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Omaha Burn is Omaha with a match-the-pot penalty. After the turn, players declare at the same moment whether they will burn, meaning stay in. The river is dealt, a last round of betting follows, the best hand wins the pot, and every losing burner must match the pot to build the next one.
Omaha Burn is played by up to eleven players with a standard 52-card deck and no wild cards. Hands are made as in Omaha: each player uses exactly two of their four hole cards and exactly three of the five community cards.
Omaha Burn is a match pot game. A player who chooses to burn, that is, to stay in for the river, and then loses, must pay into the next pot an amount equal to the pot, usually up to an agreed cap (article 4).
Each player antes. The dealer deals four hole cards face down to each player.
The dealer then deals all five community cards face down in the centre of the table. They are turned face up in stages during the hand.
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| First betting round | After all hole and community cards have been dealt |
| Flop | The first three community cards are turned up; second betting round |
| Turn | The fourth community card is turned up; third betting round |
| The burn | Each player declares, at the same moment, whether they are in or out |
| River | The fifth community card is turned up; final betting round |
Betting after the flop and the turn begins with the first active player to the dealer's left.
The burn. Before the river is turned, the dealer asks the table whether players will burn. Each player holds a chip in a closed fist if they wish to stay in, or an empty fist if they do not. On the dealer's signal, all players open their hands at the same time.
A player who does not burn folds and is not liable to match the pot.
The river is then turned and a final betting round is played among the players who burned.
The source does not say what happens if no player burns. The group shall agree a rule before play, for example that the pot carries forward to the next hand.
The best Omaha hand among the burners wins the pot.
Each losing burner then pays into a new pot an amount equal to the pot just won. This new pot is carried into the next hand, and the players ante into it as usual.
Because the pot can grow very quickly, it is usual to set a cap on how much a losing player must pay. With a cap of 10, a losing player pays the pot value or 10, whichever is less.
Ending the game. The game ends naturally only when a single player burns and takes the pot uncontested. Groups usually also agree a time limit or a fixed number of deals.
Settling a burn
Board: K♠Q♠7♦2♠9♥
Player A holds A♠3♠J♥10♦. Using the ace and three of spades with the three board spades, A makes an ace-high flush.
Player B holds Q♣Q♥5♣6♦. Using both queens with the queen, king and nine from the board, B makes three queens.
A's flush beats B's three of a kind, so A wins the pot. If the pot was 60 and the cap is 10, B pays 10 into the next pot.
Note that A could also have made a king-high straight (J-T from the hand with K-Q-9 from the board), but the flush is higher.
High-low, eight or better. Omaha Burn may be played with the pot split between the best high hand and the best qualifying low hand, as in Omaha Hi-Lo. The split tends to encourage more players to burn.
The size of the cap, and whether antes are required on every hand, shall be agreed before play.
Other match pot games include Piranha. The simultaneous drop is borrowed from Guts.
Burning means choosing to stay in for the river. Players declare at the same moment with a chip or an empty fist. Those who burn and lose must match the pot.
An amount equal to the pot, which goes into the next hand's pot. Most groups set a cap, so a losing player pays the pot or the cap, whichever is less.
Yes. Hands are made as in Omaha: exactly two of your four hole cards and exactly three community cards.
Where any doubt remains in the application of this document, Rob is right.
Hand rankings, high to low: royal flush · straight flush · four of a kind · full house · flush · straight · three of a kind · two pair · one pair · high card. Suits never break ties.
Omaha Burn Rules · OPR-551 · officialpokerrules.com/omaha-burn/