Top 5 Strategy Tips for Beginner Omaha Hi Low (PLO8) Poker Players

With Holdem games becoming increasingly tough, a good way to maintain and increase profitably is to expand your game by learning to play less common poker variants such as Omaha Hi Low or Pot Limit Omaha Hilo (PLO8). Non-Holdem games are in general less ‘solved’ and offer the potential to achieve considerably higher winrates. Perhaps the softest games around at the moment are Omaha High Low, or 08 games. Below are 5 tips that should enable all players to beat micro and mid-low stakes 08 games. These tips assume an understanding of the rules of 08, but little or no background in basic 08 strategy.

Omaha Hi Low (PLO8) Strategy Tip No.1 – Get A Good Rakeback Deal

This may seem like a self-serving lead tip to find on a rakeback site, and it is of course advice that applies to any poker game as a matter of course, because playing any game without rakeback where it is available is essentially throwing away money. But if rakeback is important in Holdem games, it is orders or magnitude more important in split pot games. Unlike in Holdem, where good players see few showdowns, 08 hands frequently go to showdown and, in the case of big bet variants, are frequently played for stacks once they get there. Because of the split pot, players with strong one way hands often attempt to leverage their opponents off weak hands they expect to split with. A good rule of thumb through to midstakes is that 08 will typically generate rake equivalent to a NLHE game 2-3 levels lower, so rakeback is all but essential to maintain a meaningfully positive winrate, even in the case of microstakes players.

Omaha Hi Low (PLO8) Strategy Tip No.2 – Play to Scoop 

This rule applies always in limit games and in PL/NL08 it applies whenever hands are played strictly for value. If you are beginner you should ignore the few situations in BB08 games which represent exceptions to this rule and play to scoop 100% of the time. When you play for half the pot your best case scenario is getting your money returned, and losing a small amount to the rake – your worst case is getting quartered or scooped. That does not mean you should fold strong one way hands when there is a lot of money in the pot pricing you in to call for half, but you should exercise pot control in these situations and moreover try to avoid them in the first place by not committing yourself with one way hands. Any A2 is probably too good to fold pre in all but the tightest games, but A2 hands which are vulnerable to being quartered like A2Jx are classically problematic in this regard and should be played with caution.

Omaha Hi Low (PLO8) Strategy Tip No.3 - High hands are better than low hands

Particularly in multi-way pots. This concept isn’t too complicated but it is worth remembering at all times. The simple reason for this is that high hands are more likely to be unique. If you have the nut high hand in a multi-way pot, barring soul reads you should be betting for value at every opportunity. If you have the nut low hand in a multi-way pot and are without high potential you should be pot controlling, or perhaps even folding into small pots, particularly where your low hand is formed by A2; a starting hand which is always a prominent part of your opponents’ range.

Omaha Hi Low (PLO8) Strategy Tip No.4 – Don’t slowplay big hands

Not at micro or low stakes anyway, especially in position. This is partly the nature of the game and partly due to Omaha Hi Low not yet being as evolved or solved as NLHE. Either way, in practice it is rare to run into thin value bets in 08 games, especially on earlier streets, and thin 2/3 barrels are almost unheard of. Your aim in 08 should be to punish one way hands, or better yet one way draws, and to maximize equity on freerolls. Unlike NLHE your opponents generally will have some kind of hand should they be looking for a reason to call, so failing to build a pot aggressively with lock hands in most circumstances just amounts to declining value.

Omaha Hi Low (PLO8) Strategy Tip No.5 –  Simulate your hands

There are several online 08 simulators, an example is Propokertools. Many 08 players simply do not know their equity in 08 hands, including in very common spots. Compare that to Holdem, where nowadays everybody knows they’re they’re 8:1 to flop a set from their pocket pair and that they’re hitting their flush a third of the time. Remember back in 2005 and 2006 when Holdem players didn’t know that stuff? Remember how great the games were? 08 is still at that point. By simulating your hands and committing the results to memory you will pick up a massive edge in 08 games facing players who do not understand the fundamental probabilities involved in the hands they play. When you do simulate hands pay close attention to card removal, which is a more significant factor in four card games, especially in multi-way pots. Your high rundown cards may simulate poorly against random hands but if you are facing a 4bet family pot and can assign aces and deuces to most of your opponents you may suddenly find yourself a clear favourite.