Omaha

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Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is often times viewed as one of the most difficult but favored poker variations. It is a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites play from all levels of players. This is the chief reason why a once irrelevant game, has increased in popularity so amazingly.

Omaha 8 or better starts like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are handed out to every player. A sequence of wagering ensues where players can bet, check, or drop out. 3 cards are given out, this is referred to as the flop. Another round of betting happens. After all the gamblers have in turn called or folded, another card is revealed on the turn. a further round of betting ensues at which point the river card is revealed. The gamblers will have to make the best high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.

This is the point where a number of entrants can get flustered. Unlike Holdem, where the board can be every player’s hand, in Omaha hi lo the player has to use precisely three cards from the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot may be won: the "high hand" or the "lower hand."

A high hand is exactly what it sounds like. It’s the best possible hand out of every player’s, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house. It is the very same approach in almost every poker game.

The lower hand is more difficult, but certainly free’s 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 worst possible hand. The low hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and below. The lower hand takes half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there’s no lower hand presented, the higher hand takes the complete pot.

While it seems complex at first, following a couple of hands you will be agile enough to get the fundamental nuances of the game simply enough. Since you have people betting for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as so many cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better offers an overwhelming array of wagering options and seeing that you have several individuals battling for the high, as well as several trying for the low. If you enjoy a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to compete in Omaha 8 or better.