The high version of Omaha, and in particular the pot limit version, has become very popular. This popularity is likely due to it’s similarity to Texas Hold‘Em which shows no sign of losing its position as the worlds most popular poker variant. Due to this link many of the players now learning and playing pot limit Omaha are coming from a Texas Hold’Em background and as such are bringing with them a few misconceptions about Omaha hand rankings that are not helpful to their success. This article will tell you what to look for in Omaha starting hands as well as which rules of Hold’Em hold true in Omaha and which do not.

Apr 11, 2008 Many beginning Omaha Hi/Lo players will make the mistake of playing far too many hands because nearly every hand looks playable. This article will cover starting hands in Omaha Hi Lo Poker, as well as strategies to effectively play these hands pre-flop. Nearly every hand you will have a pair, two suited cards or better. Aug 13, 2019 If you want to win at poker, you obviously need to know what hand you've been dealt and what hand wins. Here you'll find a list of poker hands from highest to lowest to help you get started, as well as the top starting hands for Texas Hold'em. This cheat sheet displays the traditional poker hand rankings, which are used in the most popular. Omaha Hi Lo Starting Hands Best Starting Hands in Omaha Hi Lo. Omaha and Omaha Hi Lo is a much more complicated game then Hold’em simply because you have a wider range of starting hands seen. Best Starting Hand in Omaha. Omaha Manager There are a lot of poker tools out there but in my opinion, with a few notable exceptions, they are mostly gimmicks. One of those exceptions that everybody agrees on is Omaha (and Hold 'Em) Manager. This program is invaluable. All serious players use it (or it's competitor Poker Tracker, which I. That variance makes playing Omaha poker, creating winning Omaha strategies, and choosing strong Omaha starting hands a little trickier. Although you get 4 cards to choose from, keep in mind that so do all the other players at the table, so there are more cards dealt out altogether.

Good Hold’Em hand, Good Omaha hand?

The first problem Hold’Em players seem to have when assessing the strength of an Omaha starting hand is seeing good Hold’Em hands as good Omaha hands. A hand such as QQ72 with no suits might seem to equate to QQ in Hold’Em but in reality it is much less valuable. High pairs are still valuable (especially aces) but in Omaha you are looking for hands where all 4 cards are connected in some way.

Two Hold’Em hands do not make an Omaha hand!
Following on from our last point, hands such as AK88 with no suits might look like an attractive starting hand but actually it is really just two Hold’Em hands. The pair of eights is not connected in anyway with the Ace or King. This would change considerably if they were double suited or the eights were tens.

A hand like AJT9 double suited is much better then AK88 with no suits and in fact is ahead in pre-flop equity 58 to 42, despite having no pair and being outkicked when an ace comes.

Omaha – Holding your own outs

Imagine you are playing a Hold’Em hand and are holding a pocket pair and decide to go mining for that set. What if you knew that one of the cards that make you that set is already gone?

In Omaha you must use exactly two of your hole cards and you sometimes get dealt a hand where you are holding your own outs. Hands where you are dealt 3 (or 4) of a kind are examples of this. Say you are dealt JJJK single suited and are considering whether to call a raise. The fact is that part of the value in pairs also comes from hitting your set which is now half as likely, and on top of that your hand really only has 2 combos, JJ and KJ. Stay clear of these types of hand as they will have very low equity when facing a strong holding.

Hands where you hold 4 of the same suit also have less value then hands where you hold 2 of a suit. Not only will a flush draw appear less often but when it does you will have a lower chance of hitting it.

OGB’s Top Tip

In Omaha you have four cards and must use exactly two. This means you are actually playing 6 Holdem hands. The more of these combinations that are coordinated the better you hand’s equity will be.

Omaha starting hand rankings

So far we’ve gone through some things that Hold’Em players should be aware of so they can avoid common mistakes but which hands are strong Omaha hands?

As you might expect aces is the best hand pre-flop but because Omaha is a four card game they can vary considerably in quality. It should be obvious that AAQJ double suited is better than AA72 with no suits, and indeed the former has a considerable equity advantage over the latter.

As you step down the ladder of premium pairs in Omaha their power as an over pair diminishes quicker than it does in Hold’Em and by the time you get down to queens you need to have other strength in your hand to make it playable. Hands such as QQJT and JJQK are much stronger than hands like QQ75 and JJK6.

Poker Hand Ranking Pdf

Having connected or suited cards improves the strength of your hand and having both is excellent. A hand such as QJT9 double suited is a monster in Omaha due to its ability to hit many flops hard. It should also be noted that when you have a gap in your run down hands it is better to have the gap at the bottom. QJT8 is better than QT98 for example.

Omaha starting hand rankings summary

In Omaha you have four cards and must use exactly two. This means you are actually playing 6 combinations of 2 cards. The more of these combinations that are coordinated the better you hand’s equity will be. To get a more complete understanding of the equities of different hand match ups try using an online Omaha odds calculator.

For more strategy tips, check out the rest of the strategy section.

PLO Starting Hands Chart

Here is a basic and conservative pot limit omaha hand chart for being the first to open (everyone folds to you) in various positions.

Note that “BBB” or “NNN” assumes the random cards are different (unpaired).

Key:

B: Broadway card (A, K, Q, J, T) ss: Single suited

N: Non-low card (K, Q, J, T, 9) ds: Double suited

x: Any card as: Ace suited

r: Rainbow ks: King suited

UTG:

Poker Starting Hands Ranking

BBBB, NNNNss, ANNNas, AKNNds, AKQxds, AAxx, AKKxss, KK65ss +, KKBBr +, AQQxas +, QQxxds, 9988 +, TT98ss +, T988ss +, JTT9ss +, JJT8ds +, QQ98ss +, QQT8ss +, QJT9r +, A987as +, 9876ss +, T976ss +, T986ss +, QT98ds

MP:

All of the above plus KK54ss +, QQBBss, QT98ss, QT98ss, J987ds, A876as, 9875ss, 9865ss, JJ98ds, 9987ss, 9877ss, T998ss

Also play any BBBBds hand (paired or not)

CO:

All of the above and add BBBxds, KKxx, QQ76ss +, A88xas +, 5566 +, 4567ss +, 5567ss +, 7765ss +, 8776ss +, A456as +, K765ks +, 9765ss +, 8654ds +, 9976ss +,TT86ss +, 9986ss + JT9xss +, T98xds +, QJ9xds +, QT9xds +

Also play any BBBBss hand (paired or not)

BTN:

Poker Hand Rankings Test

All of the above and add BBBxss, QQxx, A66xas +, A234as +, 2345ss +, 4455 +, 3567ss +, 4456ss +, 6654ss +, 7643ss +, K654ks +, 7754ss+, 8864ss +, J98xds +, 876xss+, 456xds +

SB:

Omaha Starting Hand Rankings

Start out same UTG, you then add hands slowly going up the positions in the chart depending on how much the BB reacts (if he 3bets light, uses positional advantage postflop, etc.). Note that you should be doing the same thing for the other position depending on what you know of the people left to act behind you (especially the BTN and CO).

Omaha Poker Starting Hand Rankings