Poker does not consist of just NLHE – there are other varieties which you should try. Given its similarities to Hold 'Em, Omaha is probably the one you should learn next.
Many reasons exist for learning new varieties of poker, not least the opportunities that often arise in private/forum games when there is money added, or when there are bad players in the game – there's nothing worse in poker than finding a good game but being unable to take part. Another good reason to extend the range of games you play is that it will help with all the games you play – many of the same principles apply and you will definitely benefit from trying out some other poker variations.
Omaha, like HE, can be played to different limits, Pot Limit being the norm and the game dealt with in this article. The betting is the same as HE and so is the way the cards are dealt. The difference is the number of hole cards you start with and the way they relate to the board: you are dealt four cards of which you can use exactly any two with exactly any three from the five on the board – unlike HE where you can use any five of the seven cards between your hand and the board. Other than this very important difference there is none – the hand rankings remain the same and so do the betting rounds.
Starting Hands
Having four cards dealt to you means you have a lot more starting hands than in HE – up to six in fact. This means that you will find what looks like a playable hand much more often than in HE. One thing that makes Pot Limit Omaha fun is that if you want to see a flop you usually will – because there's much less difference in the value of Omaha hands preflop than in Hold 'Em, your average Omaha hand, before the flop, won't be that far behind any other hand. Don't be surprised to see the entire table calling before the flop, especially in a low buy-in MTT.
This does not mean, of course, that any hand can be played. So what type of hands do you need to start with?
Think coordination, this is key to winning at Omaha – having a coordinated starting hand. As in HE you can sometimes get into a pot with complete rubbish and win, but it's always best to have a solid foundation on which to build your hand. So to get down to some specifics the best possible starting hand is generally considered to be AK double suited – two Aces suited with two Kings. Another 'ideal' hand would be something like 8 9 10 J. A hand like 10 J K A is good especially with a suited Ace and/or King, as is say two decent pair, 9s and 10s for example. Hands to be avoided include those with low cards, which for me means I don't often play hands like 6 6 7 7 or 5 6 7 8 at a full table. Yes, they look good – and can often win – but trouble is best avoided when first starting out in Omaha and these hands don't usually play that well. Top set on the flop (and beyond) is difficult to make with pairs lower than 8s and even then you are vulnerable to overpairs that will call you down, usually with other draws going. Lower straights/straight draws are exremely vulnerable to higher straights and straight draws. By the turn you are often hoping to hit your straight with a low card – otherwise a higher straight might be possible – and that's too few outs.
When I first started playing I learned that I needed four cards all coordinated with one another for me to get involved (at a full table), but I have since relaxed this condition. One factor is that I enter a lot of six player SnGs and I have found that lesser hands can be played when shorthanded. So I will often be in a pot holding an 8 9 x with a Suited Ace or 10 J K x, even at a full table depending on cost and position. As a beginner you need to try things out or use a chart – up to you really.
There is not usually a lot of pre-flop raising in Omaha but one thing you should bear in mind is that if you can get it heads up and all-in your pocket Aces will be favourite to win. Not that this should be your regular aim, as you're not that much of a favourite, but sometimes you will need to pull off such a play.
The Flop
Fit or fold is a good attitude to take – either you have the best hand on the flop or you have a draw/draws to the best hand. You would like top set or the nut flush or draw to it. You would like a straight or a draw to both ends of it. Ideally you would like more than one way to win, and that's where a good coordinated starting hand comes in. Do not draw to less than the nut flush, but you can bet a made King or Queen flush. Do not always automatically bet your made straight on the flop. It's intuitive and obvious to do so but with so many cards out there you could be up against a draw to a full house (or two), a flush draw, a higher straight or a combination of these plus a duplicate of your hand.*
Two split pair is a hand you don't want to spend a lot of money on. You'd like to turn it into a full house but that rarely happens. On a quiet flop you could have a stab at the pot, but dont' take it too far. Will sometimes win in a showdown.**
Remember that at a full table, by the time the flop comes down, 43 cards will have been dealt. That's a lot of cards to be out so if someone could have the combination of cards they appear to be representing, then they probably do have that holding.
