Omaha.... I've caught the bug, now help me learn to play!!

jimbling

Okay, I’ve finally started to get into Omaha. I haven’t played this game much, and when I did it was with very little knowledge… just pissing about in home games. I read the section in Super System all right, but that was a while back. Is that a good source? Perhaps ill give it a read again.

Anyway, point is, I have played 3 sessions of Omaha in the last two nights. My first session was on Monday night. Bought into a 1/2 game and left 1 and ½ hours later with €560. To be fair, I did hit some lovely cards… and my draws seemed to hit a lot.
Session two was early evening yesterday, where again I bought into a 1/2 game. This session went even better where I left with €615 after about 2 hours.
Last night, while watching the pursuit of happiness (what a dramatized load of crap by the way) I played my third session. Same buy-in again, this time I left with €315 <- big note here is the only reason this wasn’t almost €500 again was due to one extremely baaaaad call by me and one extremely baaaaad call by an opponent.

Okay, so that section probably belongs in the BB sticky, but I really am looking for information about the game. That was just my little boast on how its gone so far….. and the explanation to why I’ve caught the bug 


The differences in this game are huge… I know very little about it at the moment, but have gotten very excited by it. The post flop play is wondrous and some of the play I saw from opponents was preposterous ….
I played extremely passively, and very non-aggressive preflop.
The hands I was raising with were major drawing hands. The only time I raised with Aces is when I have double suited Aces, or perhaps AA KQ etc.. yet everyone else seemed to be raising with high pairs all the time.
I was calling raises with almost any draw whatsoever… any 4 connecting cards. In fact I was almost playing completely opposite to how I play in Holdem.

I have no idea if the way I was playing is the correct way to play. I imagine I was playing waaaay too loose for most peoples liking (I was limping at least 60%), but if you can see relatively cheap flops, and get people putting in big bets on a draw heavy boards with a pair of aces, then ill see every flop I can. And this seemed to be the format of the game.

There is very little need to bluff in the game and think I only did so 2/3 times. Obviously there is a lot of semi-bluffing going on….. but generally it’s much stronger than in holdem.

Now, one of the reasons I am posting here is to see what way the Omaha players play the game. Is it similar, i.e. much more passive preflop? Raising a lot less preflop?
What is the best source of info on the Game?* Do you play Omaha High or Omaha Hi/Lo? (which I didn’t play – have very little experience in low games, and don’t really like them). 6handed or 9handed? How do you find multi tabling?


*I don’t really have time to go traipsing through 2+2 at the moment, and what free time I do have I like to play some…..… so if anyone has some links to particularly good posts on the subject I would appreciate the info.


Another major reason for posting about the way I was playing is because, on my table last night, there was a player who I believe to be a boardster, although I’m not sure.
He was playing extremely tight…. and to be honest it didn’t look like it was serving him very well. Perhaps he was just running bad or also just starting out, I don’t know. Or are there good players who play tight in Omaha at levels where you can stack people quite easily? If you do play tight, what are your starting requirements?

There’s not many posts on this site about the game of Omaha, so I am hoping people could put up some general advice also.

So that’s the gist…. Sorry for the long post... but I hope to yield some fantastic information that is going to put me on whirlwind of a journey raking in the money at Omaha high. :-)

Killme00

jimbling wrote:

The differences in this game are huge… I know very little about it at the moment, but have gotten very excited by it. The post flop play is wondrous and some of the play I saw from opponents was preposterous ….
I played extremely passively, and very non-aggressive preflop.
The hands I was raising with were major drawing hands. The only time I raised with Aces is when I have double suited Aces, or perhaps AA KQ etc.. yet everyone else seemed to be raising with high pairs all the time.
I was calling raises with almost any draw whatsoever… any 4 connecting cards. In fact I was almost playing completely opposite to how I play in Holdem.

Good Job, where were you playing? You hould play live,,,its a goldmine...sometimes!!!

