Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is commonly seen as one of the most complicated but well-loved poker variations. It is a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites play from every level of players. This is the chief reason why a once obscure game, has grown in popularity so rapidly.
Omaha Hi-Lo starts exactly like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are given out to each player. A round of betting follows in which players can wager, check, or drop out. Three cards are handed out, this is called the flop. One more round of wagering ensues. After all the players have in turn called or dropped out, an additional card is revealed on the turn. Another round of wagering ensues at which point the river card is flipped. The players will need to make the strongest high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is where some entrants often get baffled. Unlike Hold’em, where the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha hi lo the player must use exactly three cards from the board, and exactly two cards from their hand. Not a single card more, no less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot could be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is just what it sounds like. It’s the strongest possible hand out of every player’s, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It is the identical approach in just about every poker game.
The low hand is more difficult, but really free’s up the action. When determining a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. the lowest hand is the weakest hand that could be put together, with the worst being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Considering that straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the worst possible hand. The lower hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and below. The low hand wins half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there is no low hand available, the high hand wins the whole pot.
It may seem complex at the start, after a few rounds you will be agile enough to get the fundamental subtleties of the game simply enough. Seeing as you have players betting for the low and betting for the high, and since such a large number of cards are being used at once, Omaha/8 provides an exciting assortment of wagering options and owing to the fact that you have many players battling for the high hand, as well as several battling for the low hand. If you like a game with a plethora of outs and actions, it’s worth your time to compete in Omaha Hi-Lo.