Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is frequently viewed as one of the most difficult but well-loved poker variations. It’s a game that, even more than regular Omaha poker, invites action from all levels of players. This is the chief reason why a once irrelevant variation, has increased in popularity so rapidly.
Omaha 8 or better starts exactly like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are handed out to every player. A round of betting follows where players can wager, check, or fold. 3 cards are given out, this is called the flop. Another round of betting ensues. Once all the players have in turn called or dropped out, another card is flipped on the turn. an additional round of betting happens at which point the river card is flipped. The players will need to make the strongest high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is where many entrants often get baffled. Unlike Texas Hold ‘Em, where the board can make up everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi/lo the player has to use precisely three cards on the board, and precisely two hole cards. Not a single card more, no less. Contrary to normal Omaha, there are two ways a pot can be won: the "higher hand" or the "lower hand."
A high hand is exactly how it sounds. It’s the strongest possible hand out of every player’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It’s the very same concept in nearly every poker game.
A lower hand is more complex, but certainly opens up the action. When determining a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the worst hand that might be put together, with the worst being A-2-3-4-5. Seeing as straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the worst possible hand. The lower hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and lower. The low hand wins half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there is no lower hand presented, the high hand takes the whole pot.
Although it seems difficult at the outset, following a few hands you will be agile enough to get the base nuances of the game with ease. 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 range of betting possibilities and owing to the fact that you have numerous individuals trying for the high, along with a few trying for the low. If you like a game with a plethora of outs and actions, it’s not a waste of your time to compete in Omaha 8 or better.
