Omaha

A word about Omaha.  I have been there but it has been years ago.  My Aunt Thelma and Uncle Dudley lived there and as a kid we used to visit every once in a while.  My sister, Kathy once had to go to the hospital while there because she ingested an entire bottle of baby asprin (Yum, they are tasty, like candy).  But I digress.  My real topic today is the game of Omaha.  Damn, I love that game sooooo much more than hold 'em.  Omaha is to Hold 'em what chess is to checkers.  It is both more of a thinking game and more of a five card, river game.  Big draws are much better than made hands (unless it is a straight flush or quads).  Yesterday, playing at Talking Stick I saw, in the 2- 3 hours I played, two quads (jacks) and a straight flush.  Big hands are not uncommon.  Flopping a straight is usually not a winning strategy, and if the board pairs or a flush is possible, you lose most of the time.

270,725 vs. 1,326  the number of distinctive starting hands vs. hold 'em.  Think about it.  You could play for years and not be dealt the same hand vs. seeing the same hand time after time playing hold 'em.

I waver in my playing style from super loosey-goosey to rock tight.  Yesterday was loose, playing most hands which turned out very bad for me.  Besides not getting a lot of premium hands just did not connect with many flops.  Oh, and I forgot to mention the unreasonable rake at Talking Stick, which was $6 max.  I mentioned on earlier post that twice lost on flopped set of 10's.  First time an Asian lady rivered a straight, second time same woman flopped a set of queens.  Bad luck with that pair all day.

Most really good players feel that a hand without A/2 is almost unplayable.  I tend to like any hand that is super connected, one gaps o.k., contains high pairs, is double suited with one high card, or an ace with a couple of low cards 3 through 7.  So, A/3/K/Q single or double suited is playable by me, while something like K/Q/10/4 is not.  Dan Harrington calls this type of hand a "dangler", which is the 4 which does not work with the other cards.  I am o.k. with two high cards and two low cards, say K/J/A/3.....one of the cards should be an ace, but am not adverse to something like K/Q/2/3, as this can make nut straights and wheels.

Generally speaking, there is no low 40% of the time, but the "scoop" is what you really want to do, so that is where the A/2 (preferably suited) comes in.

Really wish the free websites I play on offered omaha, closest is card player's "no river" which is weird.  Ask me about that game some time.  You get 4 cards, can play 3, flop and turn only.  Tough game to beat.

Late Breaking News....Just cashed for 3rd time in online tournament.  264 players.....1st place, $10.00, woo-hoo.