This site describes key features of Omaha Holdem Poker Hi-Lo game and provides its readers with plenty of valuable tips and strategic tricks, which can appear to be very useful, when you start playing Omaha Poker Hi-Lo in either a land-based casino, or in an online poker room. Omaha Holdem is a 9-card Hi-Lo poker variant that has much common with Texas Holdem Poker: community cards, blinds and the dealer button.
However, unlike Texas Holdem, where all players are dealt 2 pocket (hole) cards preflop and 5 community cards (3 after the flop and then 1 more after each betting round), in Omaha each player is dealt 4 pocket cards. 5 community cards are dealt face-up on the board in the same way as in Texas Holdem. First betting round occurs after blind post and pocket card deal and the last betting round occurs after the last (fifth) community card is dealt on the board.
In Omaha Poker Hi-Lo, players act in a clockwise order. First two players sitting to the left of the dealer button post blind bets (the small and the big blind accordingly). Three betting rounds occur during the game: the flop, the turn and the river. First three community cards are dealt after the flop, one more community card is dealt after the turn and final community card is dealt after the river. Community cards are shared by all players staying in the pot.
After the end of the final betting round, the showdown occurs. In Omaha Poker Hi-Lo, players can use any 2 pocket cards and 3 community cards to build a 5-card poker hand. In order to qualify for the Lo hand, a player should build a 5-card hand of 8 or lower that won't contain pairs. Low flushes and straights may be used for the Lo hand, if there are no cards higher than 8. Ace can play at both ends of the deck.