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Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is often times viewed as one of the most difficult but well-loved poker games. It’s a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for play from all levels of players. This is the primary reason why a once obscure variation, has increased in acceptance so amazingly.

Omaha/8 begins exactly like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are handed out to every player. A sequence of wagering follows where players can wager, check, or drop out. 3 cards are handed out, this is known as the flop. One more round of betting happens. After all the players have in turn called or dropped out, another card is revealed on the turn. Another round of betting happens and then the river card is flipped. The gamblers must attempt to make the best high and low 5 card hands using the board and hole cards.

This is where many players can get baffled. Contrasted to Texas Holdem, where the board can be every player’s hand, in Omaha hi low the player must utilize exactly 3 cards on the board, and exactly two hole cards. No more, no less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot could be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."

A high hand is just how it sounds. It is 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 notion in nearly all poker games.

The lower hand is more complicated, but really 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 lowest being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Since straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest possible hand. The low hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and lower. The lower hand wins half of the pot, as just like the higher hand. When there’s no low hand presented, the higher hand takes the whole pot.

While it seems complicated at first, after a couple of hands you will be able to pick up on the fundamental nuances of the game easily enough. Since you have players betting for the low and betting for the high, and since such a large number of cards are being used at once, Omaha hi-low provides an exciting assortment of betting options and because you have many players shooting for the high, and several battling for the low hand. If you like a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it’s worth your time to play Omaha hi low.

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