Poker » Blog Archive » Omaha Hi Low: Basic Summary

 

Omaha Hi Low: Basic Summary

Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is frequently seen as one of the most difficult but popular poker variations. It’s a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for play from every level of players. This is the primary reason why a once obscure game, has expanded in popularity so rapidly.

Omaha/8 starts like a regular game of Omaha. Four cards are dealt to every player. A round of betting follows where gamblers can bet, check, or fold. 3 cards are handed out, this is called the flop. A further sequence of betting happens. Once all the gamblers have in turn called or folded, another card is flipped on the turn. a further round of betting follows and then 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 a number of entrants can get flustered. Contrasted to Holdem, where the board can be every player’s hand, in Omaha hi/low the player must utilize precisely three cards from the board, and exactly 2 hole cards. No more, no less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot may be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."

A high hand is exactly what it sounds like. It is the best possible hand out of every player’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house. It’s the very same concept in nearly every poker game.

A low hand is more complicated, but certainly opens up the play. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. A low hand is the worst hand that might 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 worst possible hand. The lower hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an eight and below. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the higher hand. When there is no lower hand available, the higher hand takes the entire pot.

It may seem complex at the start, following a couple of rounds you will be agile enough to get the fundamental subtleties of the game with ease. Since you have players betting for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as so many cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better offers an amazing range of betting choices and owing to the fact that you have many players battling for the high hand, as well as a few battling for the low hand. If you enjoy a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it’s worth your time to play Omaha/8.