Poker Strategy: Omaha Hi/Lo
by Bodog Poker | Oct 6 2010
Once you've become familiar with the rules of Omaha poker and know the ins and outs of the game, you might want to try out Omaha Hi/Lo. It's an interesting challenge and it can offer the dedicated player some really rich rewards due to the player types that gravitate towards it. This piece is going to offer some very basic strategies for helping the player that's new to hi/lo games understand the best approach to take. Of course, every player is different and has their own personalities, but this time around we're going to help you lay the groundwork for successful Omaha Hi-Lo strategies.
Omaha Hands Are Determined Early
In Omaha poker, you get more of your final hand sooner and that hand is generally much more defined that hands in Holdem or Stud — 7/9ths of your hand is known on the flop! When it comes to betting based on your hand, the likely outcome of that hand is pretty much know. A player that has ten or four outs has exactly that many outs and the random moments that occur in Hold ‘Em games are much less likely.
When you are facing down multiple plays in Hold ‘Em, they can win by hitting an oddball kicker or spiking the underpair at the last minute. This is a radical contrast to Omaha, where the play can be set in stone because you know the outs immediately. Even in the loosest Omaha poker games, there's very little mystery about your hand, and in tighter games, you'll frequently be able to win without holding the nuts because you'll be facing fewer opponents. A good, mathematically-astute hold ‘em player can become a great Omaha player with some practice because of the basic principles.
Learn To Read Your Cards
Reading low hands is something that takes some time to get used to, even for the most experienced poker players. There's actually a fairly easy way to go about it. First, remember the two-from-the-hand, three-from-the-board rule. A board that reads something like 87532 can make your hand of 2367 hard to read at first glance, but just simply take the lowest card combination to be found using three cards from the board and two from the hand.
But how do you determine the lowest card? What happens when your cards are paired (also known as "counterfeited") on the board? Learn to read your cards like they are a number. For instance, the lowest/best possible hand is a wheel: 5432A or 54,321 — do you see what we're doing there? The lowest/worst possible qualifying low hand is 87654 or 87,654. Build your number by starting with the highest number in your hand and work your way down. The player with the hand or number closest to 54,321 wins!
Information, Information, Information
More than any other game, Omaha Poker is about the information you receive from the cards themselves. Texas hold ‘em is a game filled with uncertainty and loose games in that variation can be downright treacherous for the player who actually uses the cards to make decisions whereas loose Omaha poker games are about who has the actually has nuts. Take the time to understand outs and how they work and Omaha Hi/Lo games become much more clear.
