07.21
Omaha Hi-Low: Fundamental Outline
Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is frequently viewed as one of the most difficult but popular poker games. It’s a game that, even more than regular Omaha poker, aims for action from all levels of players. This is the chief reason why a once obscure game, has grown in popularity so amazingly.
Omaha 8 or better begins just like a regular game of Omaha. 4 cards are given out to each player. A sequence of betting follows in which players can wager, check, or drop out. 3 cards are dealt out, this is known as the flop. A further round of betting ensues. After all the gamblers have in turn called or dropped out, an additional card is flipped on the turn. Another round of wagering follows at which point the river card is revealed. The entrants will need to put together the strongest high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is the point where a number of entrants can get baffled. Unlike Hold’em, in which the board can be everyone’s hand, in Omaha Hi-Lo the player must use precisely three cards on the board, and exactly 2 hole cards. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot could be won: the "high hand" or the "lower hand."
A high hand is just what it sounds like. It’s the best possible hand out of every player’s, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It is the very same notion in just about all poker games.
The low hand is more difficult, but certainly opens up the play. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that can be made, with the lowest value being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Since straights and flushes don’t 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 does the higher hand. When there is no low hand available, the higher hand takes the entire pot.
While it seems difficult at first, after a couple of rounds you will be able to pick up on the base subtleties of the game easily enough. Since you have players wagering for the low and wagering for the high, and seeing as such a large number of cards are being used at the same time, Omaha 8 or better offers an amazing assortment of betting possibilities and because you have numerous individuals trying for the high hand, as well as a few trying for the low hand. If you like a game with a considerable amount of outs and actions, it is worth your time to play Omaha hi low.