Poker Strategy

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Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is frequently seen as one of the most complex but popular poker games. It’s a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for action from all levels of players. This is the primary reason why a once obscure variation, has grown in popularity so quickly.

Omaha 8 or better starts like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are dealt to every player. A round of betting follows in which players can wager, check, or drop out. 3 cards are handed out, this is known as the flop. Another round of betting ensues. Once all the players have either called or dropped out, another card is revealed on the turn. an additional round of betting ensues at which point the river card is revealed. The entrants must attempt to make the strongest high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.

This is where a few players can get confused. Contrasted to Hold’em, in which the board can make up everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi lo the player must utilize exactly 3 cards on the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. No more, not a single card less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are two ways a pot might be won: the "high hand" or the "low hand."

A high hand is just what it sounds like. It is the best possible hand out of everyone’s, whether that is a straight, flush, full house. It’s the identical approach in nearly all poker games.

The low hand is more complicated, but certainly opens up the action. When figuring out 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. Considering that straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest value hand possible. The lower hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and lower. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there’s no low hand available, the higher hand wins the complete pot.

While it seems complicated at the start, following a few hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the base subtleties of the game easily enough. Seeing as you have players wagering for the low and wagering for the high, and seeing as such a large number of cards are in play, Omaha/8 offers an amazing array of betting possibilities and owing to the fact that you have many players shooting for the high hand, along with a few shooting for the low hand. If you prefer a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it’s worth your time to participate in Omaha 8 or better.