Omaha Poker
Omaha is a lot like Texas Holdem in how the game is played so if you know how to play Texas Holdem already than you’ll have a head start on anyone else learning how to play Omaha. The game is really simple to learn on FullTiltPoker.com and over the past couple years it’s become a lot more popular online poker game as well as live poker game. The game starts with a fifty-two card deck and there is a dealer button used just like in Texas Holdem. The dealer button is passed around the table clockwise and determines who the dealer is that hand.
Once the cards are shuffled there are two forced bets known as the small blind and big blind which need to be put into the pot. These two forced bets guarantee that every pot has some amount of action in it so that a player can’t win anything for winning a pot. Once the two players to the dealer place the small blind and big blind into the pot the cards are dealt out by the dealer.
Every player receives four cards in Omaha which is the most noticeable difference between Omaha and Texas Holdem. In Texas Holdem you only receive two cards, but in Omaha you get four cards dealt to you. You can only use two of the cards that you receive from PokerStars.de from your hand though at the end of the hand which is important to know. When I first played I hadn’t read the rules and didn’t know I could only use two of the four cards in my hand so it caused me to lose a couple pots early on.
Just like in Texas Holdem there are five community cards dealt throughout the hand. The first three cards are the flop which comes after the first round of betting. There is then another round of betting that takes place and then the fourth community card is dealt which is known as the turn card. Once the turn card is revealed there is another round of betting and then the final community card known as the river is turned over. There is then a final round of betting and then the players left in the pot will flip there hands over to see who wins the pot.
Remember that you can only use two cards from your four cards and the other three cards must be community cards. This can sometimes make it difficult, but it does in fact give you more options most times. Online poker sites like PokerStars will not allow you to use more than 2 of the cards. You could potentially have straight options, flush options and pairs before the flop ever takes place. This makes the action very intense in Omaha poker and you need to be prepared to play.
There are plenty of players online at Full Tilt Poker who play Omaha poker everyday and the tables in most online poker rooms are usually very active. Poker Stars has excellent Omaha poker action and it’s where I play most of my Omaha poker. The players are weak and the betting is fierce due to so many people betting small marginal hands. Omaha poker is a great change from Texas Holdem and another great game where you can make some pretty good coin.
