Low limit and medium limit Omaha/8 is a potential cash cow at many internet poker rooms. A buddy of mine has built a substantial portion of his rather impressive bankroll by simply playing disciplined, patient Omaha/8 poker.
Playing by the book and waiting for hands that have the potential to scoop the pot allows him to take advantage of innumerable players who seemingly play by their own book. Since so many online players seem to be enticed by drawing hands-which Omaha/8 supplies in abundance-the lower levels can be a very wild and adventurous game at times. In some Omaha/8 games you can see as many as six players regularly involved in hands all the way to the river, praying that their weak two pair or four low might take half of the pot.
Although having a bunch of hapless players calling on every street while you play solid poker seems like a perfect scenario, it is not always smooth sailing. With so many fishermen in the lake, they are bound to catch a few big ones from time to time. When you flop the nuts only to see a player suck out with a runner-runner winner, it feels like you've been kicked in the gut.
Some nights can be especially brutal psychologically, as these proverbial kicks in the gut seemingly rain down over and over again. Bad beats can hardly even be considered bad beats in this venue, as they are often times the norm. The statistics follow suit, as even the nuts on the flop can be sometimes only a slight favorite when many players are still active in a hand.
In order to survive the brutal ups and downs in Omaha/8, a player must enter into battle with an especially tough mental composition. In poker, expectation can be your greatest enemy. When you see a great starting hand or hit the flop well, your mind expects a win.
In hold 'em, this is a dangerous mental exercise. In an even more volatile game like Omaha/8, expectations and assumptions can be an exponentially larger emotional landmine. The key to surviving disappointment and heartache is never allowing it to pop up in the first place. In Omaha/8, just don't expect to win a single pot. Go about your business on the turn and river, and make the appropriate bets, calls, and raises as the odds dictate. Although this can feel like an impersonal, robotic poker style, it will provide the emotion shield you need to survive the inevitable waves of wins and losses.
I am not suggesting that you play devoid of emotion. We humans are emotional creatures, and that's an impossible feat. But I am encouraging you to restrain your emotion to the appropriate time by curbing the compulsion to expect a win.
You can still be proud and excited when the cards are exposed at the end of the hand and the pot is pushed in your direction. But until then, you should not allow your mind to stray forward in time in anticipation of a positive outcome.
Anticipation is the precursor to disappointment, frustration, and tilt. Without the assumption of a win, there can be none of these emotional reactions.
If you can find a way to better control your compulsion to anticipate a win with big hands, you will stay on even emotional keel. You can relax and enjoy wins at the correct time, after victory is secured. In the long run this will produce steady, satisfying results.
Although your bankroll may take temporary bounces up and down, your emotions and energy will stay comfortably reserved. Over time, with solid play and solid emotional control, the statistics will overtake the volatile nature of Omaha/8 and allow you to see a steady win rate compared to those who are chasing half of the pot.
