Poker Strategy

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Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is commonly seen as one of the most complicated but popular poker games. It’s a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for play from all levels of players. This is the main reason why a once obscure game, has increased in acceptance so amazingly.

Omaha Hi-Lo begins just like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are handed out to each player. A round of betting ensues where gamblers can bet, check, or drop out. Three cards are given out, this is called the flop. Another round of wagering happens. Once all the players have either called or folded, another card is revealed on the turn. Another round of betting follows and then the river card is flipped. The gamblers must attempt to make the best high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.

This is where some players get baffled. Unlike Hold’em, in which the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha hi-low the player must use exactly 3 cards from the board, and exactly 2 hole cards. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Contrary to regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot can be won: the "high hand" or the "low hand."

A high hand is exactly how it sounds. It is the strongest possible hand out of every player’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house. It is the same approach in almost all poker games.

The lower hand is more complicated, but really free’s up the play. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the weakest hand that can be made, with the lowest being A-2-3-4-5. Seeing as straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest possible hand. The low hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and below. The low hand wins half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there’s no lower hand presented, the high hand wins the whole pot.

It may seem complex initially, after a few hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the base subtleties of play simply enough. Seeing as you have people betting for the low and wagering for the high, and since so many cards are being used at once, Omaha 8 or better provides an overwhelming array of wagering possibilities and because you have numerous players trying for the high, and a few shooting for the low. If you like a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it is worth your time to participate in Omaha 8 or better.