[Ribbo]

Popular misconception number 1: Protecting your hand.

There is no such thing as protecting your hand in PLO or PLO8. All there is is betting the 'best' hand. The best hand is not the one currently ranked the highest, but the one currently most likely to win.
Flop 6[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] 7[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] 8[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img], the best hand here would be A[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] K[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] 8[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] 8[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]. The guy with 9T should not automatically be looking to 'protect his hand' no matter what on the flop. The following scenarios happen:
He bets 9T, a player who would have otherwised bluffed now folds. He bets 9T, a player who would have otherwise bet 95 now folds. He bets 9T, he gets raised by the aforementioned hand, he now has to call fearing being freerolled and when the turn doesn't improve he gives a free card now when he actually IS favourite. He bets 9T, gets raised by another 9T with a freeroll building the pot to a significant size where he could lose all his stack.
Sets on the flop should be bet hard, Flushes on the flop have more protection and can be bet hard or soft depending on players. But straights are the work of the devil. Straights need redraws to be bet hard, because often you will only see heavy action from other people with the same straight.
If you are drawing "strong" as claimed by Ciaffone, then you are often favourite, and you should be betting the hand for that reason, not because you want other people to fold, but because more often than not you will win the hand and you want money going into the pot.
Perfect example being K [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] T [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] 8 [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] flop where you hold A [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] Q [img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] J [img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] 9 [img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img]
No hand in poker dominates you, only a few hands are slight favourite (AKQJ possibly is ahead, and KKxx where xx are some of your outs). But a load of hands (anyone with 2 pair) are in big trouble, and if you get action you're in great shape. One can argue that you don't want to bet the pot in this situation, betting half the pot may encourage someone with top 2 to raise you back allowing you to shove as a significant favourite, also would allow someone with a bottom set or middle set to raise allowing you to do the same, putting pressure on them to fold fearing you holding top set. It also shouldn't be too big a bet to scare off other players holding straight draws, and indeed if you are lucky enough for it to hit, by not forcing them out on the flop, you get to shove the turn with a freeroll.