensues in which gamblers can bet, check, or drop out. 3 cards are given out, this is referred to as the flop. One more sequence of wagering happens. After all the gamblers have either called or dropped out, an additional card is flipped on the turn. an additional sequence of betting follows at which point the river card is flipped. The entrants must attempt to make the strongest high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is where a number of players can get baffled. Unlike Texas Hold ‘Em, in which the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha Hi-Lo the player must utilize precisely 3 cards on the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot may be won: the "high hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is just how it sounds. It’s the best possible hand out of everyone’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house. It is the same concept in just about every poker game.
The low hand is more complicated, but certainly opens up the play. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. the lowest hand is the weakest hand that might be made, with the lowest value being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Considering that straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest value hand possible. The lower hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an eight and smaller. 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 at first, following a couple of hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the basic nuances of the game with ease. Since you have players 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 overwhelming assortment of wagering options and seeing that you have numerous players shooting for the high, along with a few trying for the low. If you like a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to participate in Omaha 8 or better.