The Turn
Everyone's hand will be a little more defined by now and depending on the action you should have an idea of the likely hands out there. Now might (or might not) be a good time to bet that straight or split pair if the board looks unthreatening. You could also bet second or bottom set if there was little action on the flop, as top set would have likely bet himself. You can draw to a flush or full house depending on the price but you can give up a lot of chips this way – best to be the one doing the betting with top hand. But of course, this is Omaha, and when you have multiple outs, especially if you are favourite to win if you go the distance, then you must usually stay in to make the best hand by the river. You don't have to if you feel uncomfortable with drawing hands but unlike Hold 'Em you won't want to give up easily on the flop or turn if you have a decent hand that didn't quite hit but can still make the nuts.
The River
You either have the nuts or you don't. If you don't be very careful, if you do then bet the amount that will get a call. Generally you should always bet the pot unless you have a very good reason not to. If in position you can bet or call with less than the nuts if there's little or no action before it gets to you. Two high pair, for example, or second best trips. Maybe a straight with a flush on board or a flush with a full house on board. Any pair in the your hand will usually be good enough to win when three of a kind is on the board – you fear the quads but a pair in the hole will usually take it down otherwise, making the full house. A small value bet here will normally get a call but checking may be better, depending on the size of your pair and the size of the trips – the higher the better.
Various Tips
One thing to be aware of is when it looks like you have the full house and don't. Its easy as a beginner to see what looks like a full house on the board when in fact you only have trips. This is the one main thing where as a beginner you can make a drastic mistake. A board of A A K K 7 with a King or an Ace in your hand does not give you a full house, as it would in HE. A pair of sevens in your hand, however, would make the boat. Always stop and think – to make the full house you would need either a pair in your hand or one of each of the relevant cards.
Be sure, before drawing to a straight, that the card/s you need won't make a higher straight for someone else – for example you hold 7 8 X X with a board of 3 9 J – a ten would make you a straight, but might give another player a higher one.
Raise preflop sometimes with the likes of K K Q J, especially if suited but not with bare Aces (other than as above).
When dealt your cards, say in your mind what they are – just the numbers. You might think that as the cards are no more than about six inches apart on your monitor it's no problem seeing what you hand is, but repeating to yourself what your hole cards are when the flop comes down does make things more immediately clear. The suitedness of your cards is dead easy – it's there in black and red and different shapes. Numbers, however, especially how they relate to each other, is a little trickier – looking from left to right, from board to hand and vice-versa may work for you, but if you can hold in your head what cards are in your hand whilst concentrating on the board I think you will find it easier to work out what's going on – and of course you can still look to your hand as well – it's just that now you'll have a lot more certainty as the hand develops. There's no need for such an approach in HE as it's pretty easy to see what's happening between your hand and the board, but I believe that just doing this one thing will improve your Omaha.
When can you bet or call with the non-nut flush, or a lesser hand? That's something you'll have to try out for yourself and let me know the answer to, but paying attention to the action, or lack of it, may give you a clue – like in most of poker some commonsense should be applied in order to ascertain whether or not you are in front.
Conclusion
Omaha is a lot of fun to play and can also make you a lot of money if you play it well. You can usually get into a game at most poker sites and at the lower levels the play isn't always that good. To start with I would recommend you play some $1 SnGs to get the hang of it, or maybe a small buy-in MTT where you at least should be able to stay in for long enough to get an idea of how the game is played.
Best place to play Omaha is Carbon Poker
*Deep into an MTT I found it easy to dispose of my nut straight on the flop when the likely holding for this particular bettor (I had played many hands against him and observed his play) was the same hand as mine, but with outdraws. The best I could hope for was a split and with two streets yet to play I'd have had to have poured a lot of chips into the hand and put my tournament life on the line. It just wasn't worth it. Straights are, I repeat, very vulnerable.
**Saying that, I just bet the pot on a flop of 3 4 J with a 3 4 in my hand. There had been a raise before the flop, indicating Aces, maybe Kings, which checked the flop. I did fear a set of Jacks from the one player yet to act, but it was shorthanded and checking would have been lame.
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