Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most complicated but well-loved poker games. It’s a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites play from every level of players. This is the chief reason why a once irrelevant game, has grown in acceptance so quickly.
Omaha/8 starts just like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are handed out to every player. A round of betting ensues where players can wager, check, or fold. Three cards are handed out, this is referred to as the flop. A further round of betting happens. Once all the players have in turn called or dropped out, another card is revealed on the turn. an additional sequence of wagering happens and then the river card is revealed. The players will have to put together the strongest high and low 5 card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is where many entrants can get flustered. Contrasted to Texas Hold ‘Em, where the board can be everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi low the player must use precisely three cards from the board, and exactly two hole cards. No more, no less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot can 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, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It is the same notion in nearly every poker game.
The lower hand is more complicated, but really opens up the action. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the weakest hand that might be put together, with the lowest being A-2-3-4-5. Since straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest possible hand. The lower hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and smaller. The low hand takes half of the pot, as just like the high hand. When there’s no lower hand available, the high hand takes the entire pot.
Although it seems difficult at the outset, following a few hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the basic nuances of play 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 hi/lo provides an amazing assortment of betting possibilities and because you have several individuals trying for the high, along with a few battling for the low hand. If you love a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it is worth your time to compete in Omaha 8 or better.