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Omaha High-Low (8 or Better) rulesFind the rooms to play Omaha High-Low (8 or Better) »Omaha Hi-Lo is a community card game. Every player is dealt four cards face down, followed by five community cards dealt face up in the middle of the table. The five community cards may be used by every player. When played in casinos, Omaha Hi Lo is played with a dealer button to mark who the dealer would be if the casino weren't providing one for the table. The button rotates clockwise around the table between every hand. This is important as the "dealer" is the last to act, and thus has the greatest advantage for that hand. Objective To make both your best five card high hand, and your best five card low hand, using exactly two hole cards, and three board cards. You may use different hole cards in making your low hand then you used in making your high hand, so long as you use exactly two hole cards and three board cards for each. The player with the best high hand wins half the pot, and the player with the best low hand wins the other half. If there is no qualifying low hand, the player with the best high hand wins the entire pot. A qualifying low hand is made with five cards that are all 8 or lower, an ace counting as the lowest. No pairs can exist in a low hand, but a straight and/or a flush may. The lowest possible hand is A2345. The highest possible qualifying low hand is 87654. Note: Winning both the high and the low hand is called "scooping the pot". Forced Bets Ante Omaha Hi-Lo occasionally has an ante (usually only in tournament play) where every player must place a nominal amount in the pot prior to the beginning of each hand. Ante is often 1/10 of the low limit bet size. The ante does not count toward any future bets. Blinds Omaha Hi-Lo rules dictate that there be two forced bets every hand, called blinds. There is a small blind, which is 1/2 of the low limit bet size, and a big blind, which is equal to the low limit bet size. Before the hand begins, the player to the immediate left of the dealer button is forced to post the small blind, and the player to the left of that person is forced to post the big blind. These bets count towards that player's first round bet, and are considered live, meaning the player may choose to raise even if nobody else has. Note: In a heads up match (1 on 1), the player with the dealer button posts the small blind, and the other player posts the big blind. The player with the dealer button is the first to act before the flop, but acts after his opponent in the three betting rounds to follow. Betting Rounds There are four rounds of betting. In fixed limit Omaha Hi Lo game, in the first two rounds of betting, all bets must be equal to the size of the low limit bet. In the last two rounds of betting, all bets must be equal to the high limit bet. If, for example, you're playing 3-6 Omaha Hi-Lo, all bets in the first two rounds will be in increments of 3 dollars, and all bets in the last two rounds will be in increments of 6 dollars. A maximum of 3 raises are allowed per betting round. Note: In a heads up match, some poker rooms will allow more than the customary 3 raises per betting round. 5 is common, as is unlimited raises. 1. Preflop - The player to the immediate left of the dealer button is forced to post the small blind. The player to the left of him, or two to the left of the dealer button, is forced to post the big blind. Two cards are dealt to every player face down, starting with the small blind. The action begins with the player to the immediate left of the big blind, who must decide to fold, call (by putting in the low limit bet), or raise (by putting in twice the low limit bet). Action proceeds clockwise around the table. The small blind may call (assuming nobody has raised) by adding the other 1/2 of the low limit bet he was already forced to put in. The big blind may simply check (assuming nobody has raised), as he has already put in the full size of the first round bet. 2. The Flop - Three cards are dealt face up in the middle of the table. In this round, and in the following two rounds, the player to the immediate left of the dealer ****on is the first to act. Play proceeds in a clockwise manner around the table. All bets and raises must be equal to the low limit bet size. 3. The Turn - A fourth card is dealt face up in the middle of the table. Play proceeds as in the previous round, except now all bets and raises must be equal to the high limit bet size. 4. The River - A fifth and final card is dealt face up in the middle of the table. Play proceeds as in the previous round. All bets and raises must be equal to the high limit bet size. Showdown - Anyone who has not folded after the last round of betting will now have the option of showing their hand and possibly winning the pot. The person who bet last is the first to show their hand, and then it proceeds clockwise from there, with each remaining player either choosing to show their hand, or muck it. Often times a player will muck their hand if they aren't going to win the pot, and don't want their opponents to see what they played. Hint: Most online poker rooms offer the option of automatically mucking your losing hands, so the other players won't see what you played. It's generally a good idea to select this. Optional Rules Chop In a game where chopping is allowed, if there are no callers, the two players who posted the blinds have the option of having their bets returned to them, and moving on to the next hand. Both players must agree to chop. Straddle In a game where straddling is allowed, the player to the immediate left of the big blind may choose to raise before looking at their cards. Often times this is considered a live bet, which means that player may choose to raise again when it's their turn, regardless of whether anyone else has reraised. Kill Pot In a game where kill pot is allowed, a player may choose to post an overblind that is equal to twice the size of the big blind, and effectively doubles the betting limits. In some games, the player may be allowed to kill for a larger amount, usually no larger than half their stack. In most poker rooms, the person who kills the pot will act last during the first betting round only, and will then act in normal turn order. Find the rooms to play Omaha High-Low (8 or Better) » |
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