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Omaha High-Low Poker Rules

Omaha Hi-Lo Rules

The rules for Omaha Hi-Lo are similar to that of Omaha, however Hi-Lo is a split pot game with half the pot awarded to the player with the best high hand and half the pot going to the player with the best low hand. If there is no qualifying low hand then the entire pot goes to the high hand. If you manage to get the best high and low hand you “scoop” the pot.

The High Hand

The high hand is exactly the same as Omaha. The player makes the best five card hand using three community cards and two of their four hole cards.

The Low Hand

The low hand again requires a player to use three community cards and two hole cards. In order to qualify the low hand must be 8 or lower. The best low hand is known as the wheel and is Five high, 5-4-3-2-A. Another example of a low hand is 8-5-4-3-A. This example would be known as an Eight low.

For a low to be possible there must be three cards in the middle that are of different values and 8 or lower.

The Blinds

In most Omaha games play commences with two players putting a forced bet into the pot. These players are located in the two positions left of the Dealer Button. The player on the left of the Dealer Button posts the Small Blind and the player on his immediate left posts the Big Blind.

Once the blinds are posted all players at the table are dealt four cards face down. These are known as the "hole cards." There will eventually be five community cards in front of Dealer. These are community cards and the principle of the game is to combine your two cards with three of the five community cards to make the best possible hand high and low hand.

Betting – Pre-Flop

Once all the players have been dealt their four cards a round of betting takes place. The first player to act is the player seated to the left of the Big Blind. This position is referred to as Under-The-Gun. Players can fold, call or raise the current bets and the Big Blind might be given the option to “Check” his bet. The size of the raise is determined by what structure game you are playing. In Fixed Limit Omaha Hi-Lo the player is only allowed to raise a fixed amount and in Pot Limit Omaha Hi-Lo the player can only raise the amount that is in the Pot. In No Limit Hi-Lo the player is only limited by the amount of chips he has in front of him.

If a bet is called in this first round of betting and play is still active after the first betting round, the Dealer burns a card (discards the top card) and then turns over three community cards. This is known as “The Flop”.

The Flop

After the flop another round of betting takes place. Betting begins with the first player located to the left of the Dealer Button. As was the case pre-flop, players can call, raise or fold. The difference with the betting post-flop is that there is no forced bet and players can all check. With three community cards currently available, all the remaining players have five cards to make the best hand available.

After this round of betting the Dealer will burn another card and turn over a fourth community card. This is known as “The Turn” or “Fourth Street”.

The Turn

The betting is the same as on the flop. The first player located on the left of the dealer begins the betting.

After this round of betting the Dealer will burn another card and turn over a fifth and final community card. This is known as “The River” or “Fifth Street”.

The River

After “The River” is dealt the final round of betting takes place. The players use their own two cards and the five community cards to make the best five-card hand. After the betting is completed the remaining players reveal their hands to determine the winner of the pot. As mentioned earlier the players remaining cannot play the board. Two of the four hole cards must be used to make the best five card hand. Half the pot is awarded to the best high hand and half the pot awarded to the best qualifying low hand. If there is no low hand then the entire pot goes to the high.

Once the cards are revealed it is possible to be quartered. This occurs when a player ties for the high or low and gets beaten in the high or low.

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