20
August
Written by Abdiel.
Posted in: Poker
Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most complicated but well-loved poker variations. It’s a variation that, even more than regular Omaha poker, invites action from all levels of players. This is the primary reason why a once obscure variation, has expanded in acceptance so quickly.
Omaha hi/lo starts just like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are dealt to each player. A sequence of wagering follows where gamblers can bet, check, or drop out. Three cards are given out, this is referred to as the flop. A further round of betting happens. After all the gamblers have in turn called or dropped out, a further card is flipped on the turn. Another round of betting ensues at which point the river card is flipped. The gamblers will have to make the strongest high and low 5 card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is the point where a number of players can get baffled. Unlike Hold’em, in which the board can be every player’s hand, in Omaha hi-low the player has to use precisely 3 cards on the board, and precisely 2 cards from their hand. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are two ways a pot might be won: the "higher hand" or the "lower hand."
A high hand is just what it sounds like. It is the strongest hand out of every player’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house. It is the identical approach in almost every poker game.
The lower hand is more complex, but really opens up the play. When determining a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that could be made, with the lowest being A-2-3-4-5. Because straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest value hand possible. The lower hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and below. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there’s no lower hand presented, the high hand wins the entire pot.
Although it seems complicated at the start, after a few hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the basic subtleties of the game simply enough. Seeing as you have individuals wagering for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as so many cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better provides an amazing array of betting possibilities and seeing that you have several individuals shooting for the high hand, along with many shooting for the low. If you love a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it’s worth your time to compete in Omaha/8.
Stay in touch with the conversation, subscribe to the RSS feed for comments on this post.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
