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Omaha Hi/Lo: Basic Overview

Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is commonly viewed as one of the most complex but favored poker variations. It’s a variation that, even more than regular Omaha poker, aims for play from every level of players. This is the chief reason why a once obscure variation, has expanded in acceptance so quickly.

Omaha/8 begins just like a regular game of Omaha. Four cards are handed out to every player. A round of betting ensues where gamblers can wager, check, or drop out. 3 cards are given out, this is referred to as the flop. Another sequence of wagering happens. Once all the gamblers have in turn called or folded, an additional card is flipped on the turn. a further sequence of betting follows and then the river card is revealed. The gamblers 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 confused. Unlike Holdem, in which the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha Hi-Lo the player must use exactly 3 cards from the board, and precisely two cards from their hand. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot might be won: the "higher hand" or the "lower hand."

A high hand is just how it sounds. It’s the best hand out of every player’s, whether that is a straight, flush, full house. It is the very same notion in nearly all poker games.

The lower hand is more difficult, but really opens up the action. When figuring out a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. A low hand is the weakest hand that could be made, with the worst being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Since straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest possible hand. The lower hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an eight and lower. The lower hand takes half of the pot, as just like the higher hand. When there’s no lower hand presented, the high hand takes the entire pot.

While it seems complicated initially, after a few rounds you will be agile enough to get the fundamental subtleties of the game simply enough. Seeing as you have individuals betting for the low and wagering for the high, and since so many cards are being used at once, Omaha/8 provides an exciting range of betting options and owing to the fact that you have numerous individuals battling for the high hand, along with many battling for the low hand. If you love a game with a plethora of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to play Omaha 8 or better.