INTRODUCTION
A variation of Texas Hold'em, Omaha Hi/Lo Poker splits the pot equally between the best high card hand winner and the best low card hand winner. With 2 to 10 Players per hand, Omaha Hi/Lo is unique in that it allows those Players that tie on either a high or low hand to share the winnings, thus quartering the pot.
1. The Players to the left of the Dealer begin the game by posting blind bets. The Player on the Dealer's left posts a small blind bet, and the Player on the Small Blind's left posts a big blind bet. (Note: The Dealer's position at the table changes after every game. The dealer button (D) shows the Dealer's position at the table.)
2. Four pocket cards are dealt to each Player.
3. In the first round, the Player to the Big Blind's left plays first and can either:
Also Note: In the first round, betting is capped at one bet and three raises per Player.
4. In the second round, three community cards are dealt. This is called the Flop. A round of betting follows and Players can either:
5. In the third round, a fourth community card is dealt. This is called the Turn. Another round of betting follows.
6. In the fourth round a fifth and final community card is dealt. This is called the River Card. The final round of betting follows. The remaining Players then use two of their pocket cards and three of the community cards to create the best five-card low and five-card high hand possible. The two Players with the best high and low hands split the pot.
IMPORTANT
Winning hands must consist of two pocket cards and three community cards. Low hands can only win if all the cards in the hand have a value of 8 or less (a low QUALIFYING HAND). If there is no low qualifying hand, the high hand takes the entire pot.
NOTE
- It is not always possible to create both a low hand and a high hand. Sometimes you can only play for either the high hand or the low hand.
- It is possible to win the entire pot by having both the highest and lowest hands.
- If you and another Player tie on a hand, you both win a quarter of the pot. This is known as the pot being quartered.
| EXAMPLE A |
Player A wins the high hand and Players B and C tie for the low hand. The pot is $100. Player A receives $50 and Players B and C receive $25 each. |
| EXAMPLE B |
Of the five cards used in a low hand, an 8 is the highest-ranking card you can use. The lowest high card determines the best low hand. If two or more players have the same high card, then the next lowest high card is used.
At showdown - Player ‘X' holds 8, 7, 5, 3, 2 and Player ‘Y' holds 8, 7, 5, and 4, Ace.
Some may look at this and think that ‘Y' has the winning low hand because the lowest card, an Ace, is held. This is incorrect. Player ‘X' holds the winning hand. If you refer to the paragraph above, the “lowest high card… then the next lowest high card” determines ranking. So in ranking these two hands 8,7,5 is held in common with the next lowest card being a 3. Therefore, player ‘X' holds the best low hand.
A Straight or a Flush is not considered a low hand even if it contains all cards with an individual rank of 8 or lower. The one exception to this is considered the best low hand – Ace, 2, 3, 4, 5. This is also considered as a straight for high, and both pots may be won with this hand. |
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