Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most complex but well-loved poker games. It’s a game that, even more than regular Omaha poker, aims for action from every level of players. This is the primary reason why a once obscure variation, has grown in acceptance so amazingly.
Omaha/8 begins just like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are given out to each player. A sequence of wagering ensues where players can bet, check, or drop out. Three cards are given out, this is called the flop. A further round of betting happens. After all the players have either called or folded, another card is revealed on the turn. an additional round of betting happens and then the river card is flipped. The players will need to make the strongest high and low 5 card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is the point where some entrants can get confused. Contrasted to Holdem, in which the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha Hi-Lo the player must utilize precisely 3 cards on the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are two ways a pot may be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is just what it sounds like. It is the best possible hand out of everyone’s, whether that is a straight, flush, full house. It is the same notion in just about all poker games.
The lower hand is more complicated, but certainly opens up the action. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the weakest hand that might be put together, with the lowest being A-2-3-4-5. Since straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the worst possible hand. The low hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and below. The low hand wins half of the pot, as just like the high hand. When there’s no low hand presented, the higher hand takes the whole pot.
Although it seems difficult at the outset, following a few hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the fundamental subtleties of the game easily enough. Since you have people betting for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as so many cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better offers an amazing range of wagering choices and because you have numerous individuals battling for the high, and many trying for the low hand. If you love a game with a lot of outs and actions, it is worth your time to compete in Omaha hi/lo.
