Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most complex but favored poker games. It is a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites play from every level of players. This is the chief reason why a once irrelevant game, has expanded in popularity so quickly.
Omaha 8 or better begins exactly like a regular game of Omaha. Four cards are given out to every player. A round of wagering ensues in which gamblers can wager, check, or drop out. 3 cards are handed out, this is called the flop. A further round of betting ensues. After all the gamblers have either called or folded, an additional card is revealed on the turn. Another round of wagering follows at which point the river card is flipped. The entrants must attempt to put together the strongest high and low 5 card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is where a number of entrants can get baffled. Unlike Hold’em, in which the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha Hi-Lo the player must use precisely three cards from the board, and precisely 2 hole cards. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are two ways a pot can be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is exactly what it sounds like. It is the strongest possible hand out of everyone’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house. It’s the very same notion in just about all poker games.
The low hand is more complex, but really opens up the play. When figuring out a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that might be put together, with the lowest being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Seeing as straights and flushes don’t 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 does the high hand. When there is no low hand available, the higher hand takes the whole pot.
While it seems difficult at the outset, following a few rounds you will be agile enough to pick up on the fundamental subtleties of play simply enough. Since you have individuals betting for the low and wagering for the high, and seeing as such a large number of cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better provides an overwhelming collection of wagering possibilities and owing to the fact that you have several players trying for the high, as well as many battling for the low hand. If you like a game with a considerable amount of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to play Omaha hi-low.
