Omaha Poker Rules

The Basic Rules of Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) Omaha is a poker variant in which each player is dealt four “hole” cards (cards that the other players can’t see) and then share a five card board. It is similar to Hold’em in its play, with flop, turn, and river cards dealt in succession on. The rules of Omaha hi-lo is usually played with a 'qualifier' for the low hand, meaning all of the cards making up a low hand have to be ranked eight or lower. That's where the 'split-8-or-better'.

Omaha Poker on GameDesire

One of the most popular variations of poker is, of course, Texas hold 'em. In addition to this version of the game, many players still participate in Omaha, five-card draw, and open-face Chinese poker. The most interesting and dynamic variation in the opinion of players is Omaha poker. That is precisely why it is not missing from the GameDesire portal.

Omaha Poker: What is covered by the rules?

Omaha is a very popular version of poker, which has amassed great numbers of fans. According to statistics, Omaha is the second most popular form in terms of the number of poker players. The rules of this game are very similar to the rules of Texas hold' em. For this reason, people who have ever played poker grasp the rules quickly. However, the similarity of the rules does not mean that familiar strategies will guarantee success. The greater number of good hands that can be created while playing Omaha mean that the game progresses quite differently.

Players themselves say that Omaha is one of the most exciting variations of this game. This is true for both beginners and professionals. The main difference between Omaha poker and Texas hold 'em, is that the player is dealt four hole cards, instead of two in the Texas variation.

The board also gets five cards, three on the flop and one each on the turn and the river. In creating a hand, select two cards from the hole and three additional cards from the table. As you can see, the choice of cards is much greater here. As for the game strategy, Omaha is certainly very different compared to Texas hold 'em. The larger number of hole cards means even an average Texas hold 'em player can prove to be pretty good in Omaha. The greater number of cards is more likely to yield a better hand. Be aware that hands such as straights or flushes occur in Omaha very frequently. In Omaha poker you can, as in other types, pass, check or raise during the betting rounds. Although it is not allowed raise stakes to such a level as in Texas hold 'em, the winnings may be higher as more players reach the last round and willingly raises the stakes with better cards.

Sit down at the table at any time!

With the availability of poker at GameDesire, you can always join exciting play with other users at one of the many available tables. In the game you have the SIT&GO option, allowing you to join a game instantly. With the 'Play Now', you should remember to pay attention to the stakes on the table, which indicate how much you may win or lose in the game. You should also pay attention to your position at the table, which in Omaha has a great impact on your chance of winning.

Beginners should start their adventure in poker with lower stakes, to get to know the game, evaluate their real capabilities, and determine strategy. Omaha poker on GameDesire also offers you the ability to manually select the table and the place you will sit. In 'Tournaments' you find an ongoing game tournament, which you can join. Poker tournaments offer even more excitement and higher winnings.

It is also worth noting that Omaha poker on GameDesire is available for mobile devices. You can download it from Google Play or the App Store, and enjoy the game of Omaha poker anywhere. Due to the great popularity of the game, you can join poker battle with opponents from around the world, at multiple tables, playing with a wide range of stakes. The game also helps you to train ahead of live competitions. Fast-paced gameplay and the ability to play multiple tables give you the opportunity to test many different strategies and get to know the probability of winning with a variety of hands. Omaha poker will give you many sensations and allow for great training, which in time will help you develop the skills necessary to sit down at the table with real professionals.

Omaha poker guarantees sporting emotions at the highest level, and is at the same time great entertainment.

• Omaha High - Players and Cards - Deal and Betting - Showdown - Variations
• Five Card Omaha - Six-Card Omaha

Introduction

Omaha is a fairly recent poker variant. It seems that it was first introduced in the 1980's, but it quickly achieved great popularity among casino and tournament players. In Omaha, each player receives four private cards and there are five community cards on the table. In the showdown exactly two private cards together with three community cards must be used to make the player's best hand.

This page assumes some familiarity with the general rules and terminology of poker. See the poker rules page for an introduction to these, and the poker betting and poker hand ranking pages for further details.

Omaha High

Players and Cards

From two to ten players can take part. A standard international 52-card pack is used.

The Deal and Betting

Omaha is usually played with no ante, but with blinds. When there are more than two players, the player to dealer's left places a small blind, and the next player to the left a big blind. The big blind is equal to the minimum bet and the small blind is typically half that amount. When there are only two players (a 'heads-up' game), the dealer places the small blind and the non-dealer the big blind. Omaha High is often played with a pot limit betting structure, though other limits are possible - see betting limits for details. 'Pot Limit Omaha' is often abbreviated to PLO.

The cards are shuffled and cut, the dealer 'burns' one card and then deals the cards one at a time face down until each player has four cards. These are known as the player's hole cards or pocket cards. Players may look at their four hole cards and must not show them to any other player.

