Message Board : Limit Omaha 8 - Beyond the Basics?

Hey all. A little non-hold-em discussion to break things up.

So I have recently been playing a good deal of live 4$/8$ Omaha 8. (Or "Omaha-High-Low-Split-8-or-better", or whichever name for it you are familiar with.)

I have found that it is quite beatable. After 36 hours worth of play, (admittedly a small sample) I am seeing a 2.08bb/hour win rate. I have achieved this through application of ultra tight preflop standards, only betting/calling with the nuts or when drawing to the nuts after the flop except in rare exception cases, and taking good betting lines to get extra money in the pot when I have a strong hand.

Heres the problem: I am playing very predictably. After sometimes not entering a pot for nearly an hour, even my ultra-bad live opponents are aware that I probably have a great starting hand. It hasn’t made much of a difference so far, since most of them play at least to the turn as a matter of practice, irrespective of both the cards they hold and the behaivior of their opponents.

However, I am interested in tackling higher omaha 8 games (there is a local 6-12 game with a full 12/24 Kill, for example), and I am concerned that such straightforward play will be unprofitable if I encounter better opponents at these levels.

Does any one have any advice/know of any advice/know a good book on how to break up play in Omaha 8 without sacrificing long term profit?

When I play hold’em, I have a pretty good handle on when and how to break up my play so it isn’t too bookish. Can this be done in Omaha 8? Should this be done in Omaha 8? What do you guys think?

Get a copy of Omaha Poker by Bob Ciaffone he has a very good section on selecting your starting hands.

Always enter the pot with a hand that has potential scope value.  A one sided hand will be a loser in the long run.  Even real pretty ones like KsKdQsQd aren’t worth as much as you think as high only hands.