Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most complex but favored poker games. It’s a game that, even more than regular Omaha poker, aims for play from every level of players. This is the chief reason why a once irrelevant variation, has grown in popularity so amazingly.
Omaha hi lo begins exactly like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are given out to each player. A sequence of betting follows where gamblers can bet, check, or fold. 3 cards are handed out, this is called the flop. A further round of betting ensues. Once all the players have either called or folded, a further card is revealed on the turn. an additional sequence of betting ensues and then the river card is flipped. The entrants will have to make the best high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is the point where a number of entrants often get baffled. Unlike Hold’em, in which the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha hi-low the player must utilize precisely 3 cards on the board, and exactly two cards from their hand. Not a single card more, no less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot could be won: the "high hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is exactly what it sounds like. It is the best possible hand out of everyone’s, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house. It’s the identical concept in nearly every poker game.
A low hand is more complex, but certainly opens up the action. When figuring out a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the weakest hand that can be put together, with the worst being A-2-3-4-5. Since straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the smallest value hand possible. The low hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and below. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there is no lower hand presented, the high hand wins the complete pot.
While it seems complex initially, after a few hands you will be able to get the base subtleties of the game simply enough. Since you have people betting for the low and wagering for the high, and since such a large number of cards are being used at once, Omaha/8 offers an overwhelming array of betting options and because you have numerous players shooting for the high, along with several trying for the low. If you like a game with a plethora of outs and actions, it’s worth your time to compete in Omaha hi/low.
