Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is commonly viewed as one of the most complicated but popular poker games. It’s a game that, even more than regular Omaha poker, aims for action from every level of players. This is the primary reason why a once invisible variation, has grown in acceptance so amazingly.
Omaha/8 begins like a normal game of Omaha. 4 cards are given out to every player. A round of wagering ensues in which players can bet, check, or drop out. Three cards are handed out, this is called the flop. A further round of wagering happens. Once all the players have in turn called or folded, another card is flipped on the turn. a further round of betting follows and then the river card is flipped. The entrants will have to make the strongest high and low 5 card hands based on the board and hole cards.
This is the point where a number of players often get baffled. Contrasted to Hold’em, where the board can make up everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi-low the player has to use precisely three cards on the board, and exactly two hole cards. No more, not a single card less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are two ways a pot might be won: the "high hand" or the "lower hand."
A high hand is just what it sounds like. It’s the strongest hand out of everyone’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It is the same concept in almost every poker game.
A lower hand is more complicated, but certainly opens up the play. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the worst hand that might be put together, with the worst being A-2-3-4-5. Seeing as straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the smallest value hand possible. The low hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an eight and smaller. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there’s no low hand available, the higher hand takes the entire pot.
It may seem difficult initially, after a couple of rounds you will be agile enough to get the fundamental nuances of the game simply enough. Since you have players wagering for the low and wagering for the high, and seeing as such a large number of cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better offers an amazing array of wagering choices and seeing that you have many individuals shooting for the high hand, as well as several shooting for the low hand. If you prefer a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to play Omaha Hi-Lo.