Omahwahhhhh?

Dammmmnnn! Omaha is a freaking crazy ass game! Average pot size at .50/1 at my table is 10-20 dollars. People are raising at the river with two pair. I know nothing about Omaha but I know this is wrong. I did notice that it was not always true that a straight, flush, or boat was the winner. I am not going to let my inexperience make me think anything less than these hands are worth playing, but I have noted it.

If you are a scared player this game is definitely a nice cure. I notice nobody plays pre-flop correctly. I hardly ever saw a raise. I was told you hit AA, KK, QQ, JJ, and AK as well as TT, 99, AQ, and QK pre flop. The first grouping you hit as much pre-flop as the table will allow you to. I made a few small mistakes. I had the nut straight and did not bet it because I could not figure out how to make it. Bah! I am an idiot. I know I only get to use two cards, so I kept combining the wrong cards and missed the fact I should have bet the river with my straight to the 6. I did take the five-buck pot when nobody bet. I probably would have folded it.

Oops. I just made a second mistake. I had 8’s, tripped on the flop, bet it as high as I could, and got beat by someone who rivered a straight. The mistake was betting the river. The straight did not call me though. So it did not cost me this time. I need to really look at my hands when I play.

The nice thing about tonight was on the first few hands I was up like 15 bucks. It made me feel more comfortable. The one thing I need more information on is what makes a good flop. Do you chase anything in Omaha? Do you try and make your 9 for the straight or just fold if the flop misses. I am leaning towards folding right now.

So far I think the idea of Omaha is to make the best hand, ram and jam it until you do not have the best hand, and rake in the huge pot when the 6 other possible straights and flushes miss, or the lower boat (straight,flush) thinks it beats your nuts boat (straight,flush).

I am now back down to $33. It was nice being at $45+. I missed some good hands. Like AA dealt to me, but the 3rd A made a flush. I KNEW I needed to fold that and I paid an extra buck off. Not too bad to see a $15 pot. I have a feeling everyone at this table is too passive including myself. I am not sure though.

Houses are hard to figure out. I have 5569 in my hand. I flop the trips? I get 10-5-6. I think that is trip 5’s. Yes it is. I thought for a second it was a house and be it. I got a ten on the river and won with this five over ten house, which is a bad call too because someone could have had something better.

I folded a nice pot where I had the straight to the ace because 3 tens were on the board and I figure that someone had the A or J. Now if you have played Omaha you know I screwed up. You MUST use 2 cards from your hand. So unless someone had AA or JJ my straight would have held up. I can see why having a pair in your hand can help sometimes.

I bet up a lower straight with 8Q. I missed the fact that KQ could beat me because I had QQ8 in my hand. This might have been an ok bet. It was a good bet for Hold Em, but with so many cards out there you never know. Guess what hand I tied with? Yup. Q8 in his hand. This may give Maudies conspiracy theory a little weight.

Missed an A high flush draw. I then made almost the same one. It was raised up on the flop by the straight. I called because I had two pair and four to an Ace high flush draw. Small pot of $10. I am back to $38 again.

Wasted a buck on a straight I did not see. Damn! Oh well. Omaha requires A LOT more concentration than Holdem does. A LOT! Sox are winning in the 8th. I have one more inning to play Poker. NY is tanking. The world is topsy turvey.

Another weird hand. I think I probably should have folded, but I won. I was dealt AAA6. I think trips are bad in your hand. The flop was Axx, and I got a six on the turn. It looks like a boat, right? Nope. It is trip Aces still. Lucky for me no straight or flush materialized until the river, and the straight was not made by anyone. So high trips won a hand.

Made a big mistake at the end. Flopped the (probable) high straight. Bet it up. Got called. Beat by a house and four of a kind on the river. Was being a fish and calling it at the river when I was pretty sure I was beat.

Well after playing for a few hours I finally busted out. Oh well. I had a good time. I need to get a better idea of how to play post-flop. Are two pair good? Do you try and make your boat that way, or do you really need trips or better to continue on? I guess I will learn as I go. At least I doubled up 3 times in NLHE, so I am actually ahead of where I started the night. I am going to keep trying Omaha and try and get a feel for the game. I do not think my first dip into the game was particularly bad but I cannot judge.

Nice HE pot of the night. I played “The Hammer” suited diamonds on a whim. It got raised after I bet, so I call. The flop is a friendly two diamond flop. It also has a seven. I get five to six betters. I call. The turn is a diamond. I check. Couple of folders. One guy calls. Two others come along. The better goes again. Two folders. I call. He turns over 96o with one diamond, the six. HELLLO! What the hell was he thinking. Even if he made the flush he was beaten. What a marooooon. I was playing it just to say “Go Hammer!”. I never expected to be the high flush. Apparently the Poker Gods approved because I have just gone on a run and brought my stack up to $83 from the original $25. Not bad for .50/1. I had some excellent flops and everything I played worked. It was a good feeling.