In standard Omaha poker (Omaha Hi) the pot is given to the player with the highest hand. If you are playing Omaha Hi-Lo, then the pot is split between the players with the highest and lowest poker. When playing straight Omaha, or Omaha High, the best hand you can hope to peel up from the table is AAKK. That's it, the very best hand preflop. Now you want these to be suited as well to give you the. Even suited hands help in getting you a win in Omaha poker. Basically, it is the ranking of strong hands that give the right Omaha poker starting hands. Though not the best, an ace-ace combination is a.

1. Best Hands In Omaha Poker
2. Omaha Poker Top Hands
3. Omaha Poker Best Starting Hands
4. Omaha Starting Hand Chart

Omaha hi-lo can be a dizzying game if you are not used to it. With two opposing, possible winning options and trying to build a hand from four hole cards and five community cards, you have to keep your wits about you at all times.

Here we endeavour to make life that little bit easier, providing some helpful hints at what Omaha hi-lo hands are worth playing, and which hands are absolute poison that should be avoided like the plague. The greatest weapon in a game of poker is knowledge and once we’ve broken down what’s what you will confidently be able to traverse the seemingly daunting and sinister world that is Omaha hi-lo split.

The Best Hand

While every thoroughbred Omaha player may have their own personal favorite hand, A, A, 2, 3 (double suited), is the best hand to be armed with in Omaha hi-lo.

Now let us just have a look at what makes this such an effective hand, baring in mind that in Omaha hi-lo, each player must use exactly two of their hole cards and three community cards to construct either a winning hi hand or a winning lo hand, Aces are high and low, and a lo hand can only quality with an 8-7-6-5-4 or lower.

• You are sporting a pair of Aces, which is primo no matter which poker derivative you are playing.
• Double suited gives you two possible flush draws.
• A-2 or 2-3 gives you two possible straight draws which can result in a hi win and a lo win.
• Having the baby cards of A-2-3 has you in a very good position to also take the Lo pot.

Other strong hands

Generally speaking, Aces are premium, considering they are high and low and can help you win either side or both sides of a possible hi-lo pot.

Double suited low cards such as an Ace and Three of Hearts and a Deuce and Five of Clubs has you primed for two possible flush draws, a low straight flush, a low straight and a look at splitting the pot and taking the lo hand.

A combination of low cards and high cards can be advantageous too, because then you are covering both ends of the spectrum. A hand like A-K-4-2 with two of those cards suited would have you sitting pretty with a plethora of possible hands.

Bad Hands

Unsuited middle hands can be an absolute grenade in Omaha hi-lo. J,9,8,6 unsuited is a train wreck. Sure you might be able to struggle a straight out of it, but there is nothing really on here. No flush. No high pair. No real lo winning hand. You should fold mid-range hands like this with extreme prejudice.

As odd and unlikely as it might sound, having quads (four of a kind) is the worst possible hand in Omaha hi-lo (the lower the four same ranked cards the worse, with four Deuces being the absolute worst). The best you can do with four of a kind is create a pair, so it is impossible to make the hand low. It is also not possible to make three or four of a kind, you have no chance for a flush, and any player with any matching card to the board automatically makes a higher pair than you.

So as special as it may look to be clutching a quad, give it a miss, even four Aces. Also, four suited cards (each card with the same suit), makes it less likely to create a flush.

Obviously, notes pointed here are not written in stone. A win can sometimes be manufactured outside of the cards you are concealing from the rest of the table. Can you bluff you way to a win? Can you be bluffed out of a win? What are the community cards? Who are you playing against? These are just some of the things you must take into account when playing Omaha hi-lo split.

Where to play Omaha hi-lo split online

Omaha hi-lo is available to play at cash tables, sit ‘n go tables or in tournaments with the following trusted poker sites. Each site’s sign up or welcome bonus is included for your convenience.

• 888Poker.com offers up to $888 in bonus cash when you register.
• PokerStars.com offers up to $600 in matched deposit bonuses.
• FullTilt.com offers up to $600 in matched deposit bonuses.

Once you have studied Omaha Hi-Lo Poker Rules, the next step is to learn Omaha hi-lo hand rankings. In Omaha hi-lo, the pot is divided evenly between the high hand and the low hand.

The high hand ranking is similar to Texas Holdem and Omaha. Keep in mind that the ranking reflects how rare it is to form a hand. Let’s take a look at all the high hand rankings.

Best Hands In Omaha Poker

High Hand Rankings (ordered by increasing value)

Low and the Eight or Better Qualifier

Not all hands qualify for the low. Furthermore, if no player makes a low hand, the high wins the entire pot. A valid low hand consists of five different cards, so no pair, ranked eight or lower, with the ace counting as the lowest card. Straights and flushes are ignored, so the following hands are valid low hands.

Hands that contain any pair or any card nine to king do not qualify for the low. So the following hands do not count as low.

Low Hand Rankings

Omaha Poker Top Hands

In a low hand, the lower the card denominations are, the stronger the hand is. Low hands are evaluated, starting from the highest rank card (remember, the ace counts as the lowest), in a top-down approach. The player with the lowest card from the top wins. If the cards are even, the second card from the top is taken into account, and so on.

For example, consider that Player A has 8♥5♠4♣3♥2♥, and Player B has 8♥6♠4♣2♥A♣. To determine who has the best low, we first compare the first cards starting from the top. As they both have an eight, the second card from the top is examined. Player A has the smallest, the five, so he wins. Let’s take a look at some examples.

Low Hand Examples (ordered by increasing value)

Omaha Poker Best Starting Hands

Omaha Starting Hand Chart

Do you have any questions about Omaha hi-lo starting hands? Or more tips to add to this post? Let us know in the comments section below!