Poker Rules - Omaha Hi

Omaha poker is a fun variation of poker, which is somewhat similar to Texas Hold’em. In this version, the player must use three community cards and their two hole cards to make the best hand possible. Players will receive four hole cards, which are kept to hidden from the other players until the showdown. There are also five community cards, which are used to complete the hands of every player at the table.

There are four rounds of betting, giving players the chance to stay in the game or fold. At a live table, the dealer is the starting point for play, however as there is no dealer in online poker, the dealer button represents the starting point. The player to the left of the dealer starts play and it continues clockwise around the table.

Winning Omaha poker is a simple concept; the player with the best hand takes the pot. Ties are possible in Omaha, so in the case of more than one player having a winning hand, the pot will be split equally among the players. Should there be an odd number of chips, the extra chip is given to the player closest to the left of the dealer.

Betting Blinds

When playing Omaha poker, before any cards are dealt, the blinds must be placed. The “small blind” is put in by the player to the immediate left of the dealer, and the “big blind” is placed by the person to the left of the “small blind.” The blinds are the starter money in the pot, guaranteeing a win should everyone else at the table fold in the first round of betting.

Pre-Flop

Once the blinds have been placed, the players will receive their hole cards. In this round, four cards are dealt, face down, to each player. Once they have analyzed their cards, betting begins with the player “under the gun”, which is the person to the left of the big blind. This player has three choices for play:

Call – bet the same as the big blind

Raise – increase the bet to an amount larger than the big blind

Fold – walk away from the hand

Betting continues around the table, in a clockwise motion. Once the player who put up the big blind is reached, they have an additional choice, if no one has raised the bet. The big blind can check, as their bet was the initial bet for this round. If there as already been a raise, they can choose to re-raise, call, or fold.

The Flop

Next, the dealer will place the first three community cards on the table, face up. This deal is called the “flop.” Once these cards have been shown, another round of betting will commence, with the chance to call, raise, or fold.

The Turn

This round, the dealer adds a fourth card to the community cards and players will again have the chance at a round of betting. The field at the table usually begins to shrink at this point in the hand.

The River

The dealer will now deal the fifth and final community card. From here, the final round of betting will begin and players have their last chance to call, raise, or fold.

The Showdown

After the final round of betting, those left standing that have not folded will have their showdown. Their hole cards will be revealed and the best hand will be decided. The player with the highest-ranking poker hand takes the pot, unless there is a tie. If only one player remains at the table when the showdown round is reached, the pot is theirs regardless of their hand

Omaha is one of the most common forms of poker online and is available at all poker sites. For beginners we suggest you check out Sportsbook Poker or Carbon Poker where the level of competition is significantly softer than some of the other online rooms for this particular game.