Omaha High Rules

The rules of Omaha are very similar to those of Texas Hold'em with one key difference:  the players are dealt four hole cards instead of two.  For the complete Omaha Poker rules list, please read on.

The Dealer

The dealer is represented by the dealer’s button, a small disc that is passed around the table to the left.  Every hand begins with the dealer’s button moving one place to the left.

The Blinds

The blinds must ante up a little bit of money to get a pot started each hand.  The small blind usually antes up half the minimum bet and the big blind a single minimum bet.  The player who is immediately to the left of the dealer is the small blind and the player immediately to the left of the small blind is the big blind.

Preflop

Next, the dealer will deal four cards face down to each player, beginning with the small blind.  After all the cards are dealt, there is a round of betting beginning with the player immediately to the left of the big blind.

*Note – If there is no preflop raise, the big blind may check to see the flop and the small blind only has to pay the remaining half of the minimum bet to see the flop.

The Flop

The dealer then discards the top card of the deck (this is called the burn card, and it is discarded to guard against accidental showings) and deals three cards face up in the middle of the table.

Next, there is a round of betting beginning with the player to the immediate left of the dealer.

The Turn

The dealer burns another card and deals one more card face up next to the flop.  There is another round of betting exactly the same as the last round.

The River

The dealer burns another card and deals the final community card face up next to the turn.  There is one last round of betting exactly the same as the last round.

The players that are still in the hand after this round of betting then have a showdown.  The player with the best five card poker hand wins.  The players may use any three of the community cards and two of their hole cards to create the best hand.

*Note – One of the key differences between Hold'em and Omaha is that the players in Omaha MUST use exactly two of their hole cards and three from the board.

For example, if the five community cards ended up being TJQKA of spades, then all players still in the pot would NOT have a royal flush because they are not allowed to play the board – they must use two of their hole cards.  In fact, to have any type of flush, the players would have to have two spades in their hands.

The End

The cards are shuffled, the dealer’s button moves one spot to the left and the next hand begins.  Now that you know the game's rules, check out our Omaha High Poker Strategy section for tips on winning.

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