Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is often times viewed as one of the most difficult but well-loved poker games. It’s a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for action from every level of players. This is the chief reason why a once irrelevant game, has increased in popularity so quickly.
Omaha Hi-Lo begins like a regular game of Omaha. Four cards are dealt to each player. A sequence of betting ensues in which gamblers can bet, check, or drop out. Three cards are handed out, this is known as the flop. A further round of betting happens. Once all the players have in turn called or dropped out, another card is revealed on the turn. a further sequence of betting ensues at which point the river card is flipped. The entrants will need to make the best high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is the point where a few entrants can get confused. Contrasted to Texas Hold ‘Em, where the board can make up everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi lo the player has to use exactly 3 cards on the board, and precisely two hole cards. Not a single card more, no less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are two ways a pot can be won: the "higher hand" or the "lower hand."
A high hand is exactly how it sounds. It is the best possible hand out of everyone’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It’s the identical notion in almost every poker game.
A lower hand is more complicated, but certainly free’s up the play. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. A low hand is the weakest hand that could be made, with the lowest being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Seeing as straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest possible hand. The lower hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and smaller. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the higher hand. When there’s no low hand presented, the higher hand wins the complete pot.
While it seems complicated at the outset, following a couple of hands you will be able to pick up on the fundamental subtleties of play with ease. Since you have people wagering for the low and wagering for the high, and seeing as such a large number of cards are being used at once, Omaha/8 offers an overwhelming range of wagering choices and because you have many players battling for the high hand, as well as several battling for the low hand. If you prefer a game with a considerable amount of outs and actions, it’s not a waste of your time to play Omaha hi low.
