Introduction To HORSE - Omaha 8/b

With the interest in mixed games being rekindled by the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E event at the WSOP we thought we’d take a look at what some pros are now considering the bracelet that signifies the true world champion.

What is H.O.R.S.E? 

First of all what is H.O.R.S.E? As you may have guessed it’s an acronym that stands for Holdem, Omaha (eight or better), Razz, Stud, Eight or better stud. The game changes every eight hands (or after a certain amount of time) to the next game in the rotation and is played using a limit betting structure. As you can tell, a different set of skills is required here as opposed to a No Limit Holdem game. Having said that, it’s still poker and learning other variants will always improve your game in general. There’s also the very valid point that maybe one day you enter your favourite cardroom (online or bricks and mortar) and your usual No Limit Holdem game is really bad, full of nits and rocks and you suddenly notice that the weak player who you completely outplayed the other day is sitting in a stud game. Surely it’s worth sitting down there and giving that game a shot? If somebody isn’t very good at one type of poker it usually follows that they won’t be particularly good at another.

O is for Omaha 8 or Better 

Assuming that you know how to play Holdem (even though in H.O.R.S.E its limit Holdem, which has many subtle differences from No Limit Holdem – but that is worthy of a whole book which we don’t have space here to cover) let’s take a look at what’s next, the O section, Omaha (eight or better). This means that the game is played high-low; the pot being split between the best high hand and the best low hand. Aces are not only the best high card, but they are the best low card. Essentially the low hand is the opposite of what you are normally trying to get in normal poker – in other words, no pairs etc. Of course, this being poker it’s not as simple as that as the best low hand in this particular variation is 5 4 3 2 A, which you may have noticed is also a straight (also referred to as the Wheel). The next best low hand is 6 4 3 2 A, then 6 5 3 2 A, then 6 5 4 3 A, then 7 4 3 2 A and so on. The “eight or better” part means there is a qualifier on the low hands – in this case only low hands 8 low or better count.

In Omaha you get dealt four cards before the flop and you must play two of the cards in your hand. This being high-low you are allowed to use a different two cards for the high and the low. For instance your starting hand is A 2 5 J and the final board reads J J 8 4 6. For the high hand you would play A J out of your hole cards giving you trip jacks with an ace kicker and for the low hand you would play A 2 giving you an 8 6 4 2 A low (the nut low btw). Notice that the board in this example has three different low cards (8 or lower) thus meaning there is a low hand possible. If the final board read J J 8 4 8 there would be no low possible and now you would only be contesting the high hand. As a final point if you’re new to Omaha it’s important to stress that if you had the same hole cards as before (A 2 5 J) your high hand is not a full house, but still trip jacks with an ace kicker. Think about it, you must use two from your hand and three from the flop which means that you are playing A J from your hand and then J J 8 from the flop. This is a common error that many Holdem players make when they first start playing Omaha.

This may all seem quite complicated, but once you get your head around the rules and the mechanics of the game it’s pretty straightforward. The big secret about Omaha 8/b is that strategy-wise it’s much simpler than Holdem. That’s not to say there’s no skill in the game, it’s just that ultimately Holdem has more nuances and subtleties, more borderline decisions where one can make good arguments for different ways of playing various hands.

Aim for the Whole Pot 

The key to Omaha 8/b is to try and aim for the whole pot. This of course is easier said than done. Hands like Ac 2h Qs Qh may look good, but it’s quite likely you’ll only end up playing for half the pot. Let’s say you’ve called a raise and see the flop three handed which comes down 7d 8c 9d. The original raiser now bets, you call and the third player raises. Back to the original raiser and he now makes it three bets! Well, it’s highly likely your high hand which is just a pair of queens is no good (and even if it is the best high hand at the moment there are so many draws out there it is an easily beatable hand – don’t forget this is Omaha which means each player has six Holdem hands in their hand. The nature of Omaha means that very often the nuts is out there) and at the moment you are drawing to the low hand, albeit it is the nut low you are drawing to. However this brings up another problem. What if it now comes a deuce or an ace on the turn? Your low has now been counterfeited and your hand is worthless. Or let’s say a 4 comes on the turn so now you have the nut low (and still a pair of queens for high) – that seems ok doesn’t it? Well not really as with all the raising going on it is quite likely that one (or maybe even both) of your opponents also has A 2 in their hand to make the nut low too. That would mean you split the low half of the pot which is not a particularly good thing. Getting quartered in a multi-way pot is not too bad as you usually break even, but once the pot is three-handed or heads-up it is not a spot you really want to find yourself in.

