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Omaha
Omaha 8 or Better (also known as Omaha Hi/lo) is a very popular poker
game that is played throughout the world. Usually there are two types of
Omaha 8 or Better games played:
Limit Omaha 8 or Better (there is a specific bet limit for each game and
on each round of betting) and Pot Limit Omaha 8 or Better (A player can
bet what is in the pot.)
The Game:
Omaha 8 or Better Poker uses what is called a dealer-button
to indicate the theoretical dealer for each hand. After each hand is
completed, as with standard poker rules, the button moves clockwise to
the next active player. This player will be considered “the dealer” for
that hand. Before the start of each hand, the QQONLINEGAMES.com system
generates a fresh deck of cards internally. On QQONLINEGAMES.com, we use
a single deck of cards to play a hand of poker, where a deck refers to
52 cards excluding the jokers. Online poker rooms use what is called the
Random Number Generator (RNG) to shuffle a deck of cards for the hand.
How does it work?
The system generates a random set of numbers, which are used
to place each card of the deck in a particular, but random, position.
Once the complete deck is created, the deck is used for that particular
hand only. We shuffle the deck of cards every time we start a hand; the
random numbers previously generated are discarded and new ones generated
before the shuffle.
The First round:
The first person sitting at a table becomes the dealer, and
receives the dealer ‘button’. A new game on an active table starts with
the button moving clockwise to the next player. The player next to the
button / dealer is required to place the small blind. The small blind is
equal to half the lower stake. This is a guideline for determining the
blinds and not a strict rule. At QQONLINEGAMES.com the small blind is
rounded down to the nearest dollar. For example – at $5/$10 Omaha 8 or
Better per the formula the small blind should be $2.5. Instead, it is
rounded of to the lower dollar, so the small blind would post $2.
However, as it is just a guideline, the amount of small blind could be
set differently at the time of setting up the table.
The player to the left of the small blind is required to post the big
blind, equal to the lower stake limit. In a certain scenario it is
possible for more than one player to post a big blind in a hand. This is
if a new player joins a table at which a game is already going on. The
player would get an option of placing a Big Blind at the start of the
next hand or wait for his/her turn (as decided by the movement of the
button) when it is normally his/her time to place the Big Blind. All the
blinds in Hold’em poker are considered live bets and the players who
posted them will have the option of checking, calling, raising or
folding when the betting returns to their position.
After the blinds have been placed, the down cards / hole cards are dealt
to each active player. In Omaha 8 or Better, 4 cards are dealt to each
of the players, after which the first betting round begins. The player
to the left of the player who placed the big blind starts the betting
for this round. Each player will now have the option to place his or her
bets in the first round, which is set at the lower limit of the stakes
structure. For example in a $10/$20 Omaha 8 or Better game, the value of
each bet is $10 in the first round. When we say that bets are limited to
$10, it refers to a single bet of the value of $10, so when a user
places a “BET” then it is $10, a “RAISE” would be $20 – including one
additional bet and a call on the previous bet placed by a player. Bets
can be placed by playing any of the following options – Bet, Call and
Raise. Each player will also have the option to Fold. These options are
available to each player depending on the action taken by the previous
player. The first player (left of the Big Blind) to act in the first
round) would get the Bet, Call and Raise options. Subsequent players
would also get the options of Call and Raise. To Call is to bet the same
as what the previous player has bet. Raise actions call for raising the
bet/call amount of the previous player, and can be calculated based on
the value of the previous bet amount.
In order to participate in the hand every player must at least match the
amount of money put in the pot by previous players (includes bets, calls
and raises). There might be a limit on the amount and the number of bets
a player can place during a betting round, which also would be
considered during the hand. The numbers of bets for a particular round
of betting has been mentioned below, please refer to the section on
“Standard Rules” (below) for the limits on the number of bets.
After the first round of betting is over, the Flop (the first three
cards of the community) is dealt. The community cards are common of all
the players participating in the hand.
The Second Round:
After the flop and in each subsequent betting round, the
first active player left of the button is first to act. The second
betting round also limits the value of bets and raises to the lower
limit of the stake structure. So in a $10/$20 value of each bet is $10
for the second round. When we say the bets are limited to $10, it refers
to a single bet of the value of $10; so when a user places a “BET” then
it is $10, a “RAISE” would be $20 (including one additional bet and a
call on the previous bet placed by a player). Bets can be placed by
playing any of the following options – Bet, Call and Raise. These
options are available to each player depending on the action taken by
the previous player. The first player placing a bet would get the Bet
option (the player left to the Button). Other players will get the Call
and Raise options only.
