Switch Mindset When Switching From Hold Em To Omaha

POKER TIP OF THE DAY:
Why you MUST change gears
when changing between poker games

If, like many new players, you've tried Texas Hold 'Em and decide to give Omaha 8 a try, be sure you switch your mind-set accordingly and do a tutorial.

The best single piece of advice to remember is that while a set, two pair, or a good straight after the flop are absolutely premium hands in Hold 'Em, they mean a lot less in Omaha.

Proceed with caution until you fully understand the difference between the two games.

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Why the warning above is not an exaggeration. The two games deal the same board, and that is what does the damage: the flop looks familiar, so the hand gets valued out of habit. In Omaha every player is working with four cards instead of two and must use exactly two of them, which means the number of hands that can be made from the same board is far larger. Hands that win in Hold 'Em arrive in Omaha routinely and beaten.

In practice that changes two decisions. Top pair stops being a hand to build a pot around and becomes a hand to control one with. And a draw stops being something you chase — in Omaha the strong draws are frequently favourites over made hands, which inverts the instinct a Hold 'Em player has spent months acquiring.

The tutorial the tip recommends is not a formality. Give the game a session at stakes you would not mind losing, with the deliberate intention of seeing how often the second-best hand turns up. That is the fastest available way to learn the difference, and much the cheapest.