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Omaha Hi/Low: General Outline
Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is commonly viewed as one of the most complicated but popular poker variations. It’s a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites action from all levels of players. This is the primary reason why a once obscure game, has grown in acceptance so rapidly.
Omaha/8 starts like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are handed out to each player. A sequence of betting follows where gamblers can wager, check, or fold. Three cards are given out, this is called the flop. A further sequence of wagering ensues. After all the gamblers have in turn called or dropped out, an additional card is revealed on the turn. a further sequence of betting ensues at which point the river card is flipped. The entrants will need to make the best high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is the point where some players often get confused. Contrasted to Texas Holdem, where the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha hi lo the player must utilize exactly three cards on the board, and exactly two cards from their hand. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Contrary to regular Omaha, there are two ways a pot could be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is exactly 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. It’s the same notion in almost all poker games.
The lower hand is more complex, but really free’s up the action. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. the lowest hand is the weakest hand that can be made, with the lowest value being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Because straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the smallest value hand possible. The low hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and smaller. The lower hand wins half of the pot, as does the higher hand. When there is no lower hand presented, the higher hand wins the entire pot.
Although it seems complicated at the outset, following a couple of rounds you will be able to pick up on the fundamental subtleties of the game with ease. Seeing as you have individuals betting for the low and betting for the high, and since so many cards are being used at once, Omaha/8 offers an exciting assortment of wagering choices and owing to the fact that you have many individuals trying for the high, as well as several shooting for the low. If you love a game with a plethora of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to play Omaha hi-low.
