6 Maxims to Winning Omaha

[wesrman]

This comes from a friend of mine (Gunnerforrest) from another forum.
He said i could post some of his stuff here, so if u like it let me know and maybe i can get him to join....

Here are some principles to keep in mind whenever you're playing Omaha. I'll keep it short and sweet, because there isn't really much that needs to be said about each of them. If anyone does want more in depth information about any of these, please message me and I will tell you whatever you need to know.

1) If you're not drawing to the nuts, you're drawing dead. In Omaha you will more often then not be playing draws on the flop, and maybe even the turn. Rarely will you flop a made hand that is likely to still be the nuts by the end of the hand. So, when you are playing a draw, make sure you are drawing to the nuts, because if you are not, and it hits, you will often find yourself with the 2nd best hand.

With players having 4 cards apiece, if you are drawing to a king-high flush, the odds are fairly good that someone else is drawing to an ace-high flush, and if your card hits, you will actually be dead in the pot. So make sure you are the one drawing to the nuts.

2) One of the differences between a winning Omaha player and a losing Omaha player is a winning Omaha player can fold three-of-a-kind.

Three of a kind is a drawing hand, not a made hand like in Hold'em. Trips and sets get more people in trouble playing omaha than anything, except for maybe Principle #1 above. TOAK (three-of a kind) is a VERY vulnerable hand. You are really just drawing to a full house, and if you don't make it and there are three to a straight or three to a flush on the board, you should probably fold. You will save yourself a LOT of money/chips.

Winning players are the ones who know when their hand is vulnerable, and have the discipline to follow through with that knowledge and fold.

3) There is NO SUCH THING as slow-playing in Omaha. This is something else that costs players a lot of pots. Thinking that their set is safe on a rainbow flop, many players try to get fancy and try to slow-play, allowing someone else to catch a better hand. Then, when they do try to speed up, they find themselves a big underdog. One card in Omaha can mean the difference between being a big favorite and a big underdog. You never know what card will give another player better trips in a situation like this, but if you bet your trips, you will probably push out someone who would have made a better set.

If you have a hand, bet. That's all there is to it.

4) Don't go overboard with betting. Just because you are allowed to bet the pot, does NOT mean that you should. Preflop, if you have a big hand, you might want to bet the pot to isolate/create value, but after the pot, take it easy. Evaluate the situation before going hell-bent for leather. Too many people just bet the pot at every opportunity and end up losing far more than they should. Understand the art of pot manipulation and take advantage of it. It will allow you to win more and lose less.

5) Keep bluffing to a minimum. Omaha is not a bluffing game. This is another mistake that costs players a lot of chips. There are probably going to be several players in the pot, and you have no idea what the flop could have given one of them. There are INFREQUENT situations where a bluff might be appropriate, but they are few and far between, so don't bother.

If you don't have a real hand, don't bet, you might run into someone who does.

6) Look for reasons to fold, not reasons to call. It is human nature to try to find reasons to call bets, rather than fold. You must learn to override that impulse. A backdoor 10-high flush draw is not a reason to call, it is a reason to fold. If you can't immediately see a reason to call, don't look for one.

So many people find excuses to stay in the pot, and then, when they make their excuse hand, they find themselves with the 2nd best hand, or worse. If it isn't obvious why you should call, you probably shouldn't.



Well, that should pretty much cover it for now. I'm still working on my article on Omaha odds. It's a bit more complex than the other things we've discussed, so it will take longer to write. Be patient, it will come.

Anyways, take heed to the 6 points that I've just made and you will save yourself so much money. Your wins will be bigger, and your losses will be smaller, and that's what poker is all about.

[jgizzel]

this is especially true on ultimatebet....i always seem to be finding myself in those situations...ive seen too many players lose a lot of money then complain because they didnt win a hand they shouldve won......great guide for you omaha players out there

[mafalda34]

that was super nice man, if i could keep all this information on my mind, and just play tight without stupid things i would be a consistent winner for sure.

I really like the article because it says a lot of things that ive thought about, in fact i also wrote a post a few weeks ago about folding trips and straights on amaha hi, because as far as ive noticed these hands will give u more trouble than wins.

[Shad]

This should help me improve my game. Thanks alot...they all seem logical.

[gnk1221]

Excellent post! This is definitely informative to my PLO game!

GL on the felt!

[Killermanner]

Yep I saw that post in an another forum but didn't know we had it here and yesterday I was looking for it (wanted to post it here since I see we got some omaha players here)

[mafalda34]

yeah i thought u can bluff on omaha, since im a holdem player, but i have to agree most of the bluffs wont work at all. U cant make a player fold the nuts!!

[Shad]

Originally Posted by mafalda34

yeah i thought u can bluff on omaha, since im a holdem player, but i have to agree most of the bluffs wont work at all. U cant make a player fold the nuts!!

If they're not holding the nuts and you sense it then bluffs should work shouldn't they? I read somewhere that since slowplaying is not a good idea, it is ok to bluff on the button when it is checked to you.

[Killermanner]

Effectively slowplay is not the best solution and its only the aggressive play you need in this game