Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most complex but well-loved poker variations. It’s a variation that, even more than regular Omaha poker, invites action from every level of players. This is the main reason why a once invisible variation, has grown in popularity so quickly.
Omaha Hi-Lo begins just like a regular game of Omaha. Four cards are handed out to each player. A round of betting follows in which players can wager, check, or drop out. 3 cards are dealt out, this is called the flop. One more sequence of wagering ensues. Once all the players have in turn called or dropped out, an additional card is revealed on the turn. Another round of wagering happens at which point the river card is revealed. The players will need to make the best high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is the point where a number of players often get baffled. Unlike Holdem, in which the board can be everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi low the player has to use precisely three cards from the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. No more, no less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot might be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is just how it sounds. It is the best hand out of every player’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house. It is the very same notion in just about all poker games.
The lower hand is more complicated, but really free’s up the play. When determining a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. the lowest hand is the weakest hand that can be put together, with the lowest being A-2-3-4-5. Because straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest value hand possible. The low hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and below. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the higher hand. When there’s no lower hand available, the higher hand takes the complete pot.
It may seem difficult at the start, after a couple of rounds you will be able to get the fundamental nuances of the game easily enough. Since you have individuals wagering for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as so many cards are in play, Omaha Hi-Lo provides an amazing array of betting choices and seeing that you have numerous individuals shooting for the high hand, and a few trying for the low hand. If you enjoy a game with a lot of outs and actions, it’s not a waste of your time to play Omaha/8.
