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Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha/8 or better) is often times seen as one of the most complex but popular poker games. It’s a game that, even more than regular Omaha poker, aims for action from every level of players. This is the primary reason why a once irrelevant game, has expanded in popularity so rapidly.

Omaha 8 or better starts like a normal game of Omaha. Four cards are dealt to each player. A sequence of wagering follows in which players can bet, check, or fold. Three cards are dealt out, this is known as the flop. A further sequence of wagering ensues. Once all the gamblers have in turn called or dropped out, another card is flipped on the turn. Another round of wagering ensues at which point the river card is flipped. The players 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 get confused. Contrasted to Texas Holdem, where the board can make up every player’s hand, in Omaha Hi-Lo the player must use precisely three cards on the board, and exactly two cards from their hand. Not a single card more, no 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 is the strongest possible hand out of every player’s, whether that is a straight, flush, full house. It’s the very same concept in almost all poker games.

The low hand is more complex, but really free’s up the play. When determining a low hand, straights and flushes do not count. A low hand is the worst hand that might be made, with the lowest being made up of A-2-3-4-5. Because straights and flushes don’t count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest possible hand. The lower hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and below. The low hand takes half of the pot, as does the high hand. When there’s no low hand presented, the higher hand wins the whole pot.

It may seem difficult at the start, after a few hands you will be agile enough to get the base nuances of play easily enough. Seeing as you have individuals betting for the low and wagering for the high, and since so many cards are being used at the same time, Omaha 8 or better offers an exciting assortment of wagering possibilities and owing to the fact that you have many individuals trying for the high hand, along with many shooting for the low. If you enjoy a game with a plethora of outs and actions, it is not a waste of your time to compete in Omaha hi low.