Here's What You SHOULDN'T Do in Pot Limit Omaha
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The 2022 World Series of Poker (WSOP) is fast approaching, with the series' schedule announced yesterday. In total, there are 88 live bracelet events as well as an additional 14 online bracelets tournaments taking place on WSOP.com.
One of the best things about the WSOP is that players and viewers get to play or watch poker variants that they might not be used to. One of the all-time bad beats at the WSOP took place in the 2019 Poker Players Championship. Following that specific hand and after it went viral, a lot more eyes were exposed to the game of 2-7 Triple Draw.
One other poker variant that has a powerful presence in this year's WSOP schedule is Pot-Limit Omaha (PLO). PLO has grown in popularity in recent years and the event line-up signifies that as there are 14 live and two online PLO tournaments planned.
At the 2019 EPT Sochi, PokerNews' Tiffany Michele sat down with PLO cash game and tournament pro Vivian Saliba to discuss what players SHOULD NOT do while playing PLO.
It would be worth noting what Saliba says as she is no stranger to deep-runs in WSOP PLO tournaments, finishing in 11th place in the 2017 $10,000 Pot-Limit Omaha 8-Handed Championship for $47,923.
Be Patient with a Short Stack in Tournaments
Many players do not realise that having 7-10 big blinds in PLO is a lot different from having a similar stack when playing NLHE. As there is no ante in PLO, an eight-ish big blind stack is not as short as you would think. You have a lot of room to pick your spots and you just need to be very patient.
Tournaments are all about survival, and that's elevated even more in PLO. There's no need to go gun-ho with a marginal hand when shorter-stacked.
Read More: Three Tips for Switching to Pot-Limit Omaha
Learn Which Hands to Play
A common mistake beginner PLO players make is playing way too many hands. When deciding what starting hands to play, there are a few things you need to consider.
The first is that you want to play hands that can make the nuts, so you should be looking to play pots with high cards that can make the nut-flush or nut-straight for example. A hand like 4♥5♣6♥7♠ looks pretty because of how connected it is, but the best hand this combo could make are low flushes and low straights.
With that being said, connectedness is another important factor when considering what starting hands you should play in PLO. It's preferable to play a hand where all four cards can interact with each other. Even though a hand like 10♠9♥6♥K♥ technically ranks better than a hand like 8♦9♦10♣J♣, the latter would be the more ideal combo to play because it is better connected and have greater drawing capabilities post-flop.
Players should also choose to play double-suited hands over single-suited hands. Clearly, this gives you more opportunities to make your flush and will allow you to see more turns and rivers.
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Do your Homework
Some people think PLO is just NLHE with four cards, this is not the case. There are a lot of differences to consider, such as hand-strength, theory, approaches and different aspects of a pot-limit game.
As there are so many things you need to adapt to and learn before you play PLO, you should take a moment to study the game, as it is not as simple as non-studied players perceive.
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2022 WSOP PLO Events
| EVENT # | DATES | BUY-IN | TOURNAMENT |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | June 9-12 | $25,000 | High Roller Pot-Limit Omaha |
| 28 | June 13-15 | $50,000 | High Roller Pot-Limit Omaha |
| 30 | June 14-16 | $1,000 | Pot-Limit Omaha 8-Handed |
| 39 | June 18-21 | $3,000 | 6-Handed Pot-Limit Omaha |
| 45 | June 21-23 | $1,500 | Pot-Limit Omaha |
| 53 | June 25-26 | $5,000 | Mixed NLH/PLO |
| 58 | June 27-29 | $1,500 | Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better |
| 63 | June 29-July 2 | $10,000 | Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo Championship |
| 64 | June 30-July 1 | $600 | Pot-Limit Omaha Deepstack |
| 69 | July 2-5 | $10,000 | Pot-Limit Omaha 8-Handed Championship |
| 72 | July 7-9 | $1,500 | Mixed PLO Hi-Lo/"Big O"/Omaha Hi-Lo |
| 74 | July 9-11 | $1,500 | Bounty Pot-Limit Omaha 8-Handed ($500 Bounties) |
| 77 | July 11-13 | $1,500 | Mixed No-Limit Hold'em/Pot-Limit Omaha |
| 80 | July 13-14 | $600 | Mixed Pot-Limit Omaha/No-Limit Hold'em Deepstack |
2022 WSOP Online PLO Events
There are also WSOP Online bracelet events running concurrently with the series and sees a further two PLO events in the 2022 WSOP schedule.
| DATE | BUY-IN | TOURNAMENT | STATES |
|---|---|---|---|
| June 19 | $1,000 | Pot-Limit Omaha | NV/NJ |
| June 19 | $500 | Pot-Limit Omaha | PA |
