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Starting hands in Omaha table. Omaha for Beginners (2) - Playing Preflop

You need to understand its fundamental differences. And now we will talk about selecting strong starting hands for PLO. You need to understand that most hands here will not be as strong as they may seem at first glance.

Even if two of your four cards are aces, this does not mean that your hand is ideal for playing. Even if you have control of two suits (for example, two diamonds and two clubs), this does not mean that you necessarily need to enter the game.

To become a strong winning PLO player, you need to work on many aspects of the game. And the most important aspect can safely be called the ability to choose the right hands to start with (in other words, hand selection).

Four cards that work well together

In pot-limit Omaha, you are dealt four cards, as are each of the players at the table. Remember the main rule: all four of your cards must be in contact with each other. They must create a strong combination of cards that will contain nut draws, re-draws, backdoors, large cards, large pocket pairs, suited combos and .

If you received cards like A K 6 6♣, you will probably like them, because you have large cards in your hand with and pocket pair. But don’t rush to rejoice, everything is not so simple in Omaha.

This is actually not the best preflop hand. And here's why:

your ace and king are not connected to pocket sixes in a way that makes a straight draw possible
if you hit a set, you probably won't have a re-draw to a stronger hand
if you flop a set, there could be a lot of overcards on the board and your set of sixes could lose to a set higher
if you flop and make a flush, your opponents won't have a second nut flush and you won't get value
if you make a pair, it will be difficult for you to make a second pair because you have a pocket pair in your hands

Now let's imagine that you have J♦9♦8♠7♠ Again, this is not the best hand. Why? At first glance, it seems that with such a starting hand you can make many straights and two flushes. But there is a “hole” in this combination (a ten is missing, four cards do not come in a row), so in fact it will be quite difficult to collect straights.

If there was no “hole” in your hand - for example, you are holding T♦9♦8♠7♠ - the situation would be more favorable. Then you would hit any flop with cards QJ, JT, J9, J8, J7, T6, 96, 86, 76 or 65. Also, if you flopped two pair, this would additionally give you and .

Aces and other high pocket pairs

Now it's time to talk about famous aces. Preflop hands like AAxx are always good and you should play them.

But it's worth remembering key point: PLO is primarily a post-flop game. Preflop with two aces, you should play aggressively, but you must not forget about the situation as a whole. There are critical factors that should influence your PLO play even with pocket aces: position, the size of your stack, and the other two cards in your hand.

For example, you have A♣A 9♦4♠ , and your opponent has J♠T♠8 5 . In this situation, you only have a 52% chance that your hand will be a winner by the river. That is, in other words, with such a hand (“bad aces”) you are almost playing a coinflip. If the game were Hold'em rather than PLO, your Aces A♣A would have 79.2% against J♠T♠ and 79.5% against 8 5 .

As you can see, aces that are not connected to two other hole cards are not that strong in a PLO hand. Therefore, depending on the situation, you should play them quite carefully (and maybe even limp).

Finally, consider a situation where you have Q♦Q♠7 2♣. You probably already guess that this hand cannot be called very strong. It is immediately noticeable that all four cards are not interconnected as we would like. Even if you hit your set of queens, you won't have any re-draws or backdoors.

Against such a hand, an opponent with A♠9 6 4♠ will be a 52.2% favorite. But in hold'em, pocket queens against A♠9 would be just fine - 72% to win. All this means is that you shouldn't put too much into the pot with this hand.

Conclusion

Hopefully through these examples you can see the importance of a good hand preflop and how it will help you in your postflop play. These are just basic guidelines, but rest assured that if you start practicing some of the principles described in this article, your game and results will already begin to improve.

Keep improving your Omaha game and good luck at the tables!

In Omaha, you will often be dealt pocket aces, but you need to hit the flop well to win. I've often seen players raise preflop with pocket aces in Omaha and then blindly bet the flop in hopes that everyone will fold.

