Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is commonly seen as one of the most complex but favored poker variations. It is a variation that, even more than regular Omaha poker, invites play from all levels of players. This is the primary reason why a once obscure variation, has grown in acceptance so rapidly.
Omaha Hi-Lo starts exactly like a regular game of Omaha. Four cards are given out to every player. A sequence of wagering ensues where players can wager, check, or fold. 3 cards are handed out, this is referred to as the flop. Another round of wagering ensues. After all the players have in turn called or folded, another card is revealed on the turn. an additional round of betting follows at which point the river card is revealed. The entrants will need to put together the best high and low 5 card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is where many entrants often get baffled. Unlike Hold’em, where the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha hi/low the player has to use exactly 3 cards from the board, and exactly 2 hole cards. No more, no 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 what it sounds like. It’s the strongest hand out of every player’s, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house. It is the very same notion in nearly all poker games.
The lower hand is more complex, but really opens up the action. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that could 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 value hand possible. The low hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an eight and smaller. The low hand wins half of the pot, as just like the high hand. When there is no lower hand presented, the high hand takes the whole pot.
Although it seems complex at the outset, after a few rounds you will be agile enough to get the base nuances of the game easily enough. Seeing as you have people wagering for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as such a large number of cards are being used at once, Omaha/8 offers an overwhelming assortment of wagering choices and because you have several individuals trying for the high hand, as well as several battling for the low hand. If you enjoy a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it’s not a waste of your time to play Omaha/8.