Continuing our discussion of pot-limit Omaha starting hands, we understand that one of the primary factors we are looking for in a good PLO starting hand is a hand in which all four of our hole cards are coordinated or “working together,” thereby creating six decent two-card combinations from which to choose from when creating a hand with three of the community cards.
So we all understand we don’t want to be playing hands like Qc-9s-5h-2d but we do want to play Kc-Kd-Qc-Jd for obvious reasons. What other guidelines might we use to remind ourselves what distinguishes good starting hands from bad ones in PLO?
First of all, suitedness is a definite plus in pot-limit Omaha. So-called “double-suited” hands like 10c-9d-8c-7d obviously have two different ways of making a flush, thereby increasing their potential for making a winning hand. Of course, when we play a hand like 10c-9d-8c-7d we are primarily gunning for a straight, since any flush we make will not be the best possible flush. The fact is, Omaha is a game in which final hand values are significantly higher than in hold’em. Whereas one might be reasonably confident a ten-high flush in hold’em is the best hand on the river, one usually can never be so sure about a ten-high flush in Omaha.
That being said, it is still a huge benefit to have this hand be double-suited and thus have that flush potential. One common scenario in PLO is for two players to make the same straight, and being the one with an additional flush draw essentially means you are likely “freerolling” from that point forward in the hand. For example, say you have that 10c-9d-8c-7d hand and the flop comes 9d-6d-5h. You’ve flopped a flush, and when the betting starts on the flop you figure out that one of your opponents probably also has a nine and an eight in his hand, too, giving him the straight. However, if that player does not have diamonds in his hand (a circumstance made more likely by the fact that you do have diamonds), he may not be in a position to improve to a better hand the way you are. In this case, you happily bet big against your opponent knowing you will at least split the pot with him, and could possibly win his whole stack.
Secondly, so-called “rundown” hands are very good to play as well, such as J-10-9-8 and the like. Such hands have the potential to flop especially strong straight draws, sometimes with as 13 or even 17 outs to the nuts! One hint regarding rundown hands: If the hand has a “gap” it is better for the gap to be at the bottom than at the top. In other words, J-10-9-7 is a better hand to play than J-9-8-7. In fact, the difference can be quite huge. The reason is if you do flop a straight draw you are more likely to be drawing to the nuts with the first hand than with the second.
