Mutual of Omaha Rules

Mutual of Omaha was contributed to pagat.com by Dennis Verbeek. It follows the rules of Omaha except as stated here, using a standard 52-card deck with no wild cards.

The pot is split between the best high hand and the best low hand. There is no qualifying hand for either half.

As in Omaha, every hand shall use exactly two hole cards and exactly three community cards.

High hands follow the standard hand rankings. The source does not say how low hands are ranked; the usual home-game practice is ace-to-five, with aces low and straights and flushes ignored. The dealer shall announce the low ranking before the deal.

Each player is dealt three cards face down, rather than Omaha's four.

The flop, turn and river are dealt as in Omaha, with betting as each is exposed.

When all five community cards are face up and that round of betting is complete, each player in turn may buy a fourth hole card, dealt face down, by paying an extra stake into the pot.

Buying is optional. A player who does not buy plays with their three hole cards.

After everyone has had the chance to buy, there is a final betting round.

The stakes are set by the table. The source gives one example, based on a maximum bet, in which the stakes rise as the hand goes on:

The source's example does not include a betting round before the flop. Whether there is one, and whether the game uses antes or blinds, follows the table's usual practice and shall be announced before the deal.

After the final betting round, each remaining player declares whether they are playing for high, low or both. The source does not specify a method; the usual practice is a simultaneous declaration using chips or coins hidden in the hand.

The best high hand among those declaring high wins the high half, and the best low hand among those declaring low wins the low half.

A player may declare both ways. By the usual convention, a player who declares both must win, or tie, both halves to take either.

By the usual practice, if no one declares one way, the players who declared the other way share the whole pot according to their hands.

With only three hole cards there are just three two-card combinations until a fourth card is bought, so hands are weaker than in Omaha.

Because there is no low qualifier, a declared low can win with a hand that would not qualify in Omaha hi-lo.