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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 is a game that, even more than regular Omaha poker, invites play from every level of players. This is the main reason why a once irrelevant game, has expanded in popularity so amazingly.

Omaha hi/low begins exactly like a regular game of Omaha. 4 cards are handed out to every player. A sequence of wagering follows where players can bet, check, or drop out. Three cards are given out, this is referred to as the flop. One more round of betting happens. Once all the players have either called or dropped out, a further card is flipped on the turn. Another sequence of wagering follows and then the river card is revealed. The entrants must attempt to make the strongest high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.

This is the point where some entrants often get baffled. Contrasted to Hold’em, in which the board can be every player’s hand, in Omaha hi lo the player must utilize exactly three cards from the board, and exactly two hole cards. Not a single card more, no less. Contrary to regular Omaha, there are two ways a pot could be won: the "high hand" or the "lower hand."

A high hand is exactly what it sounds like. It’s the best hand out of every player’s, it doesn’t matter if it is a straight, flush, full house. It’s the very same notion in nearly all poker games.

A lower hand is more complicated, but really opens up the action. When deciding on a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that can be made, with the lowest being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Since 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 8 and below. The lower hand takes half of the pot, as does the higher hand. When there is no lower hand available, the higher hand wins the complete pot.

Although it seems complex at the outset, following a few hands you will be able to pick up on the basic nuances of the game with ease. Since you have people betting for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as such a large number of cards are being used at the same time, Omaha/8 offers an overwhelming assortment of wagering choices and owing to the fact that you have numerous players battling for the high, and a few battling for the low hand. If you love a game with a lot of outs and actions, it’s worth your time to participate in Omaha 8 or better.