Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is frequently seen as one of the most complex but popular poker variations. It’s a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites action from all levels of players. This is the chief reason why a once irrelevant game, has increased in popularity so quickly.
Omaha 8 or better starts like a regular game of Omaha. Four cards are dealt to each player. A sequence of betting ensues where gamblers can bet, check, or drop out. 3 cards are dealt out, this is called the flop. Another round of wagering happens. Once all the gamblers have either called or dropped out, another card is revealed on the turn. Another round of wagering follows at which point the river card is revealed. The entrants will have to make the strongest high and low 5 card hands using the board and hole cards.
This is where a few entrants get baffled. Unlike Holdem, in which the board can make up everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi/lo the player has to use exactly 3 cards from the board, and precisely two hole cards. No more, not a single card less. Unlike normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot could be won: the "high hand" or the "low hand."
A high hand is just how it sounds. It’s the strongest possible hand out of everyone’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It’s the same concept in nearly all poker games.
The low hand is more complex, but certainly free’s up the action. When figuring out 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 made up of A-2-3-4-5. Considering that straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest possible hand. The lower hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and lower. The low hand wins half of the pot, as just like the high hand. When there’s no lower hand presented, the high hand takes the complete pot.
While it seems difficult at the start, after a couple of rounds you will be agile enough to pick up on the basic nuances of the game simply enough. Since you have players betting for the low and betting for the high, and since so many cards are in play, Omaha/8 provides an exciting array of wagering options and seeing that you have numerous individuals shooting for the high hand, along with many battling for the low. If you like a game with a lot of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to play Omaha hi/lo.