How To Play Omaha Poker

Omaha Poker is an exciting community card game which is very similar to Texas Holdem in that you receive pocket or "hole" cards and community cards which are shared with the other players at the table. You then use two of the four hole cards and three of the community to make your best five card poker hand.

There are three types of Omaha Poker; Limit Omaha, Pot Limit Omaha and No Limit Omaha.

Limit Omaha Poker game means that the size of the bet is fixed on round of betting. An example of this would be, in a $2/$4 Texas Holdem poker game, the bets are made in increments of $2 before and after the flop. On the turn and the river the bets increase to $4. If you are new to the Omaha Poker I recommend that you play in a limit Omaha game.

A Pot Limit Omaha Poker game is a combination of Limit/No Limit, in which you can make a maximum bet up to the amount of money that is in the pot.

In a No Limit Omaha Poker game there is no limit to the amount that you can bet. But there is usually a minimum for each round of betting.

Here is a step by step guide of how to play Omaha Poker

Omaha Poker uses a small disc, also known as "the button" to identify which player is the dealer. After each hand has been completed the button moves clockwise so that the dealer position rotates each round.

Before the game begins, the two players to the immediate left of the dealer are required to post the small and big blind respectively. The small blind is half the lower stake limit; where as the big blind is equal to the lower stake limit. In our $2/$4 example, the small blind is $1 and the big blind is $2. The big blind is also the size of the minimum bet.

Now each of the players are dealt their four hole cards face down.

After the cards have been dealt a round of betting takes place starting with the player to the left of the big blind. Players can call, raise, or fold when it is their turn to bet.

The Flop

The first round of betting is followed with the first three community cards being dealt face up on the table. This is referred to as the flop.

The flop is followed by a round of betting. This time the betting starts with the player to the left of the dealer. This player has the option to bet, check or fold.

The Turn

After the second round of betting, another community card is dealt face up on the table. This card is commonly known as the Turn card.

The third round of betting starts with the player to the left of the dealer. The player has the option to bet, check or fold.

The River

The final community card is dealt face up on the table. The final round of betting starts with the player to the left of the dealer. The player has the option to bet, check or fold. This card is commonly known as the River card.

The Showdown

Once the final round of betting has been completed, the players reveal their hands and the player who has the best five card poker hand wins the pot. The winning hand must use two of the hole cards and three of the community cards.