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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 games. It is a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites action from all levels of players. This is the primary reason why a once irrelevant variation, has expanded in popularity so quickly.

Omaha/8 starts like a regular game of Omaha. Four cards are given out to every player. A sequence of wagering follows in which players can wager, check, or drop out. 3 cards are handed out, this is known as the flop. A further round of betting happens. Once all the players have either called or folded, an additional card is revealed on the turn. an additional round of wagering ensues and then the river card is revealed. The gamblers will need to make the best high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.

This is the point where a number of players can get confused. Unlike Texas Holdem, in which the board can be everyone's hand, in Omaha hi lo the player must utilize exactly three cards on the board, and exactly 2 hole cards. No more, no less. Contrary to normal Omaha, there are two ways a pot may be won: the "higher hand" or the "low hand."

A high hand is exactly how it sounds. It's the strongest possible hand out of every player's, it doesn't matter if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It's the same notion in almost every poker game.

The lower hand is more complex, but certainly opens up the action. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that can 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 possible hand. The lower hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and smaller. The lower hand takes half of the pot, as does the higher hand. When there is no low hand presented, the high hand wins the whole pot.

While it seems complicated at first, following a couple of hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the basic subtleties of play with ease. Since you have individuals wagering for the low and wagering for the high, and since so many cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better offers an overwhelming range of betting choices and seeing that you have many players battling for the high hand, and many battling for the low hand. If you enjoy a game with a lot of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to compete in Omaha/8.