Omaha High/Low - 5 Reasons To Add Omaha/8 To Your Poker Repertoire

The game of poker exploded in the early 2000's with the advent of online poker and mainstream television show coverage. The game that everyone was talking about and playing was Texas Hold 'Em. A few years on, many players have made good money playing poker and calling themselves poker players, but in truth they have yet to expand their horizons and become true poker players. Looking beyond Texas Hold 'Em to other games of poker players is part of any good player's maturation. This article addresses some key prerogatives to add other games of poker to your skill set. In particular the focus will be on the game of Omaha Eight-or-Better split pot poker.

Simple Decision Making

Players who have played Texas Hold 'Em their whole poker lives look at the rules and structure of Omaha High/Low split poker and figure it to be a much more complex game. Sure, the fact that players get two extra cards in their hand and that the pot is split between the best high and low showdown hands makes the game harder to understand at first. However, as you get your head around the structure of the game itself, the strategical decision making behind playing and winning at the game is a lot easier to master than Texas Hold 'Em.

It is often said that Omaha/8 is a game of drawing to the nuts, and therefore there is a lot less grey area than there is Texas Hold 'Em where marginal situations are usually where profit is made. If you understand some basic concepts of poker such as outs and pot odds then you can do quite well quite quickly at Omaha/8.

Lower Variance and Bankroll Requirements

Poker players often bemoan the financial variance associated with their chosen pass-time. Much has been written on the size of a poker bankroll that a player should have to withstand this variance at a particular betting limit. The game of Omaha/8 has a lot lower variance than Texas Hold 'Em does for two key reasons. Firstly, the pot is split, so on more occasions a player will be winning some money back and not losing an entire pot. Secondly, given that the nuts is often required to win, good players will only be putting lots of money into the pot when they are big favorites to win all or part of it. The lower variance of Omaha High/Low means that players can play at a given betting limit with a smaller bankroll than they would require for the same Texas Hold 'Em betting limit.

Mental Break/Fresh Perspective

Texas Hold 'Em poker can become a real grind after a while. If a poker player puts in a good number of hours every week, there is a good chance that after a long period of playing they are going to experience some sort of burnout. Often the lure of making money keeps them playing even though they aren't enjoying it as much or aren't as sharp. Developing skills in other poker games though provides an outlet for new experience and an opportunity to change things up a bit. The great thing is that if you can turn other forms of poker into winning games for yourself then you are not giving up your profit making while you take a break from Texas Hold 'Em.

A Lot of Players Have No Idea What They Are Doing

There is far less literature and discussion about good Omaha High/Low poker strategy than there is about Texas Hold 'Em. Just do a web search and you will see that the resources available for Omaha/8 players are very limited. Hence, you can expect the average opponent you come across at the Omaha High/Low table to be worse than the average player at a Texas Hold 'Em table. If you put in the time and effort to learn about the game then you will be in a position to exploit these players.

Great for Releasing Bonus

A lot of online poker players make good money just from receiving online poker room bonuses and promotions for playing at particular sites. These bonuses are usually released to players when they have satisfied certain playing requirements, usually measured in raked hands. For hands to be counted as raked, the pot must be of a certain size. Often times in Texas Hold 'Em games, the pot never reaches this level. In Omaha High/Low though, players are striving for two different sides of the pot and action can become quite heated. The average pot size for Omaha/8 at the same betting level is much higher than that of Texas Hold 'Em and therefore bonuses and promotions are released at a faster rate while playing Omaha/8.

Copyright 2007 - Andrew L. Ferguson. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

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Omaha Poker- Texas Holdem's Cousin

Omaha poker is an exciting game derived from Texas Holdem.It is similar to Texas Holdem and this is also a community card game, but the difference lies in that there are 4 pocket cards face down in Omaha games. Omaha Poker is a great choice for those who want a bit of variety with there Online Poker Games.This type of Poker is the choice of online poker games for the more sophisticated player.This is a community card game where 4 cards are dealt face down to players and they have to make their best hand using 2 of them and 3 of the 5 community cards.It's often compared to Texas Holdem as the structure of the game is very similar, You have hole cards, a flop, turn and river with the same betting sequence.

