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Game Rules - Omaha Hi/Low
Omaha hi-lo’s popularity is on the rise, especially online and in the United States. It is generally played in the fix limit form, whereas Omaha hi is often played pot limit or fixed limit.
Rules
Omaha hi-lo has the same rules as Omaha except there is one twist- the lowest hand splits half the pot with the highest hand. To qualify as a low hand, a player must have 5 unique cards 8 or less. Like Stud 8, straights and flushes do not count, so A2345 is the best possible low hand.
When you play Omaha hi-lo, your best hi and lo are considered when you show down your hand. For example, suppose you have AA23 (the best Omaha hi-lo hand) and the final board is A4456. You have a full house, aces full of 4’s for your high. Your low hand is A2456.
Strategy
Omaha hi-lo strategy can be pretty boring when you start out playing at the lower limits. It is often simply hand selection and odds; bluffing is not a tool to be used in this game against bad opponents. Simply playing tight (especially postflop) is generally the best way to win low limit Omaha hi-lo.
There are not any clear cut starting hands in Omaha hi-lo, but you generally want a hand that works for both sides of the pot. This means a hand with good low potential (like A2) and something with high potential like straight/flush draws.
If you have a one way hand (a high hand probably), play it very carefully. Hands with a lot of middle cards like 89TJ should be mucked preflop, but a very good high hand like AAJT double suited is still playable. Thus, good strating hands generally have very big and low cards; middle cards do not play well at hi-lo.
A lot of new players play too many low hands. They will call all the way with A4 and lose to a low with A2. When playing low limit Omaha, I recommend that if you are only playing for the low, play for the NUT low.
The nut low is the best possible low. Generally, A2 is the nut low, but this is not always the case. Suppose the board comes A5T, 23 is drawing to the nut low. If a 4,6,7, or 8 comes, 23 has the nut low. However, if a 2 comes, 34 has the nut low (and also a straight). When your low card hits the board, it is said to be counterfeited.
Since drawing to the low is often dangerous for new players, I suggest your protect yourself from frequently drawing to the second nut (instead of the nut low) by mucking hands like 23 or A3 if they do not have a very strong high potential as well. If you have AA34 double suited, by all means play it. However, if you have A38T rainbow, muck it. A2xx is almost always playable at low limit Omaha.
Being dealt low cards is always a blessing in Omaha hi-lo because they can win both sides of the pot (the lo part or they could form a straight and win the hi too). However, very good high hands are playable in omaha hi-lo, especially in an unraised pot or shorthanded play. If you need help with what good Omaha hi hands are, read the Omaha hi section.
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