You seem to have a good read on the game so far, keep up the good work...it takes ages to understand and i still dont

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054994094

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054919982&referrerid=&highlight=

coillcam

Variety (and anything but hold em) is the spice of life !

Good luck with it, im not proficient enough with it yet to give it a real go but theres some crazy sessions to be had $100 to $600 in 20 mins and tilting it off in 1 hour after degenerates call a reraise all in on boards of 4 5 6r with A K 4 10r and hit runner runner A A me holding 4578 Hmmmm..... ?

As far as books go.

I've read SS2 its pretty good alright.

I preferred Bob Ciaffone's "Omaha - The action game" It seems to give the reader a better grasp of the drawing vs. made hands odds than SS2. Only thing is that its an old book and im not sure if its still available, still the odd copy on ebay though.

I was recemmonded Rolf Slotblooms offering but didn't get round to it yet, dogs bolox im told.

Love to hear roundtower and flippers opinions....

[nicK]

i'm looking to get into this game too after reading the section in ss2..
i read on another thread that a boards member was thinking of making an omaha video like pok3rplayers.. this would be a massive help to people learning the game.. watching the theory being put into practice etc..

jimbling

Killme00 wrote:

Good Job, where were you playing? You hould play live,,,its a goldmine...sometimes!!!

You seem to have a good read on the game so far, keep up the good work...it takes ages to understand and i still dont

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054994094

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054919982&referrerid=&highlight=

Cheers, thanks.
Playing the 1/2 PL Omaha High on Tribeca.

Killme00

This is another interesting thread....the value of going all in on the turn!!

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055039328&referrerid=&highlight=

jimbling

coillcam wrote:

Love to hear roundtower and flippers opinions....

.

[nicK] wrote:

i'm looking to get into this game too after reading the section in ss2..
i read on another thread that a boards member was thinking of making an omaha video like pok3rplayers.. this would be a massive help to people learning the game.. watching the theory being put into practice etc..

I completely missed that..... could let me know if it happens?

pok3rplaya

Does anyone know of a good basic omaha resource? I mean starting hands requirements etc.

Lafortezza

I think I was at your table last night for a while jimbling. Omaha can be the best game in the world when you're running well your sets are holding up and your draws are hitting. I lost close to $1k last night at 1/2 just because I missed several 60-40's in a row. The swings are huge.
The pots are bigger, more people play more hands so there are more all-ins and more suckouts.

I advise learning how to nut-peddle first, a steady low variance profit can be made doing this at full ring tables up to about 1/2. But that's really boring. Knowing when non-nut draws, top 2 pair, top pair+live kickers+weak draw are good against AAxx are key skills.
VPIP and prf stats are fairly meaningless, since alot of styles can be profitable against different opponents.

kebabfest

Omaha Rules

Rule 1:
Never play chasing a hand that may already be beat unless it is cheap cheap cheap.
e.g. AhQdKh7s
Flop comes
8h8d10h
If there is a big bet you FOLD unless the person betting has 1 eye and tells you he is seeing double

Rule 2:
Dont fall in love with top and bottom pair on the flop
You'll get your heart broken and then you'll have to break somebody's head

Rule 3:
Bet the fcuk out of top\middle set on the flop unless there seems real strength (and I am talking incredible hulk strength here).
Failure to do so will lead to PAIN

Rule 4:
Position is more important in Omaha than Holdem. Use it like Luke Skywalker used the force.......

Rule 5:
Dont get clever- There are too many idiots who play the game to make this profitable

Rule 6:
Read 5 again

Rule 7:
If you are siting at a table and have creamed it take the money and run as you'll only loss it to some kunt who hits his 2 outer. ( Variance is as high as Stu Unger after 16 years of high class drug addition )

Rule 8:
Dont only look at the positives our hand, but look at the negatives of others.
(Cards in your hand may block other people betting e.g. 3 hearts out there and you have the Ah with trips. You KNOW nobody has the nuts flush. Use it)

Rule 9:
Go and gamble like a MANIAC !!

fixer

starting requirements: hands that are easy to remember. Aces or Kings double suited. 6-9 (or better) rundown or 8-Q+ single gapped. 2 Pair ("queens & tens").

