Poker Tips Poker Tips for Beginners

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Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is frequently viewed as one of the most complicated but popular poker variations. It is a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for action from all levels of players. This is the primary reason why a once invisible variation, has grown in acceptance so amazingly.

Omaha Hi-Lo starts like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are handed out to every player. A sequence of wagering follows where gamblers can wager, check, or fold. Three cards are given out, this is referred to as the flop. A further sequence of wagering happens. After all the gamblers have either called or dropped out, an additional card is revealed on the turn. Another round of betting follows and then the river card is revealed. The players must attempt to put together the strongest high and low 5 card hands using the board and hole cards.

This is the point where many entrants often get baffled. Contrasted to Holdem, in which the board can make up every player's hand, in Omaha Hi-Lo the player has to utilize precisely 3 cards on the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. Not a single card more, no less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot could 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 everyone's, regardless if it is a straight, flush, full house. It's the same approach in nearly all poker games.

The low hand is more complicated, but really free's up the action. When determining a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the worst hand that could be made, with the worst being A-2-3-4-5. Considering that straights and flushes don't count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest value hand possible. The low hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and below. The lower hand takes half of the pot, as just like the higher hand. When there is no lower hand presented, the high hand wins the whole pot.

While it seems complicated at the outset, after a few rounds you will be able to pick up on the base nuances of the game with ease. Since you have people wagering for the low and betting for the high, and since such a large number of cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better offers an exciting assortment of betting options and owing to the fact that you have many players battling for the high, along with a few battling for the low. If you prefer a game with a plethora of outs and actions, it's worth your time to play Omaha hi low.