After this round of bets the fourth community card is dealt out – this
is known as the Turn.
The Third Round:
The third betting round starts with the player left of the
button, and bets and raises are limited to the upper limit of the stake
structure ($10/$20 game, $20 would be the upper stake). When we say the
bets are limited to $20, it refers to: a single bet of the value of $20,
so when a user places a “BET” then it is $20, a “RAISE” would be $40
(including one additional bet and a call on the previous bet placed by a
player). Bets can be placed by playing any of the following options –
Bet, Call and Raise. Combinations of these options are available to the
player depending on the action taken by the previous player. The first
player placing the bet (the player left to the Button) would get the Bet
option.
After this the fifth community card is dealt out – this is known as the
River.
The Fourth Round:
The fourth (and final) betting round starts again with the
player left of the button, and bets and raises are limited to the upper
limit of the stake structure ($10/$20 game, $20 would be the upper
stake). When we say the bets are limited to $20, it refers to a single
bet of the value of $20, so when a user places “BET” then it is $20, a
“RAISE” would be $40 (includes one additional bet and a call on the
previous bet placed by a player). Bets can be placed by playing any of
the following options – Bet, Call and Raise. Combinations of these
options are available to the player depending on the action taken by the
previous player. The first player placing a bet (the player left to the
Button) would get the Bet option.
Some standard rules
A maximum of four bets, which includes one bet and three
raises, are allowed for each betting round per player. The term cap is
used to describe the final raise in a round since betting is then capped
and no one can make another raise. Once capped, players will have the
option of calling or folding only. Folding can be done at any stage of
the game. The action of folding basically pushes the player cards to the
dealer. The player would not be considered as part of the game from then
on. He/she would not have any rights to any pots created on the table.
Apart from the fold option, a player could also get the option of
“Check”, in which the player can pass by his/her turn without placing a
bet. This option would not always be available to the player, and
depends on the actions taken by the previous player in the hand. The
player HAS TO equal the amount of the bet placed by any other players
for each round in the hand in order to maintain a stake in the pot.
Poker is typically played "table stakes", meaning only the chips in play
at the beginning of each hand may be used throughout the hand. This
means that a player cannot get additional funds from the cashier while
he is in the midst of a game. The table stakes rule has an application
called the "All-In" rule, which states that a player cannot be forced to
forfeit a hand because the player does not have enough chips to call a
bet.
Exceptions to the value of betting in each
round:
A player who does not have enough chips to call a bet, but still wishes
to be involved in the hand, is declared All-In. The player is eligible
for the portion of the pot to the point of his final wager. All further
action involving other players takes place in a "side pot", which is
unavailable to the player who has gone All-In. When a player goes
All-in, the pot currently at the center of the table, which has
contributions from him/her as well, is treated as the main pot, over
which the All-in player has rights. After the player goes all-in, all
the new bets are placed in a side pot, over which only the contributing
players have rights. The All-in player does not have any rights over the
side pot. The side pot is then given to the next winning combination.
On the final round of betting, the player who bets first (or checks
first if no one else bets) is required to show their cards first at the
showdown. If they have the best hand, the remaining players may/may not
show their cards as they wish. The aggressors’ hand is only turned over
first if he was the last to initiate action on the river.
As this is a multi player game, the players are expected to play within
a set time frame, the actions during their turn. On QQONLINEGAMES.com we
provide players with approximately 30 seconds to play with. Initially
the player is given 10 seconds, after which there is a timer countdown,
which is displayed on the table for 20 seconds. The user goes all-in if
he has contributed some money to the pot; otherwise his hand is folded
in case he/she does not respond in time. The system is intelligent in
detecting if the player has been disconnected. This means if a players
gets disconnected and reconnects back and it is still his/her turn, then
he is given an additional 20 seconds to play his turn. If the player is
not able to connect back to the table before the time elapses, then the
player goes All-in. All-in basically means that the player is in the
game, but would not be an active player (placing any bets). Whatever pot
is collected till this time is referred as the main pot, and the all-in
player has rights (if he wins) to this pot only. After this the money
that is bet on the table is added to a side pot, over which the all-in
player does not have any rights (if he wins).