There is a points system somewhere, but it's always seemed too complicated to me.

growler

http://www.thepokerforum.com/omahasystem.htm

point system , its a bit much to remember but not a bad guide when starting to play this mad game

bohsman

The 2+2 PLO forum is supposed to be good, think roundtower is a regular poster.

Only starting to learn it myself. Only playing online less than a year, and only playing omaha less than 6 months. I wouldn't disagree with a lot of what Kebabfest said there earlier. Generally though, my rule of thumb is (unless it's very shorthanded) that if there's a possible hand that's out there that beats you, fold unless it's ultra cheap to stay in......I.E. if there's a possible straight/flush/full-house out there, someone has it, so you'd better have a better one if you're gonna stay in.

Suited Aces rock. As do two pairs double suited. I almost never raise preflop as i'm happy to see a cheap flop with a premium hand, as most players are crap and will see any pot size raise preflop as you holding AAxx and fold. Let them raise it, thinking they're miles ahead and reluctantly call.

You gotta love those hold-em players making the jump to Omaha. The amount of times i've seen people trying to take it down with an overpair or flopped 7-high flush beggars belief.

a-k-47

all i can say is NUTS.. make sure u have it.. think every hand thoroughly through jim. Can be very profitable fast! but as lafortazza says swings can be huge. Enjoy.

jimbling

cheers for all the info guys...... keep it coming.

Session 4 last night. 1/2 again. Only played for about an hour. Left with €360.

Killme00

kebabfest wrote:

Rule 4:
Position is more important in Omaha than Holdem. Use it like Luke Skywalker used the force.......

LOL but true

Position is great in omaha...you have alot more control over pot size as well as all important bet size...not every bet need to be pot

jimbling

just finished session 5.
Another 1/2 table. finished with €680.
loving this game.

kebabfest

kebabfest wrote:

Omaha Rules

Rule 1:
Never play chasing a hand that may already be beat unless it is cheap cheap cheap.
e.g. AhQdKh7s
Flop comes
8h8d10h
If there is a big bet you FOLD unless the person betting has 1 eye and tells you he is seeing double

Rule 2:
Dont fall in love with top and bottom pair on the flop
You'll get your heart broken and then you'll have to break somebody's head

Rule 3:
Bet the fcuk out of top\middle set on the flop unless there seems real strength (and I am talking incredible hulk strength here).
Failure to do so will lead to PAIN

Rule 4:
Position is more important in Omaha than Holdem. Use it like Luke Skywalker used the force.......

Rule 5:
Dont get clever- There are too many idiots who play the game to make this profitable

Rule 6:
Read 5 again

Rule 7:
If you are siting at a table and have creamed it take the money and run as you'll only loss it to some kunt who hits his 2 outer. ( Variance is as high as Stu Unger after 16 years of high class drug addition )

Rule 8:
Dont only look at the positives our hand, but look at the negatives of others.
(Cards in your hand may block other people betting e.g. 3 hearts out there and you have the Ah with trips. You KNOW nobody has the nuts flush. Use it)

Rule 9:
Go and gamble like a MANIAC !!

Nice, some good omaha advice.

Personally I play looooooose aggressive, and the key is getting away from it when your behind. dont bet if you miss. Dont bet if the board pairs when you have a flush, unless its cheap. Dont worry about pride, just get away. If your playing high stakes this is key.

jimbling

kebabfest wrote:

Omaha Rules
.......

Thanks for the info kebab. I have put it to good use already!

jimbling

lafortezza wrote:

I think I was at your table last night for a while jimbling. Omaha can be the best game in the world when you're running well your sets are holding up and your draws are hitting. I lost close to $1k last night at 1/2 just because I missed several 60-40's in a row. The swings are huge.
The pots are bigger, more people play more hands so there are more all-ins and more suckouts.

