Originally Published: April 22, 2009, 05:58 AM

Bluffing in Omaha

Posted By Diego | Strategy News | April 22, 2009, 05:58 AM | Views: 49

Bluffing in Omaha Hi/Lo Poker

Bluffing is one of the key elements of why poker is such a great game.
If you were to href="http://www.casinotop10.net/online-blackjack.shtml">play
online blackjack or other games
where you are not playing against other players the opportunity of
bluffing would never arise.



Some players make the transition from Texas hold’em to href="http://www.poker-vids.com/video/poker-rules/omaha/how-to-play-omaha-hi-lo/index-3.html">Omaha
hi/lo and think that they can
apply the same strategies to the new game. This is a dangerous
supposition, as the two games are actually very different and require
very different approaches.



Difficulty of Bluffing in Omaha Hi/Lo Poker



As difficult as it is to bluff in limit Texas hold’em poker,
it is much more difficult to bluff in Omaha hi/lo. This is because with
so many cards in play, the likelihood of a player holding
“the nuts,” the best possible hand, is quite high.



Obviously, you cannot bluff a player with the best hand. Furthermore,
it is hard to get rid of opponents on earlier streets because there are
so many possibilities out there that multiple players may be drawing to
the best hand.



Bluffing Opportunities in Omaha Hi/Lo Poker



One opportunity to bluff may arise when a player gets counterfeited.
Here is an example. You hold the As 8s Kd Kc. The flop comes 7s 6s Jh.
One player bets, you call, another player calls, everyone else folds.
The turn is the 4c. The first player bets, you call, the third player
raises. Player one re-raises, you call, player three caps the action
and everyone calls. The river is the 2h and the first player bets out.



You now have an interesting opportunity. The action suggests that the
first player made a high hand and the third player made the nut low on
the turn. If this is true, the third player is now counterfeited.



However, his A2 low still beats you, since he can still make a 7 low.
If you raise here however, he may put you on A3, 34 or a variety of
other lows that now beat him. Facing two bets, he will often fold his
live deuce, giving you half the pot.



Notes on Omaha Bluffing   



As you can see, opportunities for bluffing in limit Omaha hi/lo are few
and far between, but they do exist. Keep your eyes open and think
creatively and you may find some of your own. Remember that Omaha is
more of a “ href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_nuts">nut-game”
than for example Hold’em, so make sure that you choose your
bluffing situations with great discretion.