I'm surprised at how low the requirements players have for starting hands in Omaha. Your requirements for your starting hands should be much higher than those of your opponents. Is it worth going to the flop with Qxs if there is a chance that your opponent has Axs? If you go for a small set, you can often end up with a high set. If you have a bottom straight draw, you should always remember that your opponent may have a top draw. If you only start with good hands and only stick with the flop when it's worth it, you'll always be fine. One of the qualities good player– the ability to wait, even if the card does not come for a long time. You will lose the minimum and wait for the good starters to return. You will often see how your opponents win with complete trash, but reassure yourself with the words “I’m saving my money.” I've played a lot of marginal hands in my life and have gotten lucky at times, but if you plan to get serious about poker, the distance will catch up with you. Winnings come from good play, discipline and good cards.

Living through gambling is not about winning the banks all the time. This is the ability to lose the minimum when something goes wrong and win the maximum when luck smiles on you. I know this is easy to say, but the more you play, the more you will come to understand this simple truth.

To understand how correctly you play preflop, you can count the number of starters played. If you play 50-80%, then that's a lot. You need to play about 10-30% of hands to a full table.

You should think about playing on SB. If you constantly fold your hand preflop, it will save you a lot of money. If you play 5-10 5 days a week for 8 hours, then over 50 weeks this will save you 30,000. Considering that sometimes you will win, you will save about 20,000!

You must understand that you should not play weak hands, and in Omaha in the SB position any hand will be weak. The same is true for early and middle positions.

Okay, now let's look at what hands to play preflop. A good starter is usually unique, meaning no one else can have your combination. Typical examples are an A-high flush draw and a big pocket pair. If you catch the right flop, then you will know that you are definitely ahead.

4 consecutive cards also have a good chance of hitting the flop, for example 6 7 8 9 or 10 J Q K. The probability of catching a straight with such a hand is relatively high. Many players can raise and reraise with this hand, as well as two pairs like Q Q 9 9 or J J 7 7.

PREMIUM STARTERS

Marginal hands usually contain 3 connected cards. Something like 4 7 8 9 or Q J 9 7. These hands are best played limping and only in late position. Usually marginal hands have a card unrelated to the other three. For example, the AK106 hand does not contain one, because A and 6 work together. However, with such a hand it is not worth investing large amounts of money into the pot preflop. You always need to think about the implied odds, if you have to pay 10 to win 1000 then it's worth it and you call, however if there are raises coming next and you already need to add 100 for the same potential 1000 then you might want to fold the hand .

MARGINAL STARTERS

All other hands are considered trash and should simply be thrown away. Yes, yes, throw it away. I'm talking about hands like K 8 5 2 or 3 3 7 8, or A 2 3 4, etc.

The probability of hitting the flop with such a hand is very low. From time to time such hands will hit the flop, but there is always the possibility that someone hit better. If no one hits, then you will very rarely get paid for your combination.
4. So marginal hands are worth playing in the right position. This also makes sense if you've been getting flops all evening, however, you always need to stop in time.

The rules of Omaha are very similar to those, but with a number of significant differences, which determine a completely different strategy for the game. They play at the same table, the “button” moves clockwise from deal to deal, determining the position of the “dealer”, small and big “blinds” are placed (blind bets). But in Omaha face down, players are dealt four (not two) cards, after which everything is completely similar to hold’em (although Omaha also belongs to the subtype of hold’em, and the name Omaha Hold’em sometimes flashes, after all, the word hold’em is more often referred only to Texas , and this is how we will use it). In the same order, trading proceeds, the flop is dealt (3 common open cards), then another one is the turn, and the last common one is the river. When the community cards are revealed, betting rounds take place, just like in Hold'em, and the one remaining in the game and presenting the strongest combination takes the pot.

However, the most important point in the rules is that, unlike hold'em, where a winning combination can be made using two, one or none of your hole cards, in Omaha only two of your cards and three community cards are used in the game. I repeat: two of your own and three of yours, and that’s the only way. It is because of this similar games so different.