After the final round of betting, it’s time for – the Showdown. This
refers to the action of deciding who the winner of the pot is and the
final displaying of the cards by all players (though this is optional
for the player; he/she need not show the cards). Five cards out of the
hole and community cards are to be used for deciding the winning hand.
On the final round of betting, the player who bets first (or checks
first if no one else bets) is required to show their cards first at the
showdown. If they have the best hand, the remaining players may/may not
show their cards as they wish. The aggressors’ hand is only turned over
first if he was the last to initiate action on the river.
There is no qualifying on the "High" side - the best high hand
automatically wins half the pot and could win the whole pot. To win the
"Low" side of the pot, however, you must qualify (which is why the game
is named Omaha "8 or Better").
To qualify for a “Low”: It takes a five-card hand with different
numerical values from Ace through eight (with the Ace being the lowest)
to qualify for the "Low" half of the pot. The best "Low" hand is A, 2,
3, 4, 5 (also known as the "wheel" or "bicycle"). The winning "Low" hand
goes to the player with the lowest high card. For example, a player with
a 2,4,5,6,7 would have a better "Low" hand than someone with an
A,2,4,6,8. If two or more players have the same high card, the player
with the second lowest card (or third, fourth, or fifth if necessary) in
their hand wins the low side of the pot.
There is a set rank of cards, which is used for deciding the winning
combination. To view the various hands that are possible, click here
ranks.htm
Ties: In case two or more players "tie" for one side of the pot, they
will split that half into equally divided portions. If there is an odd
chip(s), it will go to the person(s) closest to the left of the
"button". (One player winning the "High" side and two players who ties
for the "Low" side is not uncommon in Omaha 8 or Better.)
Some things to Remember
1) Straights and Flushes do NOT count against you when
qualifying for "Low".
2) You are permitted to use different cards in your hand for the "High"
side and for the "Low" side or the same cards for both the "High" and
"Low" sides. In a split pot, any leftover odd chip goes to the "High"
side of the pot.
Key to Remember: To determine your
hand(s) in Omaha 8 or Better, you MUST play two of your four "down"
cards with three of the "up" cards (community cards).
The suit order of the cards is not taken into account while deciding on
the winning cards. QQONLINEGAMES.com follows the standard rules of
poker. Should poker hands be absolutely identical in ranking, the rule
of poker pot distribution will be split evenly between the two or more
winning players. This applies to both play money and real money tables.
For all four rounds of betting, the house collects a commission based on
a set of rules. This is known as the rake in poker terminology. The
rules set at QQONLINEGAMES are:
The game play remains the same for both Limit and Pot-Limit Omaha 8 or
Better game with a few exceptions to the rules:
In Limit Omaha 8 or Better a maximum of four bets is allowed per player
during any betting round. This includes a (1) bet, (2) raise, (3)
re-raise, and (4) cap, but in Pot-Limit there is no limit to the number
of raises that a player can make. The only criteria being that you
cannot raise yourself, (i.e. if a player bets during a betting round,
then that player would have to be raised by another player in order for
him/her to be able to re-raise). If all the other players in the hand
only call or fold, the player would not get an option to raise, because
the last raise was done by him/her.
The Betting Rules for Pot-Limit Omaha 8 or
Better
Minimum eligible raise: The raise amount must be at least as much as the
previous bet or raise in the same round. As an example, if the first
player to act bets $100 then the second player must raise a minimum of
$100 (total bet of $200).
Maximum eligible raise: The size of the pot: The size of the pot is
defined as the total of the active Pot (which can either be the main pot
or the side pot depending on whether anyone has gone “all-in”) plus all
bets on the table, plus the amount the active player must first call
before raising.
As an example, if the active pot is $200 and the first player to act in
the round bets $150 and the next player calls $150, the third player has
a maximum eligible total bet of $800. The $800 total is made up of the
$150 call and $650 raise.
The $650 max raise portion is equal to the pot of $200 + first player's
$150 + second player's $150 + his own call of $150.
A player "scoops" the pot when they win the whole pot (which is the
mission.)
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