Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most complicated but favored poker games. It’s a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites action from all levels of players. This is the main reason why a once obscure variation, has increased in popularity so amazingly.
Omaha 8 or better begins like a regular game of Omaha. Four cards are handed out to every player. A sequence of wagering ensues where gamblers can bet, check, or fold. Three cards are handed out, this is called the flop. One more sequence of betting happens. Once all the players have in turn called or folded, a further card is revealed on the turn. a further sequence of betting happens and then the river card is revealed. The gamblers must attempt to put together the best high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is the point where many entrants can get flustered. Unlike Hold’em, where the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha hi low the player has to utilize exactly three cards on the board, and exactly two hole cards. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot may be won: the "higher hand" or the "lower hand."
A high hand is exactly what it sounds like. It’s the best hand out of every player’s, whether that is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It is the very same notion in nearly all poker games.
A lower hand is more complicated, but really opens up the action. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the worst hand that might be made, with the worst being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Considering that 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 lower. The low hand takes half of the pot, as just like the high hand. When there’s no low hand available, the higher hand wins the entire pot.
While it seems difficult at the start, following a few hands you will be agile enough to get the base subtleties of the game with ease. Seeing as you have people betting for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as such a large number of cards are being used at once, Omaha/8 provides an overwhelming assortment of betting possibilities and seeing that you have numerous individuals battling for the high, along with several shooting 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 participate in Omaha/8.