Omaha Poker: Determining Your Position and Range

by Dougie Goguen | Jan 25 2012

Knowing what hands to play from what position is key to your Omaha poker game.

New Omaha poker converts frequently have trouble learning what hands to play and which hands to fold before the lop. "Actual" hand ranges are always going to remain speculative and depend on each and every situation, but there are certain hands that are immediately more playable than others. Of course, something like KKQQ double-suited is always going to be worthy of a raise before the flop but what if you've got something like 88AQ?

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Omaha Poker: Early Position Hand Ranges
Hands are so diverse that it's tough to lump them into easy categories, but we're going to try to help you sort out what's what to help you understand what's most playable from the early position.

First of all: stay away from garbage hands. Yes, it should go without saying, but so many people fall for the fallacy that any Omaha hand is playable that we had to make sure we put that out there. Now, what is a junk hand? Think about A58J, unsuited. This could make a few random straights at best and with the number of cards in play in any given hand of Omaha, they're just not going to do it for you. But something like 8899, double suited? Well, you've got a strong draw for a set and a line on a flush and you should raise and maybe even re-raise depending on your read of the others.

Omaha Poker: Middle Position Hand Ranges
Your ranger of playable hands in Omaha poker really expands as you move out of the early positions. Random suited connectors become more playable and you should always be on the lookout for spots where you can see a flop without risking too much money. However, you shouldn't limp in unless you've got something real mediocre (JJT9, for instance) and you're able to flat a re-raise. A hand like JJT9 could allow you to hit a nice set or some straights that are playable, but you shouldn't overextend yourself.

Omaha Poker: Late Position
Just like in hold 'em, late position is the absolute best place to be in a game. If the table tenor will let you, start playing smaller connected hands and pairs that wouldn't be worth pursuing in an earlier position. That said, late position in Omaha poker isn't quite what it is in hold 'em. It's much less likely that you'll be able to steal the pots and if you're sticking to pot limit play, there's no chance to raise the action to the point where the others won't be able to follow you.

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As you can see, position in Omaha poker is a lot like position in Texas Hold 'Em, but there are some differences in how much you can do and where. Remember that making value bets is crucial each and every step of the way in Omaha as you will have limited opportunities to build up a big pot. Late position is to your advantage, but it won't be much of a benefit if you don't capitalize on opportunities with hands that you wouldn't have a chance to play in early or middle position.

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