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Casinos> Gambling Articles > The Wheel Theory in Omaha Hi-Lo
The Wheel Theory in Omaha Hi-Lo
There might be no other poker game in existence that has so
many various strategies, so much variance in advice, and even so much
disagreement among professionals as the best strategies to take in order to
ensure success than the game of Omaha Hi-Lo, also occasionally referred to as Omaha 8 or Better. In no other poker game could you talk to four
professional poker players and come away with four different answers on how to
win at Omaha Hi-Lo. One of the more
interesting theories is the wheel theory.
In Omaha Hi-Lo everyone knows the best hand is A-2-3-4,
which will win at least a piece of the pot over 40% of the time. A-2-3-4 is an example of a wheel, in that all
four cards are together. A strong high
wheel might be 10-J-Q-K. A weaker wheel
would be 4-5-6-7, since it isn’t particularly strong high or low. The wheel theory goes that every hand that is
a wheel is playable enough to at least see the flop. The reasoning is that you can make a lot of
possible straights—including some that are not easy to pick up. If you are holding 6-7-8-9 and the flop is 5-8-10,
you can use your 7 and 9 for an open ended straight draw, or your 6 and 7. In this case any 6, 7, 9, 4, or J gives you a
straight. As long as no flush shows up,
this means you may hit a big hand that others can’t see. If they don’t spot the possible straight,
then you might cash in huge!
The other side of this theory is that it is easy to spot
when it is time to run. If you have 10-J-Q-K
and the flop is 2-3-4, run! The
versatility of these hands is part of the appeal. If two are suited one way, and two the other,
then all the better! The ability to make
a straight is hard to give up, and obviously an A-2-3-4 is simply as good as it
gets, especially if the ace is suited with another one of your cards.
The biggest caveat with this strategy is that although the
straights are good hands, you can pretty much assume someone will always have a
flush. So if a flush appears and you
can’t take a strong part of it, then it is time to throw away and cut your
losses. Another argument is that without
an A-2 you will almost never be able to compete for the low cut of the pot. The balance to that is the fact that if there
is no low pot, that straight is more likely to scoop it all, and that most
players go after the low, meaning if the flop is great for a high hand and a
bomb for the low, then you are in fantastic shape!
The wheel is a strategy that takes time and practice, but
with a little bit of practice and some real game experience you will be able to
quickly figure out if this is the strategy for you to become a winning player
at Omaha Hi-Lo.
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