Poker is a gambling card game with lots of variations. Poker players try to convince their fellow players to "fold," even with a fairly good hand, by convincing them that their hand is superior. Poker is a game available in every land-based casino and online casino, and is also played among friends around the kitchen table or in other informal settings. It is becoming increasingly popular, particularly in the growing number of online poker rooms now available, partly due to the televising of major poker tournaments such as the World Series of Poker.

Omaha poker is an exciting game derived from Texas Holdem.This type of poker has several other variations apart from Omaha high-low and you need to give a try through this exciting variation to test your skills. Omaha is a poker game growing in popularity with Omaha High being particularly popular in Europe. Omaha does have the tendency to drive beginning players to prayer, but it really need not be so. Omaha players often speak of "the nut low." Omaha is a game of nut hands, so as hands unfold, practice reading what the nut low hand is.This is the best poker game to make money, especially when you have a small bankroll. Omaha is a game of massive edges and holdem is a game of smallish edges.

This form of poker is mainly played with high hands only, but the high-low split version is also popular. Betting and the order of play in Omaha Poker is the same as Texas Hold 'em and works in the following order: Big and Small Blinds are posted in order to get the pot started. The aim of Online Omaha Poker is to create the best hand with two of these hole cards, together with the five community cards that are facing up. Omaha Poker is a game that takes a lot of nerves to play and also a game of draws and bluffs. Omaha poker is a variety of Holdem poker, though a significantly less popular one than the highly televised game of Texas Holdem.This form of Poker is also one of the fastest growing trends in the online poker world. Omaha Poker is easy to learn but a lot harder to master, the betting rounds are similar to those in Holdem but the main difference in Omaha Poker is each player is dealt 4 cards not 2 as with Holdem.

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How to Play Omaha Poker

Omaha Hold'Em poker, typically called Omaha poker amongst players, is a member of the community card poker family. It is a variation of the classic poker style that incorporates the unique element of shared, or community, cards into its game structure. In this way, Omaha closely follows the poker rules of Texas Hold'Em poker, a popular poker variation that also uses community cards.

The objective of Omaha poker is to make a better 5-card hand than any other player at the table. The game uses one standard deck of 52-cards and can comfortably seat a number of players from two to ten.

At the start of each game of Omaha poker, the player to the left of the dealer commences with the small blind. The second player then pays the big blind. Blinds are simply mandatory bets that begin the Omaha poker pot. The responsibility of paying the blinds shifts clockwise around the poker table so that all players will contribute to the poker game.

After the blinds have been paid, each player is deal four cards face down by the dealer. These cards are known as a player's pocket (or hole) cards, and must be kept hidden from other competitors. Each player must use exactly two of these cards to compose their final 5-card poker hand. Players can choose whichever two of their four pocket cards to use, combining them with three of the five community cards to make their hand.

Following the first deal is the first round of betting. After betting, the first round of community cards will be dealt face up to the table by the dealer. The first round is called the Flop and exposes three cards. Players then bet again, starting with the player on the dealer's left. Any player who does not want to call, or agree to pay, the bet, forfeits his cards and exits the game. All remaining players then view the Turn, the fourth community card. After betting, the last community card is revealed in the River. The final bets are placed, and remaining players then reveal their 5-card hands.

Whichever player has the highest hand at the table wins the pot. The Omaha poker hand rankings are as follows: Royal Flush, Straight Flush, Four of a Kind, Full House, Flush, Straight, Three of a Kind, Two Pair, Pair and High Card.

Once players have mastered the basic rules, learning how to play Omaha poker is best done through practice. People can play poker Omaha-style in a number of different formats. With an internet connection, players can play free poker or online poker for real money wagers in online casinos. Playing free online poker is a great way for new players to hone their skills, knowing that they can make mistakes without losing money bet. A free poker game even benefits advanced players who can work on improving their own strategies and testing out professional poker tips with the goal of developing the perfect Omaha technique.

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