Read more about the
Las Vegas 2024 Super
Bowl Streaker!

Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is commonly viewed as one of the most complicated but favored poker variations. It’s a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for play from all levels of players. This is the primary reason why a once obscure game, has grown in popularity so rapidly.

Omaha Hi-Lo begins like a regular game of Omaha. 4 cards are handed out to every player. A round of wagering follows in which players can wager, check, or drop out. 3 cards are given out, this is referred to as the flop. Another sequence of betting happens. Once all the gamblers have in turn called or dropped out, an additional card is flipped on the turn. a further round of betting happens at which point the river card is revealed. The entrants must attempt to make the best high and low five card hands using the board and hole cards.

This is where some players can get confused. Unlike Holdem, where the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha Hi-Lo the player has to use precisely 3 cards from the board, and exactly two hole cards. No more, no less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot may be won: the "high hand" or the "low hand."

A high hand is just how it sounds. It is the best possible hand out of everyone’s, whether that is a straight, flush, full house. It’s the same approach in just about all poker games.

The lower hand is more difficult, but really opens up the play. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the worst hand that could be made, with the worst being made up of 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 low hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and smaller. The lower hand wins half of the pot, as just like the higher hand. When there’s no lower hand presented, the high hand wins the entire pot.

While it seems complex at first, following a few hands you will be able to pick up on the base nuances of the game easily enough. Seeing as you have people wagering for the low and wagering for the high, and seeing as so many cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better offers an exciting range of wagering choices and because you have numerous players battling for the high, as well as many battling for the low hand. If you love a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it is worth your time to play Omaha hi/low.