Mistakes in Omaha High-Low

It is said that one reason why less-skilled players win more often in Omaha high-low than in hold'em is because it is harder to make high-percentage (very likely to lose) mistakes in Omaha high-low. In two-way games, bad plays lose less often than in one-way games. Although you obviously improve your chances of winning in any game by consistently making the optimum percentage plays, in two-way games, there quite often is only a small percentage difference between the optimum play and other (not absurd) less optimum plays.

One example of this is playing a less than adequate starting hand. In hold'em, if you play a hand like 9-7, any two big cards will have more than a 20 percentage point advantage over you. For example, A-J will beat 9-7 about 64 percent to 36 percent of the time; or, if the 9-7 is suited, about 60 percent to 40 percent of the time. But in Omaha high-low, a big hand like A-K-Q-2 will have less than a 10 percentage point edge (that is, 55 percent to 45 percent) over a ratty hand such as J-9-5-4 double-suited (mentioned below) or a "mixed bag" type of hand such as 9-7-5-4.

Check out the following hand for high-percentage mistakes. With three players remaining in an Omaha high-low tournament, and the stakes at $2,000-$4,000, the first player folded and the small blind raised (to $4,000). Would you defend your big blind ($2,000 more) with J-9-5-4 double-suited?

Since the small blind had been raising before the flop very frequently, I chose to defend. The flop came 9-3-2 rainbow – top pair, open-end straight draw, and a decent low draw. Clearly, it was a good flop for me. But, since the stakes were very high, I thought I'd simply let him do the betting. He bet, and I called. The turn card was another 3. He bet $4,000 and I called, still rooting for an ace or 6.

The last card was a jack, improving my high slightly from nines and threes to jacks and nines. But there was no low. He bet. Since he might well have been betting a low draw, I had to call. Surprisingly, he held K-9-5-2, which meant that I needed the jack to beat his nines and threes with a king kicker. He cursed the jack, although I also would have scooped the pot with any ace, 6, or 4, and would have split the pot with a 7 or 8.

Now, the test question here is, which was the worst play made in this hand?

A. His raise before the flop

B. My call before the flop

C. His bet on the turn

D. His bet on the river

The first three actions (A, B, and C), although perhaps subject to question, were all merely very aggressive and highly competitive moves that might work and win you money on a good day. But note that D, his bet on the river, could almost never be right. Once the low didn't get there, he should have realized that if I couldn't beat nines, I would not call his bet. But if I had nines beat, I certainly would call. That bet on the river was by far the worst mistake made, since it was highly unlikely to win any money, and indeed lost an extra $4,000.