Read more about the
Las Vegas 2024 Super
Bowl Streaker!

Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is frequently viewed as one of the most complex but popular poker games. It is a game that, even more than regular Omaha poker, invites play from all levels of players. This is the main reason why a once obscure variation, has increased in popularity so quickly.

Omaha Hi-Lo begins like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are dealt to every player. A sequence of betting follows in which players can bet, check, or drop out. 3 cards are dealt out, this is called the flop. One more sequence of betting ensues. Once all the gamblers have either called or folded, another card is revealed on the turn. a further sequence of betting follows and then the river card is revealed. The gamblers must attempt to make the best high and low 5 card hands using the board and hole cards.

This is where a number of entrants get baffled. Contrasted to Texas Hold ‘Em, in which the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha hi/lo the player has to utilize exactly 3 cards on the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. No more, no less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot can be won: the "high hand" or the "low hand."

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

The lower hand is more complex, but certainly opens up the action. When figuring out a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the weakest hand that could be put together, with the lowest being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Considering that straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the smallest value hand possible. The low hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and lower. The low hand takes half of the pot, as just like the higher hand. When there’s no lower hand available, the high hand wins the complete pot.

While it seems complicated at first, after a few rounds you will be agile enough to pick up on the fundamental subtleties of play easily enough. Since you have individuals wagering for the low and betting for the high, and since so many cards are being used at once, Omaha/8 offers an amazing array of betting possibilities and seeing that you have several individuals shooting for the high, and several trying for the low. If you enjoy a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it’s not a waste of your time to play Omaha hi lo.