A Little Omaha Poker
By the PokerStrategyKing

As you may have realized, all of my prior articles discuss Hold Em, both No Limit and Limit. I’ve gotten quite a few inquiries from people looking to improve their Stud games and Omaha games. SO today, I will discuss some Omaha strategies.

In Omaha. poker players receive four cards each face down and must use two of these along with any three of five common cards dealt in the middle of the table.

Like Hold em, there are four betting rounds. In many areas, pot limit is the preferred version. This means that players can bet or raise whatever amount there is in the pot. Much of the time this results in all the chips going in when the flop is dealt - the second round of betting. Today, I will discuss things to consider when choosing which starting hands you should be looking to play.

One of the attractions of Omaha poker is that players can get involved in hands with rubbish starting cards.

This particular poker discipline requires the use of two out of four down cards dealt to each player with three from five common cards in the centre of the table.

In hold'em where participants receive only two down cards the range of possibilities of a fit with the flop - the first three common cards - is somewhat limited.

But at Omaha almost anything is possible.

A starting hand such as 2c-4s-6h-6c is not one to put the mortgage on.

But if the flop shows for example 3c-5c-6d it has a fighting chance of winning a big pot.

The lucky holder has made a 6 high straight, has top set (three of a kind) and can make a full house, has a draw to both a flush and a straight flush - requiring the 4c - and can even make four of a kind if the 6s appears on the board.

Such a hand is fraught with danger though.

If any card above a 6 is dealt on fourth or fifth street an opponent could make a full house having a hidden pair of the same denomination.

Any club could make someone a higher flush and any 7 or 8 of a different suit would make a higher straight a possibility.

In the pot limit form of the game where bets can be made up to the amount in the centre of the table the brakes would go on.

The holder of the made straight would not want to bet out because of the imminent danger of being outdrawn or re-raised.

If the game were being played to a split limit structure where bets and raises are restricted to a maximum of say £10, the player with the made hand would probably bet out and hope for the best.

The best in this instance would be to make a full house by pairing the 2 or the 4, catching a 6 for quads or the club 4 for the straight flush.

The joys of limit Omaha are only available to UK based players in the many online poker rooms. The preferred form of omaha betting in casino card rooms is pot limit which can prove very expensive.

Here's a tip.

If you must play Omaha poker and you want to get your money in with rubbish, do so holding either an ace with another card of the same suit or an ace with a suited king.

You could win by accident.

Lots of hold’em players who are new to Omaha have trouble adjusting to the game. This is because playing Omaha requires a different mindset than playing hold’em. See in Omaha, you always need to improve your hand to make a score, and choosing good starting hands is somewhat difficult. I will discuss some of these starting hands: if, when, and how they can be played for profit. Please note that the game here is pot-limit Omaha, high only.

Hand No. 1: Ah Kc Qd Js

Lots of hold’em players think this is a great hand, and treat it like it’s the nuts. Even though it is a good Omaha hand, it really isn’t that great. At a second look, the hand is not at all suited, which weakens it considerably, especially its potential to flop a big hand/big draw when lesser hands and weaker draws will pay you off. Even though you hold four connected cards, it’s not that easy to flop a big wrap (if the flop comes 10-9-X, for example, you play just the K-Q-J, and your ace is practically worthless). What you want to flop with this hand is top two pair (giving you a gutshot-straight draw as well — for example, K-J-6 rainbow) against an opponent with the same two pair but nothing extra. You will also still have the Ace in the hole so to speak should the turn and river change things up for you. You are practically certain to get half the pot, but have lots of outs to improve over your opponent to take the entire pot. In other words, you want to have the potential to have flops that give you an inordinate amount of outs. Some other excellent flops are J-10-X (top pair plus an open-ended straight draw), Q-J-X, J-J-X when you’re up against the other jack but not a full house, or Q-Q-J. The quality of your hand lies in the fact that if you’re up against someone who’s also holding Q-J, all the money is likely to go in on the flop and you’ve got six outs twice (three aces, three kings) to improve over your opponent — and again, it’s free of risk (as you can never lose). Hold’em players might think the best flop would be A-A-K, but how are you ever going to make money with your hand here? Pot-limit Omaha players know better than to keep calling with A-X-X-X to try to make a full house. You might get some action if your opponent is in there with K-K-X-X, but any reasonable player holding those kings will be suspicious if there’s a lot of action after he has bet, called, or raised with his kings, and certainly will not ride with you to a surefire loss at the showdown.

How should this hand be played? It of course depends on many factors, among them your position at the table. In early position, you are going to play this hand, but keep in mind that it’s not as strong as it seems at first glance. In late position, you’re hand is even better and it is ok to raise even if its only to build the pot. Just beware that even if you like the flop (top two pair with no made straight or flush possible), your hand loses some strength if there’s been a bet and a raise when the action comes to you.

How should you handle a raise in this situation? If there has been just one raise, this hand is usually playable. If there have been 2 raises however, you should probably fold. Of course, you also need to keep in mind stack sizes and such, but a second raise before the flop means aces, or kings with high cards. You need to realize that in this situation you are not likely to be winning the hand, and it should be mucked. There are other hands in Omaha that you might want to play when up against aces, but this isn’t one of them.

In a few weeks, I will delve into more Omaha starting hands, so stay tuned.

Until next time, may the chips fall your way. (For more poker strategy and tips, please visit the PokerStrategyKing’s website at www.pokerstrategyking.com)