In Omaha you will often be dealt pocket aces, but you need to hit the flop well to win. I've often seen players raise preflop with pocket aces in Omaha and then blindly bet the flop in hopes that everyone will fold.

I'm surprised at how low the requirements players have for starting hands in Omaha. Your requirements for your starting hands should be much higher than those of your opponents. Is it worth going to the flop with Qx if there is a chance that your opponent has Ax? If you go for a small set, you can often end up with a high set. If you have a bottom straight draw, you should always remember that your opponent may have a top draw. If you only start with good hands and only stick with the flop when it's worth it, you'll always be fine. One of the qualities of a good player is the ability to wait, even if the card does not come for a long time. You will lose the minimum and wait for the good starters to return. You will often see your opponents winning with complete rubbish, but reassure yourself with the words “I'm saving my money.” I've played a lot of marginal hands in my life and have gotten lucky at times, but if you plan on playing poker seriously, the distance will catch up with you. Winnings come from good play, discipline and good cards.

To understand how correctly you play preflop, you can count the number of starting hands played. If you play 50-80%, then that's a lot. You need to play about 10-30% of hands to a full table.

You should think about playing the SB (Small Blind). If you consistently fold your hand preflop, it will save you a lot of money. If you play 5-10, 5 days a week for 8 hours, then over 50 weeks this will save you 30,000. Considering that you will sometimes win, you will save about 20,000!

You must understand that you should not play weak hands, and in Omaha in the SB position any hand will be weaker. The same is true for early and middle positions. When evaluating a hand, you must keep position in mind.

Now let's look at what hands to play preflop. A good starter (starting hand) is usually unique, meaning no one else can have your combination. Typical examples are an A-high flush draw and a big pocket pair. If you catch the right flop, then you will know that you are definitely ahead. 4 consecutive cards also have a good chance of hitting the flop, for example 6 7 8 9 or 10 J Q K. The probability of catching a straight with such a hand is relatively high. Many players can raise and reraise with this hand, as well as two pairs like Q Q 9 9 or J J 7 7.

What starting cards should you start the game with? There is no clear answer to this question, like most in poker. class="b">Here we present a system for playing with large quantities participants (8-11 people at the table), developed by the famous American player Edward Hutchison using mathematical modeling using the Monte Carlo method. With fewer players, you should play a little more aggressively. Although, we repeat, it, like any other system, is not the ultimate truth.

Hutchison's system for evaluating starting hands in Omaha:

1. First, suited cards are evaluated. If there are two or more suited cards in your hand, then count the points based on the value of the highest of them (if there are two suits of two cards, count for both):

for a higher A - add 4 points;
K - 3 points;
Q - 2.5 points;
J - 2 points;
10 or 9 - 1.5 points;
any other - 1 point;
if all 4 cards are suited, subtract 2 points.

2. Now let’s evaluate the influence of pairs:

if there is a pair A - add 9 points;
pairs K - 8 points;
Q pairs - 7 points;
pairs J or 10 - 6 points;
pairs 9 - 5 points;
any other - 4 points;
if there are three or more identical ones, no points are added.

3. And finally, the possibility of making a straight. If there are cards in your hand that can help you get a straight (that is, with a “hole” between them of no more than three cards), then:

A with K, Q, J or 10 earns 2 points;
A with 2, 3, 4 or 5 - 1 point;
any two cards from 2 to 6 - 2 points;
any two cards from 6 to K - 4 points;
any 3 cards from 6 and above - 7 points;
any 4 cards from 6 and above - 12 points;
if the gap between cards is one or two, subtract 1 point from the resulting amount;
if the gap is three cards, subtract 2 points.

Let's calculate the amount. It is worth entering the game (of course, this depends on the trading position, the influence of which, as in Hold’em, cannot be overestimated, and the strength of the opponents) is worth about 15 points or more, raising the bet, that is, raising - at 20 or more.

