Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is frequently viewed as one of the most difficult but popular poker games. It is a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for action from all levels of players. This is the chief reason why a once obscure game, has increased in acceptance so quickly.
Omaha/8 starts exactly like a regular game of Omaha. Four cards are handed out to each player. A sequence of wagering follows in which gamblers can bet, check, or fold. 3 cards are given out, this is called the flop. One more sequence of betting happens. Once all the gamblers have in turn called or dropped out, an additional card is revealed on the turn. Another sequence of wagering follows at which point the river card is revealed. The players will need to put together the best high and low 5 card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is where a few entrants get confused. Contrasted to Hold’em, where the board can make up everyone’s hand, in Omaha Hi-Lo the player has to use exactly three cards from the board, and exactly 2 hole cards. No more, not a single card less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are two ways a pot could be won: the "high hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is just 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, etc. It is the identical notion in just about every poker game.
The low hand is more complicated, but really free’s up the play. When determining a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. A low hand is the worst hand that might be put together, with the lowest value being A-2-3-4-5. Seeing as straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest possible hand. The lower hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and below. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there is no lower hand presented, the higher hand takes the whole pot.
It may seem complex at first, after a couple of hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the base subtleties of play with ease. Seeing as you have people betting for the low and betting for the high, and since so many cards are being used at the same time, Omaha hi low provides an amazing assortment of betting options and owing to the fact that you have many individuals trying for the high hand, as well as a few battling for the low. If you like a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to participate in Omaha 8 or better.