Editing Omaha hold 'em (section)

=={{anchor|Omaha/8}} Omaha hi-low split-8 or better==<!-- If you want to link to this section, please use "[[Omaha hold 'em#Omaha/8]]", or "[[Omaha/8]]" (which redirects here). -->
[[File:Poker Omaha hilo showdown1.jpg|thumb|right|280px|A showdown in Omaha hi-low split. Player on the left wins the low-hand half with the nut low A-2-3-4-5, player on the right wins the high-hand half with a full house 5-5-5-J-J]]
[[File:Poker Omaha Beispielhand2.jpg|thumb|right|280px|The most valuable starting hand in Omaha hi-low split]]
In '''Omaha [[high-low split|hi-low split]]-8 or better''' (simply '''Omaha/8'''), each player makes a separate five-card high hand and five-card [[Lowball (poker)#Ace-to-five|ace-to-five]] low hand (eight-high or lower to qualify), and the pot is split between the high and low (which may be the same player).A few casinos play with a 9-low qualifier instead, but this is rare.

The '''high''' hand is played as normal by creating the best hand possible according to Omaha's rules.

The '''low''' hand is created by creating the worst (lowest value or "junk") hand possible according to the rules with cards '''8-7-6-5-4-3-2-A''' (e.g. "eight or better"). Counterintuitively, any combination of cards identified as a "hand" - even a lowly pair of twos - is viewed negatively in the low portion. 

The player can use different cards for the high and low hands, i.e. the same cards do not have to be played for each hand. Each player can play any two of their four hole cards to make their high hand, and any two of their four hole cards to make their low hand. If there is no qualifying low hand, the high hand wins (''scoops'') the whole pot.

The game is usually played in the [[fixed limit]] version, although [[pot limit]] Omaha/8 is becoming more popular. A few low-stakes [[online poker|online]] [[poker tournament|tournaments]] feature [[Betting (poker)#No limit|no limit]] Omaha/8.

The game is complex so a number of examples will be useful to clarify play. The table below shows a five-card board of community cards at the end of play and shows each player's initial private four hole cards in the leftmost column. The middle and right columns show the best five-card high and low hands each player can play on showdown.

{| class="wikitable"
! colspan="4" | <span style="font-size:big">'''Board:''' {{cards|2s|5c|Th|7d|8c}}</span>
|--
! Player
! Hand
! High
! Low
|--
|Alan           
|{{cards|As|2h|5h|Kc}}          
|{{cards|5h|5c|2h|2s|Th}}
|{{cards|7d|5c|2h|2s|As}}
|--
|Bryan
|{{cards|Ah|3h|Ts|Tc}}
|{{cards|Ts|Tc|Th|8c|7d}}
|{{cards|7d|5c|3h|2s|Ah}}
|--
|Chris
|{{cards|7c|9c|Js|Qs}}
|{{cards|Js|Th|9c|8c|7d}}
|{{center|Cannot qualify (not enough 8 or below cards)}}
|--
|Derek
|{{cards|4h|7h|Ks|Kd}}
|{{cards|8c|7d|6h|5c|4h}}
|{{cards|7d|7h|5c|4h|2s}}
|--
|Eve
|{{cards|Ad|3d|6d|9h}}
|{{cards|Th|9h|8c|7d|6d}}
|{{cards|7d|5c|3d|2s|Ad}}
|}

Chris wins the high-hand half of the pot with a '''J'''-high straight. 

Bryan and Eve split the low hand pot with '''7-5-3-2-A''', a junk hand. Both Alan (pair of twos) and Derek (pair of sevens) lose as their hands are low in value but are more valuable than Bryan and Eve's junk hands. Had Bryan and Eve had hands (a pair of threes, for example) then Alan would have won with the least valuable hand, a lowly pair of deuces.

