Listen on Spotify: on Apple Music: it on iTunes: http://smarturl.it/PEH2004iT. Here is a chart showing the top 24 hands you can have pre-flop in a Hold’em game: Poker Hand Rankings Poker games generally share the same hand rankings – i.e. A Royal Flush is the best possible showdown hand in Omaha, Stud, and Texas Hold’em.

• Texas Hold'em Highest To Lowest Hands
• Texas Hold'em Highest Hands
• Hold Em High
• Texas Hold'em High Low Rules
• Semper Fi Do Or Die Hold'em High
• Hold'em High At 8th And I

Omaha Hold'em, 8 or better high-low split was in definite need of shortening, so poker players commonly refer to it as Omaha/8 or Omaha hi/lo. As with any other game of poker, the rules are mostly simple, but mastering the game requires a talented, relentless student. Omaha is also thought to be the game of the future, with its popularity growing very quickly, and already outgrowing many 7 card stud populations. In fact, the most populated omaha 8b games are found online these days. Full Tilt Poker has the best Omaha hi/lo 8b games, with a combination of good player population and lots of big name pros to watch at $1000/$2000 limits and higher. Absolute Poker has fewer players, but their Omaha hi/lo 8b pot limit games are very loose at the lower levels.

Qualifying Low hands

Texas Hold'em Highest To Lowest Hands

In Omaha hi/lo, the pot can be a split pot if there is a qualifying low hand. To qualify as a low hand, the player must have five unpaired cards that are 8 or lower. An ace counts as the lowest card in a qualifying low hand, and flushes and straights do not effect the low value. The best 'low' hand would be an ace through five straight (A2345). This hand is commonly called the 'Bicycle.' It is entirely possible for a player to have the best low and best high hand. Take for example a player has A2456, all of spades. He has a spade flush as a high and and an Ace through 6 low hand. Players can even use different cards in their hand to make a separate low and high hand. If a player has both the best high and best low hand, he wins the entire pot, also called 'scooping' the pot.

The Blinds and Dealer Button

Omaha is a fixed position game, like Texas Hold'em. Position is determined by who currently is sitting behind the dealer chip or button. The dealer chip moves clockwise around the table after each hand. The dealer has the advantage of acting last on every round except for the first, and wise poker players know the advantage this brings. Also like Texas Hold'em, we use blind bets to get the pot started. The first player to the left of the dealer puts in the small blind, which is usually half of the big blind. The player to the left of the small blind is required to put in the big blind, and this is generally equal to the small bet at the particular limit being played. For example, in a $10/$20 game of Omaha, the small blind would be $5 and the big blind $10.

The initial deal is where we see the major difference between Omaha and Texas Hold'em. In Omaha, each player is dealt four cards face down instead of two. However, only two of these cards are allowed to be used in creating the players hand. This must be kept in mind as the hand progresses! The four down cards is the greatest stimulant for action for the Omaha variation of poker, as it is not hard to find a nice hand when you are dealt 4 cards.

After everyone is dealt 4 cards face down, the player to the left of the big blind must either call the big blind, fold or raise. Each player acts in turn, folding, calling, raising or re-raising. The blinds are considered 'live,' meaning that when the action gets to them in the first round of betting they can also fold, bet or raise.

The Flop

When betting action is completed on the first round, chips are raked into the pot and the dealer places 3 cards face up in the middle of the table. These are community cards, used by all players to create their best hand. Again, do not forget that you must use exactly 2 cards from your hand and three cards from the community board to create your best five card hand! A round of betting begins, starting with the player to the left of the dealer button.

The Turn

After betting action has concluded on the flop, another card is placed face up in the center of the table, called the Turn. This card is also a community card. Bets double on the Turn. In our game of $10/$20, while $10 bets were made before, we now have to be or raise $20 at a time.

The River

The final community card is placed face up in the center of the table, and the final round of betting takes place. We again use double bets on this round.

Showdown

When all bets are equalized on the River, a showdown occurs and the last player to make a bet or raise must turn over his down cards, revealing his best five card hand. If there was no betting on the final round, the first player still active to the immediate left of the dealer must show his hand. Each player in turn can either turn over his cards to reveal a better (or worse) hand, or muck his cards face down if he is the loser. Each player has to use exactly two of his hole cards and three cards from the community cards on the board. If there is no qualifying low hand, then the player with the highest ranking hand wins. If there is one or more qualifying low hands, then the player with the lowest qualifying low hand and the player with the highest ranking hand split the pot.

