In general, in Omaha High-Low, the best hand takes the pot, so bluffing is not often helpful since the game is primarily driven by hand strength. Starting hands that are best may win both the high and low portions of the pot. Premium Starting Hands The very best starting hands are. At the showdown the player with the best high hand takes half the pot. The other half of the pot goes to the best low hand, provided that it meets the required low qualifications. If nobody possesses a qualifying low hand then the entire pot goes to the best high hand. The full name of Omaha Hi/Lo is actually Omaha Hi/Lo split, Eight or better.

1. Omaha Hi Lo Poker Best Starting Hands Big O Poker
2. Omaha Hi Lo Poker Best Starting Hands In Pot Limit Omaha
3. Best Starting Hands In Hi Lo Omaha Poker

Online Poker » Poker Strategy » Omaha » Starting Hands

From my experience playing poker, I have to be quite honest here. Even with all the various kinds of poker resources available to players such as books, online training programs and various strategy articles, I am still amazed when I see players sit down only to play every single hand they are dealt. And whenever they are questioned about their wonderful array of starting hands, the excuses are endless; 'there were two face cards, one of them was an ace, they were connected, both were suited.'

You know, I suppose this is an arguably reasonable strategy since these players are bound to catch a hand at some point. Ok, yes, I am joking. Playing every hand has to be single handedly the reason for the downfall of so many player's bankrolls.

This major leak is only amplified when players sign up to play Omaha or Omaha 8 or better since players are being dealt four cards instead of two. The possibilities seem endless then and players seem to find any reason possible to be involved in a hand.

Well, that ends now. What I have done below is highlight the hands that players need to focus on playing and the hands that need to be thrown away in our Omaha and Omaha 8 or better starting hand guide.

Hands to Play in Omaha/Omaha 8 or Better

One of the most important things to keep in mind when playing Omaha or Hi/Lo is that this game is about the 'nuts.' Since there will be so many potential draws out there, players should always play for the nut high or when applicable, the nut low. So, first let's look as some solid Omaha Hi hands and then we'll take a look at lo starting hands.

Omaha Hi

When playing Omaha players need to keep a few things in mind. To begin with, it is important when choosing a starting hand that you are starting a hand that is giving you the most possible outs possible. Let's look at a couple examples:

Omaha Hi Lo Poker Best Starting Hands Big O Poker

• Ad-Ah-As-Ac -Bad Hand
• Ad-Kd-As-Ks -Best Hand

Ok, so many of you may be wondering, why would 4 aces be bad to have as starting cards? Well, when choosing a starting hand you want to start with a hand that is going to give you the most outs possible to the best hand. While a pair of A's is a strong hand, 4 A's in the hole doesn't do you any good because now they aren't available for outs. Does that make sense? This will also apply to having 4 flush cards in the hole as well. Those would be two less flush outs that you have to draw to.

Now, a pair of Aces and Kings in the hole is a great hand and in fact, when they are double suited they are arguably the best starting hand in Omaha. This is because you have both a pair of aces and kings to use in the case you hit trips, there are multiple outs to nut straight and flush draws and these are 4 cards that no one else will be able to use as outs. Aside from a pair of aces and kings double suited, here is a short list to get you started:

• A-A-K-K Double Suited
• A-A-J-T Double Suited
• A-A-Q-Q Double Suited
• A-A-J-J Double Suited
• A-A-10-10 Double suited
• A-A-9-9 Double Suited
• A-A-x-x (x=any card)
• J-T-9-8 Double Suited
• K-K-Q-Q
• K-K-J-J

Ok, there is a top ten list to go by when you sit down to play Omaha Hi. The most important thing to keep in mind is that you want to draw to the nuts and have the most outs to do so. A great example of this would be the fact that J-T-9-8 ranks higher than K-K-Q-Q; there are more possibilities with a hand like J-T-9-8 double suited than K-K-Q-Q such as straights and flushes.

So, always be sure you are starting with these types of hands, preferably double suited, and that should make your life much easier in Omaha Hi.

Omaha Hi/Lo

When I first got started in Omaha Hi/Lo, I thought it was exactly the same as Omaha Hi except now you can chase both the Hi's and Lo's. Sadly, I was mistaken; and here is why.

The goal in Omaha isn't to just win just the Hi half of the pot or just the Lo the half, but to 'scoop' the entire thing. This is done by having both the best hand that qualifies for both. To put this quite simply, this cannot be done with just a Hi hand because Hi cards cannot qualify for a lo. On the other hand, a Hi/Lo win is quite achievable starting with a Lo hand because you are already drawing to a low but if you hit a straight or a flush, then you can qualify for the high as well. This is very important to remember. Now, here is a short list of starting hands for the Hi/Lo games:

• A-A-2-3
• A-A-2-4
• A-A-2-5
• A-A-3-4
• A-A-3-5
• A-A-4-5
• A-2-3-4

Here is a good list to get you started. I didn't include the high hands because they are listed above and to be quite honest, those really are mediocre hands in Hi/Lo and should only be played when you have position and are in a pot with as few players as possible. Again, the lo hand can draw to both Hi/Lo pots and Hi can only draw to Hi.

Lastly, it is important to avoid medium pairs and straights such as 7-8-9-10 or something similar because you would simply be catching the higher end of a Lo draw and the lower end of a Hi draw. This is quite dangerous and more times often then not, you will find yourself being second best.

