Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is commonly seen as one of the most difficult but well-loved poker games. It’s a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites action from every level of players. This is the main reason why a once obscure variation, has grown in acceptance so quickly.
Omaha Hi-Lo starts just like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are given out to each player. A round of betting ensues in which gamblers can wager, check, or fold. Three cards are given out, this is known as the flop. A further sequence of betting ensues. After all the players have either called or folded, an additional card is revealed on the turn. Another sequence of wagering happens at which point the river card is flipped. The players must attempt to put together the best high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is the point where a few entrants often get baffled. Unlike Hold’em, in which the board can make up everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi/low the player must utilize exactly 3 cards on the board, and exactly two cards from their hand. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Contrary to normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot could be won: the "high hand" or the "lower hand."
A high hand is just how it sounds. It’s the best hand out of everyone’s, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house. It’s the same concept in almost all poker games.
The lower hand is more complex, but really free’s up the action. When determining a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. the lowest hand is the weakest hand that might be made, with the worst being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Considering that straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the worst possible hand. The low hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and lower. The lower hand wins half of the pot, as just like the high hand. When there is no lower hand available, the higher hand takes the whole pot.
It may seem complex at the outset, after a couple of hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the fundamental subtleties of play easily enough. Since you have people wagering for the low and wagering for the high, and since so many cards are in play, Omaha hi-low offers an exciting collection of wagering choices and seeing that you have many players trying for the high hand, and a few battling for the low. If you enjoy a game with a plethora of outs and actions, it’s not a waste of your time to play Omaha hi lo.
