Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is often times viewed as one of the most difficult but favored poker variations. It’s a game that, even more than regular Omaha poker, invites play from all levels of players. This is the main reason why a once invisible variation, has increased in popularity so amazingly.
Omaha/8 starts just like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are dealt to every player. A round of betting follows in which gamblers can wager, check, or drop out. Three cards are given out, this is referred to as the flop. A further round of wagering happens. After all the gamblers have in turn called or folded, an additional card is flipped on the turn. Another round of betting happens and then the river card is revealed. The players must attempt to make the best high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is where many entrants get baffled. Unlike Hold’em, in which the board can make up everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi/low the player must use exactly three cards on the board, and exactly two hole cards. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Unlike regular 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 is the best possible hand out of every player’s, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house. It is the very same notion in nearly every poker game.
The lower hand is more complex, but really opens up the play. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the weakest hand that could be put together, with the lowest being A-2-3-4-5. Considering that straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest possible hand. The lower hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and below. The low hand takes half of the pot, as just like the higher hand. When there’s no low hand available, the high hand takes the complete pot.
Although it seems difficult at first, following a few hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the fundamental nuances of the game with ease. Since you have players wagering for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as so many cards are being used at once, Omaha 8 or better provides an exciting range of wagering possibilities and seeing that you have many players shooting for the high, along with many battling for the low hand. If you prefer a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it’s not a waste of your time to compete in Omaha hi low.
