Omaha Hi/Low: Basic Summary
Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is frequently viewed as one of the most complicated but favored poker games. It’s a variation that, even more than regular Omaha poker, aims for play from every level of players. This is the chief reason why a once invisible variation, has expanded in acceptance so amazingly.
Omaha hi/lo begins like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are given out to each player. A sequence of betting ensues in which players can bet, check, or fold. 3 cards are dealt out, this is called the flop. One more sequence of wagering happens. Once all the players have either called or folded, a further card is flipped on the turn. Another sequence of wagering ensues at which point the river card is flipped. The gamblers will have to make the best high and low 5 card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is the point where some players get confused. Unlike Texas Holdem, in which the board can be everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi/low the player must use precisely three cards from the board, and precisely two cards from their hand. No more, not a single card less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are two ways a pot can be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is just how it sounds. It is the best hand out of every player’s, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It is the very same concept in almost every poker game.
The lower hand is more complicated, but really opens up the play. When determining a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that could be made, with the lowest being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Because straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the smallest value hand possible. The low hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an eight and lower. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the higher hand. When there’s no low hand available, the higher hand wins the complete pot.
Although it seems complex at the outset, after a couple of rounds you will be agile enough to pick up on the base nuances of the game with ease. Since you have people wagering for the low and wagering for the high, and since such a large number of cards are being used at the same time, Omaha/8 provides an overwhelming array of betting possibilities and owing to the fact that you have many players trying for the high, along with a few shooting for the low hand. If you like a game with a plethora of outs and actions, it is worth your time to play Omaha 8 or better.