The first betting round is begun by the player to the left of the big blind. The blinds count as bets, so the small blind need only pay the difference between the blinds to call. The big blind player acts last and is allowed to raise, even if the other active players have all called.

After the first betting round the dealer burns one card and deals three cards face up to the table. These three cards are known as the flop. There is then a second betting round begun by the first active player to the left of the dealer seat.

When the second betting round is complete, the dealer burns a card and then deals one card face up to the table. This card is known as the turn or fourth street. There is then a third betting round, again begun by the first active player to the left of the dealer seat.

After the third betting round the dealer burns another card and deals one more card face up - the river or fifth street. There is fourth and final round of betting before the showdown, again begun by the first active player to the left of the dealer seat.

The Showdown

Active players show all four of their cards in clockwise order, beginning with the who was the last to bet or raise in the final betting round. If everyone checked in the final betting round, the first active player to the left of the dealer seat is the first to show. See the betting and showdown page for further details.

Each player makes the highest possible five-card poker hand using exactly two of their own cards with exactly three of the face-up table cards, which are known as the board.

Note that:

• For a hand to be considered for winning the pot, the player must show all four hole cards, even though only two of them are used to make the best hand.
• The cards speak for themselves: the best hand is entitled to win the pot if shown, even if the owner does not realise that it is the best hand.
• As always, poker hands consist of just five cards. The two unused hole cards and two unused board cards have no bearing on whether one hand is better than another.

Variations

The Swedish variant Sviten Special is described on a separate page.

Omaha High-Low 8 or Better

Omaha is very often played in such a way that the pot is split between the players with the highest and lowest hands. Since a low hand has to have no card higher than 8 to win its share of the pot, the game is called Omaha High-Low Eight or Better or Omaha/8 for short. This is commonly played as a fixed limit game. The deal is the same as in Omaha High, described above, but with fixed limits the size of the bet doubles after the turn card is dealt, so that the third and fourth betting rounds are played with big bets.

At the showdown, each active player makes their highest hand and their lowest hand. Each of these hands must use exactly two hole cards (but not necessarily the same two cards for high and for low) and exactly three board cards (but not necessarily the same three). When making a low hand, the five cards must all be of different ranks, the aces count as low, straights and flushes do not count, and no card can be higher than an 8. So the best low hand is A-2-3-4-5 and the worst is 8-7-6-5-4. Cards are compared from the top down, so 7-5-4-3-2 is better than 7-6-3-2-A because the 5 is lower than the 6.

In this game the cards speak for themselves. This is important because some hands can be quite confusing to read. In a formal game the non-playing dealer will read the hands and tell the players what they have, but in any case it is the duty of all players to try to ensure that the the highest and lowest hands are correctly identified, and to speak up if any hand is wrongly evaluated.

Example: player:

board:

This player has a club flush A-8-6-4-2 for high (not a full house, which would use three hole cards). The low hand is 6-4-3-2-A using the 2 and either a 6 or the 4 from the the player's hand.

The pot is split equally between the highest hand and the lowest hand. If players tie for highest or for lowest, that half of the pot is divided equally between them. If none of the active players qualifies for low (which will automatically be the case if there are not three different cards lower than 9 on the board), then the player with the highest hand wins the whole pot.

Other sites

O8 Poker is dedicated to Omaha Hi/Lo 8 or better, giving rules and advice, offering a personal coaching service, and providing brief reviews of some sites where it can be played online.

Five Card Omaha

This is exactly like normal Omaha except that each player is dealt five private cards. As in four-card Omaha, hands are formed of exactly two private cards with exactly three board cards. There are five-card versions of Omaha High and of Omaha/8. These games, and the six-card game below, are sometimes known as Big O.

Six Card Omaha

This is the same as normal Omaha except that each player is dealt six private cards. As usual, hands must use exactly two private cards and three board cards.

Omaha Poker Rules Straight

Courchevel

This variant is popular in France and has spread to other parts of Europe, including the UK. Five hole cards are dealt to each player and in addition, one card is dealt face up to the table before the first betting round. After the first betting round a card is burned and two more are dealt face up to the table to complete the three-card flop, and there is a second betting round. Then as in normal Omaha a fourth table card (the turn) is dealt face up followed by a third betting round, and a fifth table card (the river) is dealt, followed by a final betting round. In the showdown, players must use exactly two of their five hole cards together with exactly three of the five table cards to make their hand, and the best hand wins the pot.

Binglao

This is a Pot Limit Omaha (PLO) variant that has been played several times in the Norwegian Poker Championship week in Dublin, Ireland. Before each deal the player holding the dealer button rolls a 6-sided die. The result of the roll determines how many private cards will be dealt to each player and whether the game will be High or High-Low 8 or Better.

Omaha Poker Rules High Low

Omaha Poker Flush Rules

In tournamentsthe game is often listed as 'Binglao 6 max' which probably means that not more than 6 players are allowed at a table, though it would in fact be possible for 7 people to play without running out of cards.