Omaha Hi Lo: General Outline
Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is frequently seen as one of the most complex but popular poker variations. It’s a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for action from every level of players. This is the chief reason why a once invisible game, has expanded in popularity so quickly.
Omaha/8 begins like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are given out to every player. A round of betting follows where players can wager, check, or fold. Three cards are given out, this is known as the flop. One more round of wagering happens. Once all the gamblers have in turn called or dropped out, an additional card is revealed on the turn. Another sequence of wagering follows at which point the river card is flipped. The entrants will have to put together the best high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is where a number of players get confused. Unlike Holdem, in which the board can be every player’s hand, in Omaha hi/lo the player must utilize precisely 3 cards on the board, and precisely 2 cards from their hand. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Contrary to normal Omaha, there are two 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 everyone’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It’s the identical concept in almost all poker games.
A lower hand is more complicated, but certainly opens up the play. When determining a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the weakest hand that could be made, with the lowest being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Because straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest possible hand. The low hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and lower. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the higher hand. When there is no lower hand presented, the higher hand wins the whole pot.
Although it seems complicated at the start, after a couple of hands you will be agile enough to get the fundamental nuances of the game simply enough. Since you have people betting for the low and betting for the high, and since such a large number of cards are in play, Omaha/8 offers an overwhelming array of wagering possibilities and because you have many players shooting for the high, along with several battling for the low hand. If you enjoy a game with a lot of outs and actions, it is worth your time to play Omaha 8 or better.