Yes this is an article on Pot-Limit Omaha 8/b or as I like to call it “The Ugly Stepchild”. Omaha 8/b rarely gets any coverage at all whether it be in the televised poker scene or on poker message boards. So I figured what better way to get this game some coverage than to write an article about it. The basics of Omaha 8/b have been covered here at PocketFives before so I figure I’ll point out 3 trouble situations that can arise in Pot-Limit Omaha 8/b (PLO8).

First off we must distinguish that there is quite a large difference between Limit and Pot-Limit Omaha 8/b, just like there is a difference between Limit Hold ‘Em, Pot Limit Hold ‘Em, and No Limit Hold ‘Em. Your mistakes in PLO8 can be VERY costly compared to Limit Omaha 8/b, so making the least amount of mistakes possible is paramount. <READMORE>

TROUBLE SITUATION 1: SETS

I couldn’t figure out which trouble situation to put first but this situation along with Trouble Situation 2 are 1A and 1B in my book for how people lose the most money in this game. In the lower stakes games (max buy-in of $200 or less) you will see people go to the river with sets when it is obviously not justified. And when I am discussing sets I mean that you have a pocket pair in your hand and the board pairs you on the flop. In PLO8 we don’t expect to make a lot of money with sets due to the fact that there are so many permutations of cards out there since everybody gets 4 cards, it is a rarity that you will be able to scoop a whole pot (which is PARAMOUNT) by flopping a set.

Sets should be played very carefully especially out of position. A recent hand discussion occurred on here where a P5er limped in the SB with AKKQ (perfectly reasonable). The flop came K63, 2 clubs and the discussion was with 2 others in the pot should he lead? My view is ABSOLUTELY NOT! You are out-of-position and building a pot in which you need to either pair the board or catch lucky on 2 consecutive streets to drag the pot. What happens if a club comes on the turn, or a 2, or a 4, or a 5, or a 7, or an 8? See how many trouble cards there are for this hand? Somebody limping with a hand like As2c7d9c would be freerolling for the whole pot if a low card comes on the turn. The exact situation you DON’T want to be in, hoping to get your money back plus ½ the blinds. And if you are up against a hand like Ac2c5d4s you are a HUGE 2:1 dog (relatively speaking in Omaha terms) on the flop with your set!!!

I want to give full credit to P5er moneytoburn for this strategy. He would suggest check-calling the flop and check raising a non-scary turn card (like the 10 of spades). If you figure somebody bet the flop and there were callers the pot is built to a decent size by time the turn comes. If the turn bricks then you pounce into action with a check-raise, thereby forcing your opponent to call a rather large raise with one card to come. If one of the many scare cards comes on the turn you can happily muck your set and get away from the hand cheaply.

TROUBLE SITUATION 2: AAxx

This is another hand I see people constantly getting stacked with. People see any AA in their hand and they think it is the nuts. That’s not the case in PLO8. AA is a very strong hand and you should try to cut your field down with it, but ONLY if you have a good low to go with it. A hand like AA78 should be mucked without a 2nd thought. You are going to either win a small pot with it or lose a huge one. If somebody opens the pot with A235, suited to the Ace do you think they are gonna throw their hand away if you repop them? Of course not! And when the flop comes 2 low cards and 2 cards of their suit do you think that your pot sized bet is going to scare them off? Nope, you are just building the pot for them. I think an example will best illustrate what I am talking about.

I had just plopped down at a $100 max buy-in PLO8 game when I was dealt Ah2dTd3h in MP and as the first one in the pot I raised the pot limit. My opponent (with $110 behind) on the button repops me the pot limit. First thought, he has AAxx, so if you miss the flop or don’t pick up a huge draw fold quickly. The flop came down Ts7d5d, with the pot at $33 I checked to my opponent who fired out a pot sized bet. Now look at what I have here. Top pair, baby flush draw, uncounterfeitable low draw. My opponent has to have a VERY specific hand, like AdAs2s3d, for me to be looking at getting scooped here. So I check-raised all my chips and he called. The turn was a 6d and the river was an As. My opponent showed AdAc8s7c and I scooped the pot allowing me to double up when I took the high with my 10 high flush and the low with 6532A.

In running this hand through the twodimes.net program (which I STRONGLY recommend using when you first start to learn this game so you know what your equity is in pots where you have a draw against a “made” hand, etc.) I was actually a 56:44 favorite in the hand on the flop. My opponent VASTLY overplayed his hand and was willing to go all the way with a measly pair of Aces and a really crappy low (A7) on a draw heavy board when I opened the pot initially.

TROUBLE SITUATION 3: PLAYING FOR HALF AND GETTING QUARTERED

I lumped these two together because sometimes one leads to another. This one I still struggle with, but I have become much better at avoiding situations where it looks like I am playing for only ¼ of the pot. We play PLO8 to scoop pots or at worst get ¾ of pots, we don’t play this game to chop pots or get ¼ of the pot. Playing to get half the pot (which sometimes leads to getting quartered) in PLO8 will be the death of you in this game.

There is no problem at all limping with ragged A2, A3, or certain 23 (in position) combinations in this game, but know when to get away from your hand. If the flop comes 6 5 4, 2 clubs and there are 3-4 people going to war in the hand your Ad2c8hJh probably is better off in the muck than still on the table. You are now only playing to get half the pot anyway and what happens if the turn or river brings an A or a 2? You have just invested a ton of money on a hand you can’t continue with. You played for half the pot and ended up getting nothing except a big fat loss.

And think about a situation where you limp in EP and call a raise with that exact Ad2c8hJh. When the flop comes 7 5 3, rainbow, you check and your opponent fires a pot sized bet at you, what do you do? Call and hope to hit a 4 for the wheel? Trust me when I say that I made this mistake when I first started out of calling that flop bet and then calling a pot-sized turn bet when a blank came and calling another pot-sized river bet when another blank came and having my opponent turn up AA25 to take ¾ of the pot. Think about what your opponent could raise with? Could his hand be A23x or A25x? Or could he have AK2x or AQ2x? All of these hands beat your AJ82 for ¾ of a rather substantial pot. The next time you call a raise preflop think, “what do I need to have flop to make me get at least ¾ of this pot?” If you don’t pick up any draw to go with your low, muck your hand for a small loss of what you put into the pot preflop and move onto the next hand.

I hope this article helps anybody who wants to give Pot-Limit Omaha 8/b a try. Avoiding these trouble situations and exploiting your opponents when they get themselves into these situations will help make you a profitable Pot-Limit Omaha 8/b player. Good luck at the tables!
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