Of course, at first glance the system looks quite cumbersome, but with practice it is easy to remember. To make it easier to understand, here are a few examples:

a) The best starting hand in Omaha is two A's and two K's in two ACAK suits (the player controls two high flushes and high pairs). In this system she would have scored 27 points:

+8, 2 times +4 for suits with high A,
+9 for pair A,
+8 for a pair of K,
+2 for A with K under straight.

Total 27, a confident raise.

b) Suppose you have 8989 in hand

+3 points for 2 suits from 9,
+5 for pair 9,
+4 for pair 8,
+4 for 9 and 8 under straight.

The sum is 16 points - we play (call).

+7 for a pair of Q,
+4 for pair 8,
+4 for a straight,
-2 for a three-card hole.

Total 13 points - we play only against weak partners and/or in a distant position.

Like any mathematical system, this one does not take into account the most important components of poker - psychology and the desire to win not more pots, but more money. It can only minimize losses. In the first example, many experienced players in some cases would not raise - in order not to scare off the others and try to create a larger pot and win more. However, beginners may find the system useful in terms of assessing the strength of their hands. After the game, try to count the combinations you remember and evaluate whether you acted correctly in a given situation.

Let's assume that we've sorted out the starting hands. The flop appears. As in Hold'em, in Omaha this is the most important point, and even more important. After all, now you know 7 of your 9 potential cards. And although it is often said that it is unpredictable, and you can get on the river, which uses your weakest and seemingly meaningless card, this is not entirely true. Of course, anything can win. But more often than not, this “anything” loses. Reducing unjustified losses, rather than winning each specific hand, is the goal of any strategy. And, as usual, it is solved using mathematics.

Obviously, if the flop “did not coincide” with your expectations and no combination or serious hope of a strong combination was formed, the cards should be thrown away (an equally obvious exception is that all remaining ones say “check”, and the next one can be viewed for free). Let's assume that something has worked or is catching on. In this case, the most important concept is the cards you and/or your opponents need to win, the so-called cards. What is the probability of getting an out, so are the chances of winning. Of course, to make an accurate calculation you need to know what other players are holding, but fairly reasonable guesses can be made without this.

Simplified example. Let's say you have a straight with one hole on the flop, there are no pairs and no flush expectations. You assume that when making a full straight, victory will be yours; in other cases, your opponent wins. At this point, you know seven cards out of 52 (four of yours and three from the flop). You are satisfied with four cards that “plug” the hole, out of the remaining 45 - that is, 4 outs. The probability of the required out on the turn (fourth general map) - 4/45, on the river (fifth card), if it doesn’t come on the turn - 4/44. Thus, the probability of your winning is slightly more than 1/6. If the size of the resulting pot is more than 6 times the required rate, you can take a risk. But keep in mind that you will probably have to pay before the river too. So the most justified decision here is to pass.

Naturally, real situations are usually much more complicated - after all, you can win with a pair or three of a kind, but you can also lose with a straight. However general rule That's it - count the outs. If there are a lot of outs, you need to play. If it is obvious that the opponent has a lot of outs, and now your position is better, you need to attack, that is, increase the bet. Let him get scared and throw it away. If he doesn’t fold, at least he’ll get these cards at a price. And he is also not clairvoyant, the necessary outs may not come in the end!

It is impossible to completely formalize the game on the flop and turn (after the release of the fourth card, great certainty simply sets in - we are waiting for just one more, and sometimes it is clear whether the opponent got his) - you need to be able to “read” your opponents, and this comes only with experience. Based on the trade and other signs, you need to understand what combination your competitor has or is trying to make, and calculate the ratio of your outs and his outs, the likelihood of you and them receiving outs, the size of the current bet to the size of the bank. If the probability of receiving a winning card is 15%, and the required bet is 1/10 of the available bank, then the game is justified. If it’s the other way around, then you shouldn’t do it. It seems simple.

