Omaha also known as “Omaha High” is probably the second most popular poker game, it’s played a lot more in Europe then North America. It’s known as a gamblers game as there is a lot more action as you end up making more hands since you start with 4 cards instead of 2 cards with Hold’em. That’s pretty much the only difference between the structure of Omaha and Hold’em.
Omaha is classified as a community card game because some of the cards are dealt in the middle of the table and shared by all the players. Each player receives four hidden cards and then combines 2 of his cards with 3 of the five board cards to make the best possible five card poker hand.
Each player has to use 2 cards of his “Hole” cards with 3 of the 5 community cards, you can’t just use 1 of your 4 hole cards, this is the most common mistake when people begin playing Omaha.
Blinds and Dealer
Omaha uses a blinds system instead of antes to get each pot started with a little money. The two players to the left of the dealer pay the small blind and big blind. As the dealer’s position moves each hand, the position of the blinds moves around the table. This way each player must take a turn paying the blinds.
The payer directly to the left of the dealer pays the small blind while the player to the left of the small blind pays the big blind.
It doesn’t matter if you’re playing pot limit or no limit, the stakes of the game are the blinds. So if you are playing a $10/$20 No Limit Omaha, the small blind would be $10 and the big blind would be $20. Omaha is mostly played as Pot Limit though.
In games that employ the use of a full time dealer, a small round disc called the “dealer’s button” is used to represent the position of the dealer each hand. At the beginning of each hand, the dealer’s button moves one seat to the left.
Preflop
After the blinds have been paid, each player is dealt four cards face down, one at a time. The dealers begins with the player to his left and then deals clockwise around the table until each player has four cards.
Next, there is a betting round that begins with the player to the left of the big blind. This player may call the minimum bet to stay in, raise it or fold. After that player acts, the action continues clockwise around the table. If anyone makes a bet or raise, the other players at the table must at least match that bet or fold.
When it comes time for the blinds to act, their forced bets are considered a part of the cost of staying in. So if there is no raise, the big blind may simply check to stay in, since he has already paid one minimum bet.
Flop
Now the flop, or the first three community cards, is dealt face up in the middle of the table. There is another betting round, but this time it starts with the first player to the left of the dealer. This person may check, bet, or fold. The action then continues clockwise.
Turn
One more card is dealt face up next to the flop. This is called the “turn” card. There is another round of betting just like the last round. If it’s a fixed limit game, the upper betting limit would be used from here on out.
River
One final card is dealt face up next to the turn. This is called the “river” card. Now there is a final round of betting. If there is more than one player remaining after this round of betting, the play proceeds to a showdown to determine the winner. If there is only 1 player left after this round, that player may collect the pot without showing his cards.
Showdown
Those still left in the hand turn over their cards and the winner is that with the best poker hand. In making the best five card poker hand available the player must use three of the community cards and two and only two of his four pocket cards. This is often the hardest of the Omaha Poker Rules to grasp. The best thing about Online Poker is that it instantly works out for you what the best hand is and who the winner is.
