Pot Limit Omaha (PLO): Simplified How to Play Guide

Pot-Limit Omaha is a fast-paced version of poker, with four hole cards (not two, like Texas Hold’em).

Here, we’ll simplify the rules and hand rankings alongside everything else you need to know. 

Rules of Pot Limit Omaha (PLO)

Pot-Limit Omaha plays out in a similar way to Texas Hold’em, with a few crucial differences. Each player is dealt four hole cards, and the game proceeds through pre-flop, flop, turn, and river betting rounds.

• Four Hole Cards: You receive four cards (face down) at the start of the hand.
• Exact Hand Combination: You must use exactly two of your hole cards and three of the community cards to form your best hand.
• Pot-Limit Betting: The maximum amount you can bet is the current size of the pot, making the betting structure more controlled.

Pot Limit Omaha Hand Rankings

Just like a regular Texas Hold’em game, the hand rankings follow standard poker rules. The top hand is a Royal Flush, and the worst hand is a High Card.

Your goal is to make the best five-card hand possible, and this rule applies even in PLO5, where you are dealt five hole cards.

How to Play a Game of Pot Limit Omaha

Here is a step-by-step guide to playing a hand of Pot-Limit Omaha. We’ll walk you through each phase of the game, from the initial blinds to the final river betting round, explaining only the actions and steps involved to keep things simple.

#1. Place Small and Big Blind

Before the hand begins, the two players to the left of the dealer place mandatory bets known as the small blind and the big blind. The small blind is usually half the amount of the big blind. These forced bets start the pot and ensure there is something to play for.

#2. Deal Four Cards to Each Player 

Once the blinds are in place, the dealer deals four cards face down to each player, starting with the player to the left of the dealer button. These are your private hole cards, and they are kept hidden from your opponents until the showdown.

#3. Preflop Betting Round 

The first betting round starts with the player to the left of the big blind. Each player, in clockwise order, has the option to fold, call the amount of the big blind, or raise. The betting continues until every player who hasn’t folded has contributed an equal amount to the pot.

#4. Flop Betting Round

After the preflop betting is complete, the dealer deals three community cards face up on the board. These cards are for all players to use. A new betting round begins, starting with the first player still in the hand to the left of the dealer button.

#5. Turn Betting Round

With the flop betting concluded, the dealer places a fourth community card, also known as the turn, face up on the board. A third betting round then begins, with the same rules, following the same clockwise order as the flop betting round.

#6. River Betting Round

The fifth and final community card, the river, is dealt face up. This is the last card dealt, and the remaining players all take a turn to bet. This follows the same pattern as previous rounds and goes clockwise around the table. 

#7. Showdown and Compare Combinations

If more than one player remains in the hand after the final betting round, a showdown happens. The players reveal their hands, starting with the one who made the last bet or raise on the river. If there were no bets, the first player to the left of the dealer button, still in the hand, would reveal their cards first. Players then show their hands in clockwise order to see who has the winning combination.

Pot Limit Omaha Variants

PLO comes in many forms. Let’s take a peek at how they play out: 

• PLO5 (Five-Card PLO): Similar to standard PLO, but players receive five hole cards, for more hand combinations.
• PLO6 (Six-Card PLO): Players are dealt six hole cards instead of four, and you must use exactly two of your six hole cards and three community cards. 
• Omaha Hi/Lo (Omaha 8-or-better): The pot is split between the highest and lowest hands, and the best low hand is five unpaired cards under eight. 
• NLO (No-Limit Omaha): Betting has no limit, and a player can go all-in at any time, removing PLO’s pot-limit betting structure. 
• Courchevel: This five-card Omaha variant deals one community card face up before the first betting round.