Actually this exciting game conceals much more than can be described in, let alone an article - a voluminous book; it is not for nothing that dozens of titles are published around the world every year. Famous card player and journalist Steve Badger, when asked which book he would recommend to beginning Omaha players, replied: “The Bible. Many beginners find this game so unpredictable that they simply pray for the required card"I would like to hope that we were to some extent able to dispel the prejudice about the unpredictability of Omaha with this article. Omaha is a counting game that relies on mathematics to a much greater extent than on luck, and great players know this very well. Now you know it too. But also A bit of luck has never hurt anyone, and that’s what we wish for you!

Pot-Limit Omaha is a very dynamic game. Computer bots have already solved Limit Hold'em and learned to beat poker pros in No-Limit Hold'em. When will Omaha be like this? popular game, like Hold'em, it's just a matter of time.

To give you an idea, there are 1,326 possible starting combinations in No Limit Hold'em. This seems like a lot until you start playing Omaha, where there are 270,725 starting combinations! This figure simply blows your mind!

Anyone who has more or less seriously studied the theory of Hold'em could have come across the following charts of starting hands:

In Omaha, building such a range is simply unrealistic.

This is why PLO is a very dynamic game. With so many starting hands, every hand in Omaha is unique. It is unrealistic to develop in detail preflop ranges of play in Omaha like the range above, and we don’t need it. You just need to consider a few factors when choosing your starting hands in Omaha. And in this article I will share with you 3 tips for 4 Omaha starting cards.

But first, let's look at why careful selection of starting hands is especially important in Omaha.

Choosing starting hands in Omaha

4 starting cards instead of 2, they increase the frequency of hitting the board. But if you don't choose your starting hands well enough in Omaha, you will very often find yourself in a situation where your hand is "good, but second best." And very often you will lose at showdown against players whose hand range is stronger than yours. Conversely, if your range is strong and well thought out, you will generally find yourself winning postflop.

1. “Natsiness”

It is easy to make a strong hand in PLO, so it is best to enter the game with hands that will often hit the nuts.

Try to enter the hand with hands that can make the nut flush or nut straight. Hands with a suited King that can make the second-highest flush

or hands that make up the bottom of a straight, such as 6543, can cause a lot of trouble in spots and need to be especially careful with them.

Hands like 3p4b5p6b look beautiful: the hand is tied and suited. But with it you can only make weak straights and weak flushes, and there is no real value for any pairs.

The “nutness” of a hand is important when bluffing, primarily because of the importance of nut blockers in PLO.

For example, our hand is ATJ9, board 7T5 6 2.

Having blockers for the nut flush and nut straight in hand, the number of strong combinations your opponent has is sharply reduced, so you can use bluffs more effectively.

Hand 3456 will rarely have nut blockers and will often find itself in difficult situations on the flop above.

2. “Coordination”

This factor relates to the ability to make a straight/straight draw. Ideally, all 4 cards should be somehow coordinated with each other.

For example, 789T - here all the cards are connected to each other. This hand is preferable to 985Q, where Q and 5 are not related to each other in any way.

The equity of these hands is approximately the same preflop, but it is very difficult to realize the equity of a poorly coordinated hand.

3. “Suited”

Important tip: In PLO, double-suited hands are preferable to single-suited hands.

Not only is there a higher chance of making a flush with double suited hands, but it is also much easier to realize the equity of such a hand - on the turn you will more often make a flush or a backdoor flush.

Be careful if you have more than 2 cards of the same suit in your hand. For example, AKJT - in this case you block your own outs on a flush.

It is also important to remember the value of blockers when we talk about suited hands. Let's imagine that our hand is ATTJ. Even though we can't make the nut flush with this hand, A is a powerful argument when playing on "very spades" boards.

Hierarchy of importance

It is very difficult to wait for a hand that includes all 3 criteria. Instead, keep all three criteria in mind. The more criteria a hand has, the stronger it is. In order of importance, all factors can be classified as:

1. Natality (especially the presence of high cards)

2. Coordination

3. Suited

As in NLHE, unconnected and unsuited cards have more equity than suited but low connected cards. It's easier to hit the flop by playing high cards. Likewise, the likelihood of flopping a strong pair/two pair is higher than flopping a straight or flush.

Connectivity and coordination are important factors for realizing equity on later streets.

