Omaha Hi Lo: Basic Outline
March 25th, 2010 at 21:21
Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is commonly viewed as one of the most difficult but well-loved poker variations. It’s a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites play from every level of players. This is the main reason why a once irrelevant game, has increased in popularity so quickly.
Omaha 8 or better begins exactly like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are given out to every player. A sequence of wagering follows where gamblers can wager, check, or drop out. Three cards are handed out, this is known as the flop. Another round of wagering happens. Once all the players have either called or dropped out, an additional card is flipped on the turn. an additional round of betting happens at which point the river card is flipped. The gamblers will need to make the best high and low 5 card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is the point where a number of players often get flustered. Unlike Texas Hold ‘Em, where the board can be every player’s hand, in Omaha hi-low the player has to use exactly 3 cards from the board, and precisely two cards from their hand. Not a single card more, no less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are two ways a pot can 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 every player’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house. It’s the identical approach in nearly all poker games.
The low hand is more complex, but certainly opens up the action. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes don’t 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. Because 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 smaller. 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 whole pot.
Although it seems complicated at the outset, after a couple of hands you will be able to get the fundamental subtleties of the game with ease. Since you have individuals betting for the low and wagering for the high, and seeing as so many cards are being used at the same time, Omaha hi lo offers an overwhelming array of betting choices and because you have several individuals trying for the high hand, along with many shooting for the low. If you like a game with a considerable amount of outs and actions, it is worth your time to play Omaha Hi-Lo.