Ok, let’s say that there was a 4 on the turn giving you the nut low and the same betting pattern occurs. First player bets, you call (with your nut low and your pair of queens), next guy raises and now the original bettor re-raises again making it two more bets to you with the possibility of another raise coming. Your hand is looking not so great right? Let’s say you call all this action and now the river is an ace, so the board now reads 7d 8c 9d 4h Ah. Ugh, what a terrible card for you. Your high hand is now a pair of aces with a queen kicker (extremely unlikely to be winning) and your low hand has gone from being the nuts to an 8 low (8 7 4 2 A). The nut low is now 7 4 2 3 A or in other words if one of your opponents has 2 3 in their hand they have the nuts, which with all the betting is very likely (imagine your hand was Ad 2d 3s 6s with that flop – uncounterfeitable nut low draw plus the nut flush draw; that’s what we call a draw!).

Don't Play the Middle Cards

The biggest sin on Omaha 8/b is playing the middling cards or high pairs with weak side cards. Hands like 7 7 8 9 might be ok in regular Omaha, but in hi-lo they are a recipe for disaster. If the flop comes 7 5 3 the most you can ever win is half, and it’s possible you will need the board to pair. If you are going to play high cards limit yourself to only the best four card combinations i.e. A K Q J with at least one suit, that sort of thing. And then only continue in the hand if the flop is good for you i.e. T K Q or J J 8 or 5 9 T with your flush draw working would be good here, but a flop like A 5 J is nothing to get too excited about. I realise you have top two pair plus a middle pin straight draw which is pretty good and most probably the best hand (and worth betting), but once again when a low card comes on the turn you are now most likely playing for half. If it’s a wheel card that has hit the turn you may very well need that tenball for Broadway or the ace or the jack to pair up to help you escape for half the pot.

High Pairs 

While hands like K K x x or Q Q x x are tempting you are basically throwing money away playing holdings like that. This is because in high Omaha when all is done and dusted and your opponent sheepishly declares, “One pair” your pair of kings or queens at least still has some worth and now and again will win you the pot. In a high-low format your high pair is only going to be playing for the whole pot about 40% of the time (the other 60% is how often the low qualifies) which means that a lot of the time you will only be playing for half with just a pair. And in case you haven’t worked it out yet, one pair is a winner in Omaha about the same amount of times that king high wins in Holdem.

What You Should Play 

The key to the game is trying to play three low cards in your hand i.e. A 2 4 x, A 3 4 x etc. This way it is much less likely your low will get duplicated and also increases your chances of making a wheel. Having a 6 in your hand is always good too i.e. a hand like A 2 3 6. If the flop comes down 4 5 Q you have a lovely wrap around straight draw which will also give you the nut low. Let’s say the turn card is a 3 - you now have the wheel and a 6 high straight which is a great two-way hand. Heads up you should expect to get 3/4s of the pot, maybe even a scoop. As you may have noticed my example hands above all contain an ace; it has to be said it’s a pretty important card in O8. Of course hands like 2 3 4 x are playable, but if no ace flops then proceed with caution.

Aces 

What about having a pair of aces in your hand? Obviously a hand like A A 2 3 is very strong and merits re-raising, but hands like A A 8 J are really nothing special. If you flop an ace you obviously have top trips, but a flop like A 7 6 would mean that you are only aiming for half the pot. Quite often when you flop trip aces it means there is a low draw out there and if players have low and straight draws in their hand they are going nowhere (remember, if there’s an ace on the flop there is always a straight draw).

While all this may seem excessively tight it has to be said that O8 is the one game where tight is right. This is why many rocks favour the game – if you get out of line you will be punished. Of course if you are in the late stages of a tournament you have to open up a bit and just close your eyes and go for it (as can be said for all variants of poker in a tournament format). Aces now become big hands and I am willing to get it all in with aces regardless of my side cards. Sometimes you will have to make a move with just A 2 x x, but if you can, try to have a high card in there. This is because if it’s an all-in pre-flop situation you will often find yourself up against a similar A 2 x x type hand and after all the board cards are out your ace high with a king or queen kicker could well be what wins the high half of the pot.

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Next time we’ll have a look at the 'R' section - Razz.