Omaha Poker Rules
In Omaha Poker each player gets four cards of their own. In the course of the game altogether five so-called "Community Cards" are revealed on the table, those cards apply to all the players.
The player forming the best best possible five-card Poker hand wins the pot. In Omaha Poker the Poker hand is a five-card combination of two out of the four own cards and three out of the five community cards.
Versions
Omaha Poker can be played as "Omaha High" and "Omaha Hi/Lo". The course of the game is the same, though in Omaha Hi/Lo even the lowest Poker hand can win half of the pot (for more information, see below).
Rounds
In Omaha Poker there's 4 rounds:
Preflop = each player is dealt two cards (only known to them)
Flop = three community cards are revealed
Turn = 4th community card is revealed
River = 5th community card is revealed
During any of these rounds, players can bet chips or fold.
A betting round is over when every player has payed the same amount into the pot or folds.
The River is followed by the showdown, when all players show their cards and the winner of the pot is determined.
However, a player can even win the pot in an earlier round: If all other players fold after one player has bet, this player wins the pot instantly.
Actions
CHECK
A player passes his bet and it's the next player's turn.
Note: A player can only check if no other player hasn't bet anything before.
BET
A player puts his bet.
CALL
A player evens the bet of another player.
RAISE
A player raises the bet of another player.
FOLD
A player folds and throws away his hand.
Course of the game
PREFLOP
In every game there's a dealer (D), a small blind (SB) and a big blind (BB).
Both blinds are obligatory, the small blind must be worth half of the minimum bet, the big blind must be worth the full minimum bet.
Each player is dealt four cards, facing down (only visible to them).
First betting round begins with the player left to the big blind. This player can choose to fold, bet or raise. Then the next players follow clockwise.
FLOP
Three cards facing up are put in the middle of the table by the dealer. These cards are called community cards, which means they apply to every player.
The player left to the dealer button begins this betting round.
TURN
The next community card, the "Turn" is revealed on the table.
Again, the player left of the dealer button starts the new betting round.
If this player has already folded and is out of the game, it's the next players turn (direction: clockwise).
RIVER
The last community card, the "River" is revealed on the table.
As in the round before, the player left to the dealer button starts the last betting round.
SHOWDOWN
The winner of the pot is determined.
The player forming the best best possible five-card Poker hand wins the pot.
Each player has to combine two cards of his own with three of the community cards.
Points system in OMAHA HI/LO
In Omaha Hi/Lo, sometimes referred to as "Omaha 8 or better", not only the best Poker hand can win. Also the lowest Poker hand can win half of the pot - not automatically, but under the following conditions:
The Low Hand mustn't contain a card with a value higher than 8 and there must be at least three community cards on the table with a value of 8 or less.
If that's not the case, only the highest Poker hand can win the pot.
In Omaha Hi/Lo also no Straights or Flushes are possible to form the Low Hand, thus, the best possible Low Hand is: A-2-3-4-5
BETTING LIMITS
The betting limit depends on which of the three versions is played:
Fixed Limit, Pot Limit or No Limit.
The limit is always set in advance.
No Limit (NL)
In No Limit Poker there's no maximum betting figure, any player can bet as much as they want at any time.
Example: In a "No Limit Table $2/$4" these figures refer to the Small Blind (which is $2) and Big Blind ($4).
Pot Limit (PL)
In Pot Limit Poker the maximum betting figure is dependent on the actual pot size.
The minimum betting figure must be even to the Big Blind.
Example: In a "Pot Limit Table $2/$4" these figures refer to the Small Blind (which is $2) and Big Blind ($4).
Fixed Limit (FL or "Limit")
In Fixed Limit Poker the betting figures are preset, which means players cannot bet as much as they want.
There's two important figures in Fixed Limit Poker: Small Bet and Big Bet.
The Small Bet can be bet only in Preflop and Flop, the Big Bet only in Turn and River.
Blind figures:
The Big Blind is the same as a Small Bet, the Small Big is half of it.
There's no raises at will!
If players raise each other's bets, raising is usually limited to four times.
Example: In a "Fixed Limit Table $2/$4" these figures refer to the Small Bet (which is $2) - not to the Small Blind! - and the Big Bet ($4).
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