Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most complicated but favored poker variations. It’s a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites play from all levels of players. This is the main reason why a once invisible game, has increased in acceptance so rapidly.
Omaha/8 begins like a regular game of Omaha. 4 cards are handed out to every player. A sequence of wagering ensues in which gamblers can wager, check, or fold. Three cards are handed out, this is known as the flop. One more round of wagering ensues. Once all the players have either called or dropped out, another card is flipped on the turn. a further round of betting follows at which point the river card is flipped. The entrants will need to put together the best high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is the point where a number of players often get confused. Unlike Hold’em, where the board can make up everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi/low the player must use exactly three cards from the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. Not a single card more, no less. Contrary to normal Omaha, there are two ways a pot could be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is just what it sounds like. It is the best hand out of every player’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It is the very same approach in just about all poker games.
The low hand is more complicated, but really free’s up the play. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that could be made, with the worst being A-2-3-4-5. Since straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest 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 presented, the high hand wins the whole pot.
Although it seems complex at the outset, after a few rounds you will be able to pick up on the basic subtleties of the game easily enough. Since you have players betting for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as so many cards are being used at once, Omaha 8 or better offers an overwhelming array of betting possibilities and owing to the fact that you have many individuals battling for the high hand, as well as a few trying for the low hand. If you prefer a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to participate in Omaha Hi-Lo.