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Omaha Hi-Lo (also known as Omaha 8 or better) is frequently seen as one of the most complicated but favored poker games. It is a game that, even more than normal Omaha poker, invites play from all levels of players. This is the main reason why a once irrelevant variation, has increased in popularity so quickly.

Omaha 8 or better starts like a regular game of Omaha. 4 cards are given out to each player. A round of wagering follows where gamblers can bet, check, or fold. 3 cards are handed out, this is referred to as the flop. Another sequence of wagering happens. Once all the players have either called or dropped out, a further card is flipped on the turn. Another sequence of wagering ensues and then the river card is flipped. The entrants will need to put together the strongest high and low five card hands based on the board and hole cards.

This is the point where many entrants can get flustered. Unlike Holdem, where the board can make up every player's hand, in Omaha hi lo the player has to utilize precisely 3 cards from the board, and exactly 2 hole cards. Not a single card more, not a single card less. Contrary to regular Omaha, there are 2 ways a pot may be won: the "higher hand" or the "lower hand."

A high hand is just how it sounds. It is the best hand out of every player's, it doesn't matter if it is a straight, flush, full house, etc. It's the very same notion in nearly all poker games.

A lower hand is more complicated, but certainly free's up the action. 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 A-2-3-4-5. Since straights and flushes do not count, A-2-3-4-5 is the lowest value hand possible. The lower hand is any five card hand (unpaired) with an 8 and below. The low hand takes half of the pot, as just like the higher hand. When there's no low hand presented, the higher hand wins the complete pot.

While it seems difficult at first, following a few hands you will be agile enough to get the basic nuances of the game with ease. Seeing as you have people betting for the low and betting for the high, and seeing as such a large number of cards are in play, Omaha 8 or better provides an amazing range of wagering possibilities and seeing that you have several players battling for the high hand, as well as several trying for the low. If you love a game with all kinds of outs and actions, it's not a waste of your time to play Omaha 8 or better.