Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is often times viewed as one of the most difficult but popular poker variations. It is a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, aims for play from all levels of players. This is the main reason why a once invisible variation, has grown in acceptance so amazingly.

Omaha/8 starts just like a regular game of Omaha. Four cards are given out to each player. A round of betting follows where players can bet, check, or drop out. 3 cards are dealt out, this is known as the flop. Another sequence of betting happens. Once all the gamblers have in turn called or folded, a further card is flipped on the turn. an additional sequence of betting follows at which point the river card is flipped. The gamblers must attempt to put together the best high and low 5 card hands based on the board and hole cards.

This is where a number of players can get confused. Contrasted to Hold’em, where the board can be everyone’s hand, in Omaha hi lo the player must use exactly 3 cards on the board, and exactly 2 cards from their hand. No more, not a single card less. Unlike regular Omaha, there are two ways a pot may be won: the "higher 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, etc. It is the very same notion in nearly all poker games.

The lower hand is more complex, but certainly free’s up the play. When figuring out a low hand, straights and flushes don’t count. the lowest hand is the worst hand that might be put together, with the lowest being A-2-3-4-5. Seeing as straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest possible hand. The low hand is any 5 card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and smaller. The low hand takes half of the pot, as just like the higher hand. When there’s no low hand presented, the high hand takes the complete pot.

While it seems complex initially, after a couple of hands you will be able to get the fundamental subtleties of the game simply enough. Seeing as you have players betting for the low and wagering for the high, and seeing as such a large number of cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better provides an exciting collection of wagering possibilities and seeing that you have several individuals battling for the high, and many shooting for the low hand. If you love a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to play Omaha 8 or better.