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Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is frequently viewed as one of the most difficult but favored poker variations. It’s a variation that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites action from all levels of players. This is the chief reason why a once invisible game, has grown in acceptance so rapidly.

Omaha/8 begins just like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are handed out to each player. A round of wagering ensues where gamblers can wager, check, or drop out. 3 cards are given out, this is called the flop. One more sequence of wagering happens. Once all the players have in turn called or folded, an additional card is revealed on the turn. a further round of betting ensues and then the river card is flipped. The players must attempt to make the best high and low 5 card hands based on the board and hole cards.

This is the point where a number of players get confused. Contrasted to Holdem, in which the board can make up everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi/low the player has to use precisely three cards on the board, and precisely 2 cards from their hand. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Contrary to normal Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot could be won: the "high hand" or the "low hand."

A high hand is just how it sounds. It’s the strongest hand out of everyone’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house. It is the same concept in just about every poker game.

The lower hand is more difficult, but really free’s up the action. When figuring out a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. the lowest hand is the weakest hand that can be put together, with the lowest value being A-2-3-4-5. Because straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the smallest value hand possible. The lower hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an eight and lower. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there’s no low hand available, the high hand wins the complete pot.

While it seems complicated initially, following a couple of hands you will be agile enough to pick up on the basic nuances of play with ease. Since you have people wagering for the low and betting for the high, and since so many cards are being used at the same time, Omaha hi lo provides an amazing assortment of wagering options and seeing that you have several players battling for the high hand, and a few trying for the low. If you love a game with a considerable amount of outs and actions, it is worth your time to play Omaha 8 or better.