Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most difficult but favored poker variations. It is a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites play from all levels of players. This is the chief reason why a once irrelevant game, has increased in popularity so quickly.
Omaha hi-low starts exactly like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are given out to each player. A sequence of wagering ensues where gamblers can bet, check, or fold. Three cards are dealt out, this is referred to as the flop. Another round of wagering ensues. Once all the gamblers have either called or folded, an additional card is flipped on the turn. an additional round of wagering happens and then the river card is flipped. The entrants must attempt to make the strongest high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is the point where a few players get flustered. Unlike Holdem, where the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha hi-low the player must utilize exactly three cards on the board, and exactly two 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 "high hand" or the "lower hand."
A high hand is just what it sounds like. It’s the best possible hand out of everyone’s, whether that is a straight, flush, full house. It’s the same approach in just about every poker game.
The lower hand is more complicated, but certainly opens up the play. When figuring out a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that can be put together, with the lowest value being made up of 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 eight and smaller. The lower hand takes half of the pot, as just like the higher hand. When there’s no low hand presented, the higher hand takes the entire pot.
While it seems complicated at the start, following a few rounds you will be agile enough to pick up on the fundamental subtleties of the game with ease. Since you have players betting for the low and wagering for the high, and since such a large number of cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better provides an exciting array of wagering choices and because you have many players shooting for the high hand, and many trying for the low. If you love a game with a plethora of outs and actions, it is worth your time to play Omaha hi-low.