The best starters to play in PLO are high connected or suited cards, regardless of position. Stay away from hands that do not include any of the above factors, as well as from hands that are difficult to make the nuts.

IN Omaha high lo The rule no longer applies - limp and see the flop; aggression comes to the fore in this game. The winner is the one who carefully selects the necessary initial hands. I decided to find out which hands are optimal to play preflop in Omaha hi-lo, since I almost switched to Omaha hi-lo at the micro-limits. It’s especially enjoyable to play hold’em afterwards.
By the way, on many poker sites, articles are published in simple translation from foreign resources. And sometimes you read and realize that the article is complete nonsense.
Yes and about strongest starting hand in Omaha Hi-Lo (strongest starting hand in Omaha Hi-Lo) – ran into conflicting information. But after thinking for myself, I realized that AA23 cards in the starting hand have the highest probability of winning.
A2sA3s is an even more ideal option. Simply, AA23 and A2sA3s can be compared to AK and AKs in Hold'em.
With such a hand, you can count on a high high combination, 2 pair, or a high full house when a pair and an ace hit the table and the best lo, such as the wheel - A2345.

All subsequent hands in terms of strength differ among many authors. I really liked how David Benjamin ranked the Omaha Hi Lo starters according to their strength.

David Benyamine is the 2008 WSOP champion in Omaha high lo, split 8 or better.
For AA23, David bet AA24 double-suited. These hands are incredibly strong because they can take both sides of the pot. Next come:
AA2x
AA3x
AA45
A23x
A2KK
A2QQ
A2JJ
A345
AAxx
A2KQ
A2KJ
A2xx (suited ace)
A3KK
A34x
2345 (fold if the flop doesn't come an ace)
JQKA
TJQK
KKQJ
QJT9
234x (fold if the flop doesn't come an ace)
Like this. For those beginners who are confused by the presence of cards from 2 and higher in the starting hand, read.
The ability to determine the strength of your hand and play a strong hand will give you a good advantage over your opponents on the flop and post-flop.

Knowing the optimal starting hands in Omaha Hi Lo is good, knowing those that we don’t need is even better:

1) Paradoxically, the hand A2xx is actively played by beginners in the hope of making a pair, 2 pairs with an ace and the lowest lo. Mistake, the hand is not good enough to even limp with. In general, Omaha is a game of such combinations as straight, full house, flush and higher. The top pair will almost always be beaten by the middle two-park pair.
A2xx does not exactly belong to unplayable hands, but you should not focus your attention on it. It would be a stretch to say that the exception is a two-suited combination.
There is no need to set yourself up to fight only for lo, even preflop. Since you can even share lo with your opponent.

2) A568 – gaps, also unplayable hands. Gaps in poker are connections with a big hole (difference). There are also gaps in Forex - a gap in Forex is a sharp jump in prices by a large margin. There is similarity in everything in the world.

3) Omaha is a game of strong combinations. There is no need to play 4 connected cards (starting hand). For example, 6789. Such hands have a poor mathematical expectation. The probability of hitting the nuts is 1 percent.

4) High pairs with any two cards are also unplayable. The exception is QQs23s – top pair with small cards + double-suited!

By reading this post, you probably already grasped the main advice - you need to strive to win the entire pot in Omaha Hi Lo. This is actually very difficult to do. But at least at microlimits, it is possible to win the entire bank. Having a nut high combination, you should be more aggressive, since not everyone risks opening their lo, fearing the split of the main lo combination.
They also write that an experienced Omaha Hi Lo player initially thinks about his lo combination. Beginners can understand this statement in the sense that the combination is the main or most important. This is not the case, we need to think about it only because taking the entire bank is most important for us.

When playing high low, the most important goal is to be the favorite on the high combination, because very rarely you will collect 2 identical full houses, while you will split the low much more often and risk getting only a quarter of the pot or even less.
This article turned out to be a good guide for beginner Omaha Hi Lo players, and I hope that your big victories in this discipline are not far off.