How to Play Omaha Hi

Omaha poker shares many similarities with the better known Texas Holdem. The blinds, the betting order and 5 ‘community cards’ being the same. The main - and very significant - difference is that players are dealt 4 cards each rather than the 2 cards of Holdem. At showdown 2 (and only 2) of a players 4 cards, together with exactly 3 from the community cards are used to make the best poker hand for each player.

This article will go through the rules of Omaha high starting from before the cards are dealt and going through to showdown. Omaha can have fixed betting limits or can be played with the popular pot-limit betting, these rules cover both structures.

Structure and Blinds

Before any cards are dealt a player is assigned as the dealer. The dealer’s position is marked with a button which moves clockwise around the table after each hand. The player to the left of the button posts the ‘small blind’ and the next left posts the ‘big blind’ before the cards are dealt. These forced bets are usually a small proportion of the stack sizes and comprise the initial pot.

Each player is then dealt 4 cards face down. A round of betting then commences with starting with the player seated to the left of the big blind. Each player can choose to fold, call (the amount of the big blind) or raise.

Betting

If the pot has been raised the betting goes round the table again until each player has either folded, matched the latest bet or raised once more. In a fixed limit betting structure there is a limit of 4 raises on each betting round, with pot limit betting the only restriction is that bets are up to the level of the current pot.

Once betting is concluded 3 community cards are dealt face up in the middle of the table. This is known as ‘the flop’. A second round of betting commences starting with the player to the left of the dealer button. Players do not have to bet, ‘checking’ (betting nothing) will pass the betting action to the next player.

A 4th community card ( ‘the turn) is then dealt with another round of betting followed by a 5th (the ‘river’) and one final round of betting. In fixed limit betting the bet size doubles after the turn card is dealt. In pot limit betting the minimum bet throughout the hand is the size of the big blind and the maximum bet is the size of the current pot.

Showdown

At showdown each player must make a poker hand with 2 cards from their own hand and 3 cards from the community cards. This is an important difference between Holdem and Omaha and the source of many errors for players new to the game. The key phrase to remember is ‘2 and only 2’ from your hand.

Now that you understand the rules of the game, click this pot limit Omaha strategy article to learn the strategy of winning.

Next: PL Omaha High Starting Hands