Omaha poker
Here’s the one thing you need to know about making big laydowns in Omaha.
There is no such thing as a big laydown in Omaha.
Folding bottom set would be a big laydown in Holdem. Folding a small flush would be a big laydown in Holdem. Folding the second nut straight, A-A preflop and a full house would be big laydowns in Holdem.
Be prepared to make all those laydowns in Omaha, maybe all in the same session, or else you’ll be a losing player.
Tip #2 has the basic math of how many cards are out against you by the time the river hits in a full-ring Omaha game; 41 of the 52 cards out. That’s all you need to know to remind yourself to fold your Queen-high flush when you’re facing a lot of heat from your opponent.
Of course, the best thing to do is to avoid these situations all together, as stated in Tip #2, you want to draw to only the nuts in Omaha: You don’t have to torture yourself with big laydowns.
By that design, this is why small and even medium pairs are so dangerous to play in Omaha. Set over set is a rarity in Holdem, so much so that you probably remember every time it’s happened to you. But in Omaha that happens more than you think. It’s not really a cooler when it does happen. And when those sets turn into full houses, it’s almost impossible to fold your hand, even when it’s for your whole stack.
Here’s an example to illustrate: You’ve got 4-4 in your hand, and the flop comes 4-7-A. The turn brings a K, and the river brings another A. Is your full house good? Probably not. Anyone holding A-K beats you. Anyone holding 7s beat you too. You need to fold here when your opponent shows a lot of strength. But can you really fold a full house? Even with all this preaching, most players can’t do it.
It’s just better to skip playing those small pairs. Folding weak hands pre-flop can save you a lot of agony and money in Omaha.
You must be shaking your head right now. It seems incredibly nitty to fold all the time and that thinking is understandable. In fact, this tip, as any tip in poker, does not apply to 100 percent of all situations. If a player seems aggressive and likes to push players around, you can certainly lower your standards. The same goes for fish that obviously don’t know this tip and think their two pair is good. That’s why it’s just as important to pay attention to how all players are playing in Omaha as it is in Holdem.
There is a bright side to this tip. Once you embrace folding, Omaha is easier to play than Holdem. Let’s say you’ve got middle set, and you bet and got three callers. When the third diamond comes down, you check and someone bets the pot. That’s a tough spot in Holdem.
But in Omaha it’s really an easy laydown, and you’ll start to see why tough laydowns only really exist in Holdem.
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