Omaha Rules Hi Lo
What I mean by 'Omaha' here is: Limit Omaha High-Low (aka Omaha8, Omaha Hi-Lo Split, Omaha Eight-or-Better). Omaha is also played Limit High Only, Pot Limit High, Pot Limit High-Low and occasionally No Limit. While concepts here are sometimes applicable to the other variations, sometimes they definitely are not. In Omaha Hi-Lo, as in Omaha, all players receive 4 ‘hole’ cards at the start of a hand. An important thing to remember for Omaha Hi-Lo is that you must use 2 of your 4 hole cards for the Hi hand and 2 for the Lo hand where applicable. You cannot choose 3 of your hold cards and 2 of the community cards for example. Omaha Hi-Lo is a 'split pot' game, meaning that at showdown, the pot is divided in half, with one half being awarded to the winning best hand, and the other half to the best qualifying 'low hand.'
Introduction to Omaha Hi-Lo
Omaha Hi-Lo is an increasingly popular poker variant, similar to its brother Omaha High but still a completely different game. In recent years many Omaha High players have moved on to play Omaha Hi-Lo to get a new challenge as well as due to it being well known for providing lots of action.
Just like in Omaha high, the players are all dealt four cards each face down, which creates a lot more opportunities hand wise and provides loads of action. But unlike in Omaha High, Omaha Hi-Lo is a split pot game, which divides the prize pool into two, half for the winner of the high hand and the other half for the winner of the low hand.
Players have to create the best possible Omaha High or Omaha Low hand in order to win a share of the pot. Sometimes players can even win both pots with their hands, but it is more common to win just one of them. The high part of Omaha uses the traditional Omaha rules, where the low part has its own rules, which we will explain in the next chapter. In Omaha Hi-Lo you are only allowed to use exactly two of your hole cards and three community cards to create the best possible five card combination. If you try to use three cards from your hand, your hand is not valid.
Unlike Omaha High, its Hi-Lo brother is not mainly played as pot limit only, but is very popular in all the different limit formats. You should choose the format that suits you and your playing style the best to optimize your profits while playing and ensure that you don't make any mistakes.
Basic Game Play and Rules
When you start playing Omaha Hi-Lo it is very important that you know and understand the rules that apply to the game. The Omaha Hi part uses the traditional rules from Omaha High and Texas Hold'em card ranking wise, where Omaha Lo is about getting the lowest hand possible.
The Omaha Lo rules are based on the Ace to Five card ranking system, where flushes and straights do not count and the lowest card is the ace. Basically in Omaha low it's a matter of creating the lowest 'wheel' from A to 8. This means that any hand that has a pair or a card over 8 cannot apply for the low pot. Instead you will have to have five cards within A to 8 and the lower the better. Below you can see some examples of low hands that apply for the low pot:
- 8, 7, 6, 5, 4
- 8, 6, 5, 3, 2
- 7, 6, 5, 4, 3
- 7, 5, 4, 3, A
- 6, 5, 4, 3, 2
- And the nuts: 5, 4, 3, 2, A
A low hand will always be ranked from the highest card and downwards, which means that a hand starting with a seven will always be known as a seven-low. Now that you have a clear idea about the rules of Omaha Hi-Lo, it's time to explain about the basic game play.
One player will start out with the dealer button each hand, meaning that he will theoretically deal the hands to the other players. The dealer deals the four cards to each player clockwise, starting on his immediate left and finishing with himself. The cards are dealt face down so the other players cannot see the cards and when everybody has received four cards, the game begins.
The first two players to the left of the dealer will be forced to post the first bets known as blinds. The first player to the left of the dealer will be posting the small blind and the second player to the left will post the big blind. The blinds have been integrated in poker to ensure there is something to gamble about in each round, creating action instead of players folding until they have a great hand.
The player right after the blinds will then be the first guy to choose his action and the action then goes clockwise until everybody has made their decision. The dealer will then deal a total of five community cards on the table, starting with three cards on the flop, one on the turn and one on the river. The players with the best Hi and Lo combination will then split the pot at showdown.
Omaha Hi-Lo can be played with 2-10 players, but is more preferable with 3-6 players as it will create more action and you will see more hands.