I advise learning how to nut-peddle first, a steady low variance profit can be made doing this at full ring tables up to about 1/2. But that's really boring. Knowing when non-nut draws, top 2 pair, top pair+live kickers+weak draw are good against AAxx are key skills.
VPIP and prf stats are fairly meaningless, since alot of styles can be profitable against different opponents.

laf... missed your post somehow. thanks for the info....

Ya, you seemed to be getting pretty unlucky there all right. But do you usually play that tight? I would put a guess at about a 20/25% vpip?

I am not trying to question you're skill or anything... and you have already mentioned that a lot of styles can be profitable, I am just wondering if that is your usual style?

As regards Nut-peddling.... I just don't think I can do this anymore. I don't have the time or inclination to put in the hours in order to get the just rewards. More out for the quick fix me

Lafortezza

jimbling wrote:

laf... missed your post somehow. thanks for the info....

Ya, you seemed to be getting pretty unlucky there all right. But do you usually play that tight? I would put a guess at about a 20/25% vpip?

I am not trying to question you're skill or anything... and you have already mentioned that a lot of styles can be profitable, I am just wondering if that is your usual style?

As regards Nut-peddling.... I just don't think I can do this anymore. I don't have the time or inclination to put in the hours in order to get the just rewards. More out for the quick fix me

I think I'm about 30%VPIP on Tribeca over 12k hands. 50/1 and 1/2 6max there have been good to me so far, there's so many loose aggro players on Tribeca that playing TAG works better for me than playing the majority of hands. If you run PT with PAHUD you'll see some surprising stats on many of the regulars.
Nut peddling is boring as **** but profitable if you're learning at full ring tables. Once you know the basics and can get into the rhythm for a table you can loosen up and have more fun.

Atlas_IRL

Cardshark or IanMC seem to be good omaha players so maybe ask them if they dont post here.

Marq

Play every hand pre-flop, but no hand post flop.
Repeat for turn and river.

jimbling

lol...this game rules. bought in for 200, lost first pot, down to 148. Rebought. got it up to 740 before lost a 290 pot where my straight+set couldnt hold up against a flush draw.
so finished up with €610... not bad.

I know this variance will have to end sometime, but man, im enjoying it... lol

Doc Farrell

it will never end! gamble higher!

jimbling

Doc Farrell wrote:

it will never end! gamble higher!

lmao...
actually watched a bit of 2/4 there for a while. Seems to be a pretty big jump in ability... some good players.

Doc Farrell

I think that there's less pure bluffing and more chip bullying in omaha than in holdem. You know what others either have or are chasing very quickly.
So long as you know your outs clearly and understand basic pot odds and don't play drunk! then you should have no problems.
but when the big swing hits don't chase! just batten down the hatches and hope to outlive the storm!
good luck!

jimbling

started another another session soon after that..... 1/2 again. had it up to 700, but got really sucked out on (and so it starts) where guys hit 2/3 outers on the river of pretty big pots. Finished with 410, so still a good session.


made some big mistakes in this session too though... not for big pots, but mistakes none the less. broke a few of kebabs rules. Think I was just tired.... normally not up playing poker till 5am.

jimbling

my god... i am running unbelievably well.

just bought into two 1/2 omaha games just after that last post. thats 30 minutes ago. I am sitting with 250 on one table and 900 on the other


EDIT: Just lost my buy in in the first table with middle set to top set on the flop. :mad:


EDIT: my fcuking god.

I flop top set. rainbow on board. crazy girl bets 30. I repot to 112. she calls. rag, but makes flush draw. I put here all in for another 230. She calls with an over pair and a flush draw. hits. so 650 pot down the tube.

jimbling

first poor session... lost two and a 1/2 buy ins. okay... cool the jets.. on tilt.