Online Omaha High
Online Omaha may resemble Texas Hold’em in the fact that it is a game played with five community cards but the game is quite different. There are two variations of the game, Omaha High only and Omaha Hi/Lo split. It can be played with the betting being a structured Limit game or you can find No Limit and Pot Limit games. I will use the Limit Omaha High game in the explanation about how to play.
Types of Omaha Poker Games
Limit Online Omaha Poker - There is a specific betting limit applied in each game and on each round of betting.
Pot Limit Online Omaha Poker - A player can bet what is in the pot (ie, $100 into a $100 pot).
Below is an explanation on how to play limit Omaha. The rules for pot limit Omaha are the same as limit Omaha, with the exception of the different bettting structures between them.
Basic Play
- Blind Bets
- Deal - each player is dealt 4 cards
- First betting round
- The Flop - the first three community cards are dealt
- Second betting round
- The Turn - the fourth community card is dealt
- Third betting round
- The River - the final community card is dealt
- Final betting round
- Showdown
The Dealer
Since the casino supplies a dealer one player must be the designated dealer who will act last during the betting rounds. A disk or "Button" is used to identify the dealer and this is rotated to the left after each hand. Unlike stud, all the players do not ante each round. Blind bets are posted to generate a starting pot just the way that they are in Texas Hold’em.
The Opening
After the blinds are posted each player is dealt four cards face down with the player on the small blind receiving the first card and the player with the dealer button getting the last card. The first betting round begins with the player to the left of the big blind either putting in two dollars to "Call" the blind bet, or putting in four dollars to "raise" the big blind or folding his hand. The betting goes around the table in order until it reaches the player who posted the small blind. That player can call the bet by putting in one dollar since a dollar bet was already posted. The last person to act is the big blind. If no one has raised, the dealer will ask if they would like the option. This means the big blind has the option to raise or just "check."
The Flop
e cards are dealt and turned face up in the middle of the table. This is known as the "Flop." These are community cards used by all the players. Another betting round begins with the first active player to the left of the dealer button. The minimum bet for this round is also three dollars.
The Turn
When the betting round after the flop is completed, the dealer burns another card and turns a fourth card face up in the middle of the table. This is referred to as the "Turn." The minimum bet after the turn is now six dollars and begins again with the first active player to the left of the button.
The River
Following the betting round for the turn, the dealer will burn another card and turn a fifth and final card face up. This is called the "river," and the final betting round begins with six dollars being the minimum bet. There is usually a three or four raise maximum during all betting rounds except if the play becomes heads up with two players. Then the raises are unlimited.
The Showdown
To determine the winner, the players MUST use two of his hole cards and three cards from the "Board" to form the highest five-card hand. In some cases two players will tie which happens quite often in Omaha Hi/Lo. In that case the players will split the pot. A sixth card is never used to break a tie.
Betting Exceptions
In Limit Omaha High a maximum of four bets are allowed per player in a betting round - (1) bet, (2) raise, (3) re-raise and (4) cap. In No Limit and Pot Limit Omaha High the number of times a player can raise is not limited. However, a player can not raise themselves (if a player raises and then all the remaining players call or fold, then the player who raised would not get an option to raise because they were the last to raise).
A player is declared All-In if they do not have enough chips to call. This player is eligible for the portion of the pot to the point of their final bet.
All further bets by other players go to a "side pot" which any All-In players are excluded from. |
