Since my last post I have been trying to read a bit more on Omaha/8, an Omaha poker variant that is played for both high and low. I was quite literally blown away, this variation is tougher than it initially looks, what works for say Texas Holdem will not work at all for this community poker variant.
Okay you still have to pay attention to your position vis-a-vis the Dealer button but when it comes to starting hands well suddenly having pocket Aces does not mean anything. As with regular Omaha high you have to use exactly two of your pockets cards with exactly 3 community cards. What this means is that even if you’re dealt A-K-Q of hearts plus say 4 of diamonds and the flop comes 7-8 of hearts and then K of clubs, you still don’t have an Ace-high heart flush….just a flush draw and a pair of Kings. Worse still if in this same scenario then you get a paired card say another 8 comes up on the turn then you have to start scratching your head that some one out there might have a full house if they had something like K-8-x-x as their initial starting hand.
Omaha is a game of big hands and big draws, in Omaha/8 then you’re always out there aiming to scoop the whole pot and not just 1/2 of it say for high or low. It’s a tougher mental game, and from what I have read so far not even top Omaha players seem to agree among themselves what constitute the definitive best starting hands to play in this poker variation. What is certain is that Omaha appears to be on the rise just as Texas Holdem will soon lay claim to a decade of popularity as the world’s poker game thanks to the now legendary win of Chris Moneymaker at the WSOP main event of 2003.
One pointer which I have read in relation to Omaha/8 is that the best way to analyse a good Omaha/8 starting hand would be to think of it as being played with a deck from which 7-8-9’s have been removed. So essentially if you are dealt a hand that does not have these cards then you have something worth analysing otherwise muck them and wait for the next hand. Also since Aces are both high and low in Omaha/8, having a starting hand of say A-2-K-Q on a board of 3-5-J-7-10 means you have both a very good low hand 1-2-3-5-7 and very good high hand 10-J-Q-K-A. On the same board however if I had something like A-A-K-10 I would not even qualify for a low hands since I cannot make 5 low cards (8 or less) and my high hand is only good for a pair of Aces with a Jack kicker…and in Omaha winning with one pair isn’t very common…or so I have heard.
Still my game is still Holdem, I have grown to love it and I make no pretences other than enjoying it recreationally from time to time. Omaha is just something to dig my teeth into when I feel I need something different. That’s all I have for now, hope to be able to post again soon.
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