Starting Hands in Omaha

Omaha Hi Lo Poker Best Starting Hands In Pot Limit Omaha

When getting started in Omaha or Omaha Hi/Lo it would be in a player's best interest to use our starting hand guide above and not deviate too far from it for a while. Omaha is a 'nuts' game and the sooner you have that memorized, the better off you will be. If anything else, just remember that in terms of starting hands in Omaha or any poker game for that matter, 'less is more.'

Omaha Hi-Lo is a fascinating game packed with action! The action, at least in small-middle stakes games, is not only loose but many times also weak. By having four cards, and playing for high and low, some players frequently find a “reason” to stick with their hand. However, even if their hand has some potential, pot odds often do not justify playing it. So, many novice players play too loosely, stick with their hands when they shouldn’t, and end up making many mistakes.

Most errors originate from poor preflop hand selection. Understanding which Omaha high-low starting hands are solid and under which circumstances they are playable will significantly improve your game!

Starting hands

The best starting hands in Omaha hi-lo have both strong high and low potential. Since aces are the best cards for high and low, they are excellent starting hands! Almost all playable starting hands contain at least an ace! On the counterpart, cards between six and nine, are considered weak. So, any starting hand containing one or more of these cards usually decreases in value.

Another deal-breaker is to have trips in your starting hand! This is because you can only use two out of three, so you have an unusable card in your hands. Your chances of hitting a set also decrease. Let’s take a look at the strongest starting hands.

Top hands

The best starting hand is AA23, followed by AA24. These hands have excellent high and low potential! If one, or even better, both aces are suited, the strength of the hand increases as it also has nut flush potential.

Powerful starting hands with both high and low potential

• AA, with one or two low cards (the smaller, the better), like AA2x or AA35
• A2 or A3 with two high cards, like AKJ2 or AKQ3
• A2 or A3, with a big pair, like KK or QQ

Strong only low starting hands

• A2 or A3 with one or two more low cards (the lower, the better), like A23x
• 2345, 2346, 2356 (the flop must contain an ace, and at least another small card, or the hand may become useless)

Note that if one or no low cards come on the flop, these hands lose their value

Strong only high starting hands

• AA, with two high cards, like AAKJ
• A with three cards ten or higher, like AKJ10 or AKQJ
• Four high connected cards, like KQJ10 or QJ109
• High cards with one pair, like KKQJ, or KQQJ
• Double paired high cards, like KKQQ

Note that if three or even two low cards appear on the flop, these hands go down in value. So you should adjust your play accordingly.

Trouble starting hands to avoid

Unlike Holdem, in Omaha hi-lo, it is ok to play a little looser preflop. The idea is to try to see many flops with hands that have potential. However, you must remain selective and avoid some trouble hands, especially when playing in a full table.

Some hands may seem attractive, but will only make second or third best! Don’t play them as they have a negative expected value. For example, avoid playing A4x or A5x type of hands in a full table, as they may get you in trouble more often than not.

Best Starting Hands In Hi Lo Omaha Poker

The same goes for the high. With everyone having four cards, it is more probable that someone will make a monster hand, so you don’t want to be drawing for second or third best! For example, if you are drawing for a queen-high flush, you will often lose to an ace or king-high flush. Even if you make a set of nines, you will often end up second best to a higher set! Let’ take a look at some other trap hands.

• 333A, AAA4 type hands have minimal high potential, and even if they make a low, it may be second-best.
• 9876, 8765, 7654 may seem keen but are really not! With these hands, it is tough to scoop the pot. If you make a nut straight, most of the time, there will be a low, and you will split the pot. If you make a straight with high cards, a better straight may beat you!
• High pairs with two one or two trash cards like KK9x or QQxx are weak hands. Do not confuse with the value of a pocket pair in Holdem. In Omaha hi-lo, with straight and flushes appearing often, a single pair is not all that great.

So, how to bet preflop?

In Omaha hi-lo, taking the lead in the hand with preflop aggression is less crucial than in Holdem. So, raise preflop mostly for value when you have powerful hands and position.

From position, when several players have limped, you can widen your range and add in see cheap flops with some speculative hands. Raise with premium hands for value. Most of the limpers will call you, and you also want to build the pot to be able to make big bets after the flop.

Out of position, limp with hands that have both high and low potential, to see a multiway flop.

Multiplayer versus heads-up preflop requirements

Some of the hands that are not good enough for a multiway pot go up in value heads-up. When playing in a multiway pot, you want your hand to have nut, or close to nut potential for the high and low. When playing heads up, you can win the low or high with medium-strength hands. For example, heads-up A4 is often good enough for the low, whereas in a multiway pot, it is a weak hand.

Also, heads-up you can win the high with a hand like two pair or a set, even when the board has some flush or straight possibilities. If the board is dry, even top pair-top kicker can win you the pot! In a multiplayer pot, when the board has flush or straight potential, you should expect that someone will have it most of the time!

In a nutshell

In Omaha hi-lo, you often see players playing too loosely. By adopting a selective starting hand strategy, you gain a significant advantage over your opponents. In multiplayer pots, play hands that have strong high and low potential, and avoid hands that can give you second or third best!

I hope you found this post helpful. If you have any questions or suggestions that you want to share, please leave a comment below.