The Button and Posting Blinds
When you play Omaha Hi-Lo, all hands played will have a dealer assigned. The dealer will receive the button, which shows that he is the dealer and will be the last to act every betting except pre-flop. When you play online you don't have to worry about this, since the software will take care of everything for you. When you start up a new table, a dealer has to be assigned for the first hand before it can start to move around the table clockwise. The dealer is decided usually by dealing cards face up on the table for each player and the highest card wins the button. When the button has been decided the game will start and the button will move around making sure that every player will have the advantages of the button.
After the button has been decided, it is time for players to post blinds. The two players to the immediate left of the dealer will be forced to pay blinds every round, meaning that all players will be paying blinds sooner or later. The first player to the left of the dealer will pay the small blind and the second player to the left will be posting the big blind. The blinds are being posted to ensure action in the game, always having something to gamble about. When you play online poker, the blinds will automatically be posted and deducted from your balance when it's your turn to pay them, so that you can focus on playing poker rather than when it's your turn to post blinds.
Pre-flop (First Betting Round)
The first betting round is known as pre-flop, which means that it's before there has been dealt any community cards. All players are dealt four cards face down and will have to make a decision about what they want to do with their hand. The first guy to act when the cards have been dealt is the guy to the immediate left of the big blind, also known as Under the Gun (UTG).
All players now have different options of how to play their hands in the first betting round. Players can either:
Fold: Give up the hand from the beginning because it is to weak and sit out the rest of the hand
Call: When you have a good hand that you would like to see a flop with, you can call the big blind or the amount that has been raised to before your turn
Raise: When you have a premium hand where you want as much money in the pot as possible, you raise the hand and hope that other players will call, creating a bigger pot size
After the first player has made his decision, the action goes clockwise around the table and finishes with the big blind, unless a player have raised after another player has called, which means that the action will continue until the last player before the raise has had the chance to call, raise or fold.
When all players have chosen their action the hand will continue to the next betting round, the flop.
The Flop (Second Betting Round)
The flop is the second betting round, where the dealer will deal the first three community cards on the board and a new betting round will begin. The player that was the small blind pre-flop will now be the first player to act, giving him the opportunity to check, bet or fold. This player will not have the opportunity to raise as there has yet to be any bets in the round, meaning that if he bets, the next player is eligible to raise. It is also possible for him to simply check the hand, meaning that he gives the turn to the next player without paying any money. Players cannot check if a player prior to them has bet into the pot.
The action then continues clockwise until the dealer, who is the last person to act has chosen his action. This pattern continues for the rest of the betting rounds, meaning that only in the first betting round the third player to the left of the dealer had to act first and the big blind act last.
When all of the players have chosen their action, the next betting round known as the turn will begin.
The Turn (Third Betting Round)
The third betting round is known as the turn, where the dealer deals one more community card, so there is a total of four cards on the board. The betting round works exactly the same way as in the previous round, making it possible for players to check, call, bet, raise or fold. When all players have made their decision the fourth and final betting round known as the flop will commence.
The River (Fourth and Final Betting Round)
The final betting round is known as the river, where the dealer deals the fifth and final community card on the board. After the cards has been dealt, the players begin yet another betting round just like the flop and the turn, but being the last round for bets the players will be more aggressive than in the other rounds.
Once all players has made their decision, it is time to see who has created the best Omaha Hi and Lo hand, using exactly two of their hole cards and three of the community cards on the board. This is known as the showdown.
Showdown
After the hand has gone through all four betting rounds, the players left has to figure out exactly who wins the Hi and Lo pot. This is done by showing the cards held by the players and the dealer will then determine upon the hand rankings who wins the pots. When you play online, the software will highlight the cards used for the best combination for each pot, so you won't have to think so much about the opponents hand after showdown.
Next to Texas Holdem, Omaha Hi Lo is the most popular poker game played both live and online. Commonly referred to as Omaha 8 or better, this game is easily confused by new players who have yet to grasp the concept of how to read their hands. There are two significant differences between Omaha Hi/Lo and Texas Holdem. The first being that players will have four hole cards and five community cards, with the object of the game to use two of the hole cards with three of the community cards. This is a must not an option and is the biggest mistake players make. Secondly, Omaha Hi Lo awards one or two pots depending on the hands at showdown. Players will play for the best hi hand AND the best lo hand, whereas Texas Holdem only awards one pot, and that’s too the winner.
The rules in both games are essentially the same, and players will follow the same hand rankings. With the hi and lo hands in play, players should understand that all lo hands must consist of any card up to 8. Anything over 8, and it qualifies for hi. We mentioned the goal was to make the best high hand or low hand, but realistically speaking, the object is to make both high and low as that’s where the money really is. You want to scoop the entire pot, not split it with someone else. To do this you need to understand your starting hands, what qualifies as a great starting hand in Omaha Hi Lo and how to win both high and low. Being able to scoop the pot can significantly increase your bankroll, and is an excellent PLO cash game strategy.