Notes and Frequently asked Questions

The best low hand is determined first by looking at the highest qualifying low card in each players qualifying hand. Someone with A2358 would say he had an 'eight low.' His opponent meanwhile has A2357. He has a 'seven low' and wins the low side of the pot, since his seven is lower than the first player's 8. If the players have qualifying low cards of the same rank, we simply move down the chain of cards until one player's card is lower than the other. Example: A2368 beats A2378. Player one would note that he has an eight-six low, while the loser holds an eight-seven. It's not often to have two players who hold identical low hands, but it happens, and this results in a split of the low side of the pot.

Never forget: You form your hand using exactly 2 cards from your hole cards and 3 from the board.

You can use two of your cards to form a high and and two others to form a low hand. Keep all of your options and possible hands in mind!

Texas Hold'em Highest Hands

An interesting event happens every now and then in Omaha hi/lo, and it is called 'getting quartered.' This occurs when two players tie for the high side of the pot and a third player is the only one with a qualifying low hand. The low hand gets half the pot, and the two high hands split the high side, hence they only receive a fourth, or a 'quarter' of the entire pot. The same thing occurs when two players have identical lows, and another player has the high hand. The high hand takes the high half of the pot and the two low hands split the low side of the pot. Getting quartered is almost always a bad thing, as you will tend to put more money into the pot than you will get out of it, unless there were a lot of players in the hand donating towards the pot from the beginning.

Good Texas Hold'em Strategy

Although it's possible to talk about Texas Hold'em strategy indefinitely, due to the game's subtle complexities, we've compiled three of the most salient pieces of poker advice every aspiring pro should know.

Pulling off fancy bluffs and check-raising the river with a small value bet may be enticing propositions. However, if you haven't mastered the basics, then you'll never have the ability to play like Phil Ivey and run these sorts of complex plays.

With this in mind, here are some good strategies online players with a burgeoning bankroll should commit to memory.

Cut Down the Amount of Hands You Play

One of the biggest mistakes novice players make when they first start playing Texas Hold'em is to get involved in too many hands.

Although the prospect of making a strong hand or bluffing our opponent is appealing, it's can actually be a major drain on your bankroll if you get involved in a lot of pots.

One important fact to remember is that if you play a lot of hands you will make a pair less than two-thirds of the time and this often means you'll have to fold a lot post-flop.

Secondly, if you do manage to make a hand it will be usually be weaker than average, which means you'll lose pots (and therefore money) at showdown more often.

Be More Aggressive

Coupled with a habit of playing more hands than is profitable, newbies will often adopt a passive strategy when they enter a pot.

Hold Em High

Instead of raising or re-raising they will usually limp or call and allow another player to take control of the hand. This is potentially fatal because it means the passive player is more likely to be bullied into submission and, therefore, lose the pot.

Texas Hold'em High Low Rules

There's an old adage in poker that you should try to remember if you want to avoid being passive and make more money: 'If a hand is not worth raising, then it's not worth playing.'

Be More Active

Although standard online Texas Hold'em strategy advocates that you take regular breaks, the reality is that most professional grinders never stray too far from their computers.

It may not be the right thing to do, but many online poker pros will put in 18-hour sessions without a second thought for their health, or, indeed, the health of their bankroll.

Semper Fi Do Or Die Hold'em High

In the world of Texas Hold'em online, volume is king and if you aren't prepared to sit for hours on end at a computer then being a professional isn't for you.

Always Try and Play in Position

Hold'em High At 8th And I

Position is king at the poker table and before you enter any pot you should consider where you are in relation to the button, the blinds and to any active players. Essentially this means you should play more hands the closer you are to the button because you'll have the benefit of extra information. Sometimes playing out of position is unavoidable, but if you want to have the greatest advantage over your opponents it's important to always play in position.

Get Ready With Your HUD

Hand reading is a basic tenet of good poker, but when you're an online pro you can often get away with substandard powers of deduction by using your HUD. A Heads Up Display unit can uncover a multitude of tendencies on your opponent and help your decision making process immensely.