Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most complex but popular poker games. It is a variation that, even more than regular Omaha poker, invites play from every level of players. This is the main reason why a once invisible game, has increased in acceptance so rapidly.
Omaha/8 starts like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are dealt to each player. A round of wagering follows in which gamblers can bet, check, or drop out. 3 cards are handed out, this is called the flop. One more round of betting ensues. After all the gamblers have in turn called or folded, an additional card is flipped on the turn. an additional sequence of wagering happens and then the river card is revealed. The gamblers will have to put together the strongest high and low 5 card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is where a few entrants can get flustered. Contrasted to Hold’em, in which the board can be every player’s hand, in Omaha hi low the player has to utilize precisely 3 cards from the board, and exactly 2 hole cards. No more, not a single card less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot could be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is exactly how it sounds. It is the best hand out of everyone’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It is the very same concept in just about all poker games.
A low hand is more complicated, but really free’s up the action. When figuring out a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the weakest hand that could be put together, with the lowest value being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Because straights and flushes do not 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 just like the higher hand. When there’s no lower hand available, the higher hand wins the whole pot.
Although it seems complex at the outset, following a few rounds you will be agile enough to get the basic subtleties of play with ease. Seeing as you have players betting for the low and wagering for the high, and seeing as so many cards are in play, Omaha/8 offers an overwhelming array of betting options and owing to the fact that you have many players trying for the high hand, as well as many battling for the low hand. If you like a game with a lot of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to compete in Omaha hi/lo.