Omaha Hi/Lo Fundamental Game Rules
Posted in Omaha on 10/19/2009 12:21 am by Fernanda
Gamblers who enjoy the game of Omaha often find they are pulled to the largely popular game of Omaha hi/lo. For gamblers who are knowledgeable with hi lo poker varieties, Omaha hi/low will prove to be a breeze to follow. The general rules of the style follow the game of Omaha and if you are acquainted with five Card Stud hi low, the hi/low variant of Omaha is very similar to the Stud game variation.
Like Omaha and hold’em, Omaha hi/lo is a community card game which basically means there are five community cards used to help players make the best possible poker hand. The game starts with the posting of both the big and tiny blinds. The dealer then deals each player four "hole" cards face down. Betting round number 1 starts clockwise from the big blind. After the initial round of betting happens, the dealer deals 3 cards on the flop to the community. These cards are dealt face up in the middle of the table.
Following the flop, another round of wagering takes place and the turn card is then dealt to the community (face up) followed by another round of wagering, raising, calling, checking and dropping out. The final card given to the community is called the river card (dealt face up too) and a finishing round of betting follows with a faceoff to figure out who the winner(s) of the pot is/are.
Determining a winner in any hi lo game is somewhat different than in many poker games. Every pot has two winners. half of the money will go to the individual with the highest low hand and half of the money will be cut to the player with the biggest high hand. If the pot doesn’t have a successful low hand because of qualification, then the high hand wins the entire pot.
In Omaha hi/lo, the low hand must qualify for a low hand with an eight or less. If hands do not qualify, then the high hand takes the pot and in the case of a tie, the pot is then divide based on the high hand win.
This game has a number of varieties like pot limit and no limit varieties. In the set limit games of Omaha, the most apparent policy is the limit on the amount of raises allowed in the hand spanning from three to 5 raises dependent on the number of players remaining in the game. 1 noticeable variance in the game is the fact there are generally 2 successful players. Players accustomed to the hi/low games find Omaha hi-low easy to take part in and gamblers understand the protocols right away once the initial round is played.