Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is frequently viewed as one of the most difficult but favored poker variations. It’s a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for action from all levels of players. This is the chief reason why a once irrelevant variation, has increased in popularity so rapidly.
Omaha/8 starts like a regular game of Omaha. 4 cards are given out to every player. A sequence of betting ensues in which gamblers can bet, check, or drop out. 3 cards are handed out, this is known as the flop. One more round of betting happens. After all the players have either called or dropped out, an additional card is flipped on the turn. an additional sequence of wagering happens and then the river card is revealed. The players will need to make the best high and low 5 card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is where a few entrants get confused. Unlike Texas Holdem, where the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha Hi-Lo the player has to use exactly 3 cards on the board, and exactly two hole cards. Not a single card more, no less. Contrary to normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot can be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is just what it sounds like. It’s the strongest possible hand out of everyone’s, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It is the very same concept in almost every poker game.
A low hand is more complex, but certainly free’s up the action. When figuring out a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. the lowest hand is the weakest hand that could be put together, with the worst being A-2-3-4-5. Considering that straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the smallest value hand possible. The lower hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and lower. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the higher hand. When there’s no low hand available, the high hand takes the entire pot.
It may seem difficult at the outset, after a few hands you will be able to pick up on the basic nuances of play with ease. Since you have players betting for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as such a large number of cards are in play, Omaha Hi-Lo provides an overwhelming range of wagering options and seeing that you have several players shooting for the high hand, along with a few shooting for the low. If you love a game with a considerable amount of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to play Omaha 8 or better.