Some specific things to notice about Omaha/8 hands are:
* In order for ''anyone'' to qualify low, there must be at least three cards of differing ranks '''8''' or below on the board.  For example, a board of '''K-8-J-7-5''' makes low possible (the best low hand would be '''A-2''', followed by '''A-3''', '''2-3''', etc.)  A board of '''K-8-J-8-5''', however, cannot make any qualifying low (the best low hand possible would be '''J-8-5-2-A''', which does not qualify). Statistically, around 60% of the time a low hand is possible.
* Low hands often tie, and high straights occasionally tie as well, as do, even more rarely, full houses.  In theory, it is possible to win as little as a 14th of a pot (though this is extraordinarily rare).  Winning a quarter of the pot is quite common, and is called "getting quartered."  One dangerous aspect of playing for the low pot is the concept of "[[Counterfeit (poker)|counterfeiting]]". To illustrate, if a player has, for example, '''2-3''' and two other cards in their hand and the flop is '''A-6-7''', that player has flopped the "nut low". However, if either a '''2''' or a '''3''' hit the board on the turn or the river, the hand is "counterfeited" and the nut low hand is lost (the player still has a much weaker low hand however, with '''3-4''', '''3-5''' and '''4-5''' making better lows). This is why there is significant extra value in possessing the "protected" nut low. To illustrate this, if the player has '''2-3-4''' in their hand their low is protected, i.e. if a '''2''' or '''3''' hits the board they still have the lowest possible hand. To lose the nut low in this case either a '''2''' and a '''3''', a '''2''' and a '''4''', or a '''3''' and a '''4''' would have to hit the board on the turn and the river (giving the nut low to a player holding '''4-5''', '''3-5''' and '''2-5''', respectively), an unlikely possibility. For similar reasons it is significantly better to possess the protected nut low draw over the low draw. For example, this could be having '''A-2-3''' with a flop of '''7-8-9'''; any low card below '''7''' on the turn or river gives the player the best low.
* When four or five low cards appear on the board, it can become very difficult to read the low hands properly.  For example, with a board of {{cards|2d|6h|Ac|5c|8s}}, the hand {{cards|2h|4s|5s|Kd}} is playing a '''6-5-4-2-A''' (either their '''2-4''' with the board's '''A-5-6''', or their '''4-5''' with the board's '''A-2-6'''--either way makes the same hand).  In this situation he is often said to be playing their "live" '''4''', that is, their '''4''', plus some other low card that matches the board but still makes a low because the one on the board isn't needed.  A player with {{cards|3s|5s|Th|Jd}} is playing a "live" '''3''', for a low of '''6-5-3-2-A''', which makes a better low.  However, a player with {{cards|3c|7d|Qd|Qs}} can only play '''7-5-3-2-A''' low; even though he has a "live" '''3''', he must play two low cards from their hand, and so he must play their '''7-3''', and cannot make a '''6'''-high low hand.
* Starting hands with three or four cards of one rank are ''very'' bad.  In fact, the worst possible hand in the game is {{cards|2s|2c|2h|2d}}.  Since the only possible combination of two cards from this hand is '''2-2''', it is impossible to make low. As no deuce remains to appear on the board, it will be impossible to make three deuces or deuces full, and anyone with any matching card to the board will make a higher pair.  Likewise, starting with four cards of one suit makes it ''less'' likely that you will be able to make a flush. Starting with four different suits yields no chance for a flush, and starting with four disconnected cards reduces straight possibilities. Computer analysis of the best starting hands has proven that the best starting hand for Omaha is '''A-A-K-K''' ([[double suited]]). One favorite starting hand for Omaha is '''A-A-J-10''' ([[double suited]]), because of its wider range for making the nut straight (J-7, Q-8, K-9, and A-10). For the Hi-Lo variation, the most valuable starting holding is '''A-A-2-3''' (double suited).<ref name="bullet">{{cite web|url=http://www.pokersyte.com/omaha_hilo.htm|title=Omaha Hold'em High Low - Game Rules|author=Maxwell, Bob}}</ref>
* Hands to avoid tend to contain mainly middle-ranked cards, which are of little use for any low splits and which tend to generate lower pairs and sets, weaker flushes and lower straights and can be very expensive. Four of a kind is the worst possible starting hand in Omaha, in contrast to most other poker games, where it is exceptionally strong.<ref name="stuff">{{cite web|url=http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/how-to-play-omaha-poker4.htm|title=How to Play Omaha Poker|author=Young, Wesley R}}</ref>
* Straights and flushes are ignored when judging low hands.  Low hand ranks from best to worst: '''5-4-3-2-A''' ([[Wheel (poker)|the wheel]]), '''6-4-3-2-A''', '''6-5-3-2-A''', '''6-5-4-2-A''', ..., '''8-7-6-5-4'''. Low hands can thus be read as numbers between 54,321 and 87,654 (with the exception of any number that has a pair, i.e. 54,322). The lowest number that any player can make, while ordered from high card to low, is the best possible low hand in play. For example: 2♠ 3♣ 5♥ 6♥ 7♥ wins over A♠ 2♣ 3♥ 4♣ 8♠<ref name="intro">{{cite web|url=http://www.stevebadger.com/poker/omaha/strategy/|title=Introduction to Omaha Hi Lo|author=Badger, Steve|author-link=Steve Badger (poker player)}}</ref>