Omaha Hi Lo – Playing for the Low
The majority of novice players mistaken the low pot and will often play for low without being able to draw to the nut-low. The best possible lo hand in Omaha Hi Lo is the same as Razz and consists of 5432A, otherwise referred to as the “Wheel”. Lo Omaha hands do not take straights or flushes into consideration. If there is no qualifying lo hand, the entire pot will be awarded to the player with the best Omaha hi hand.
Careless Reads = Careless Mistakes
Omaha 8 Or Better Strategy
We all know reading your hand wrong is careless and novice players often confuse the number of cards they can use with their hands. They also have a tendency to mistaken the actual strength in their hands. Much of this has to do with understanding what qualifies as a low hand when holding an Ace and just how strong that low hand is – whether it’s the low nut or not. As an example, we know that 5432A is the best low hand possible, but what if you hold 6538A and your opponent has 72364 – who wins? Novice players would assume the A hand would win because A is the lowest ranked card when playing low. This is not the case, and a mistake that will cost you a fortune over time. To rank a hand as low the dealer will use the lowest high card and move from there. 72634 will win the pot because the first high card in that particular hand is lower than the first high card in the 6538A.
To simplify it a bit better we’ve created a few hand examples showing a high low split, a high only hand, a low only hand which will help you understand who actually wins the pot in Omaha Hi Lo and why.
Example #1
Player #1 – A Q 5 5
Player #2 – 6 4 7 K
Board – A Q 2 5 J
In this hand example Player #1 takes the high pot with trip 5’s while Player #2 takes the low pot of 6542A. Player one misses the low hand
Example #2
Player 1 – 3 5 A 6
Omaha Hi Lo Split Rules
Player 2 – 3 2 6 Q
Board – A 4 2 K 5
These hands make it a bit trickier. In this hand here we can see that BOTH players have the wheel (5432A) however Player 1 has the nut flush A K 5 4 2 . Since the two players tie for low, the dealer would than chop the low pot between both players and award the entire high pot to Player 1 since he’s the only player with the highest ranked hand. The split in the low pot is often referred to as being quartered. Simply put the player ends up receiving only 1/4 of the pot instead of 1/2. Quartering your opponents is an excellent strategy to use. If you find yourself playing for both pots and you know your opponents are playing for one side or the other, your best strategy is to continue to bet and increase the amount of the pot. Often times you’ll find novice players will make the mistake of assuming they are the only one with lo and will assist in the process by making careless raises.
Omaha Poker Rules Hi Lo
On the opposite side if your gut instinct tells you your quartered, your best option is to keep the pot as small as possible. In a FL Omaha game this is fairly easy but in PL or NL you can pretty much guarantee the player who’s quartered you will be pushing the pot to full value. If your opponent bets do not raise him or reraise.
Like any game, starting hands are very important especially in Omaha Hi Lo. You need to start with a hand that will allow you to scoop both pots not split them. You also don’t want to be put into a situation similar to our second example where you end up tying for high or low only. That’s a sure fire way to lose your bankroll quickly. Opposite of playing Omaha 8, your worst starting hands are those which only play for one pot such as AKQJ or A234. Aim for two not one.
Omaha Hi Lo – Starting Hands and Position
Card Game Omaha Hi-lo
Since we know that AKQJ is a terrible starting hand, what makes a good starting hand? You really want to aim for double suited connecting cards, specifically AA23 double suited or A234, AAxx, 2345 etc. Be careful with your low hands. Don’t play with a non low nut and if you do play your hand with caution. Players really want an A in their hand simply because it gives you a good starting point to aim for both pots. If you don’t have an A, and your high hand is mediocre at best you really need to be careful of what you’re willing to risk and how much. Some aggressive betting on the right board will is generally a pretty good indication that someone has the low hand and will milk it for all its worth. These situations are the ones you want to avoid and will help save some unnecessary betting. Position is equally important in Omaha Hi Lo as it is in other poker games. Limping with mediocre hands should only be done in late position. Likewise you really shouldn’t play for low unless there are two low cards already in play on board and your drawing to the low nut. Not only could your hand lose to a better low hand, but drawing to the low is one of the most expensive mistakes you can make.