How do you improve your PLO8 game?

[maurile]

Fixed-limit hold 'em has been my bread and butter since I started taking poker seriously about six years ago. But I've also gone through phases of concentrating on LO8, Stud/8, NLHE SNGs, and (to a lesser extent) NLHE ring games.

I just started concentrating on PLO8 about a month ago and I love it. (Probably in part because I've been running good, but I also just really like the game.) I'd like to focus on improving my PLO8 game for at least the next couple months before going back to hold 'em (if I ever go back).

There's been very little published on PLO8. I don't have the Ciaffone Omaha book. Maybe I should get it, but my understanding is that there's very little on O8, and what's there is on LO8.

There's this forum, which is great. I'll spend some time going through the archives.

But to you PLO8 veterans -- what was the most helpful thing you did to improve your game?

Knowing the basics of LO8 is helpful -- starting hands, general principles of not drawing to half the pot, generally not drawing to non-nut hands, etc. Most of these carry over to PLO8, but the games are not identical. Getting quartered is generally much worse in PLO8 than in LO8. Position seems more important in PLO8. Hand reading/bluffing seems more important. And managing the pot size properly is much more important.

What I've found helpful so far is to review my playing sessions and plug my holdings into an equity calculator at various stages throughout each hand to see where I stood against my opponent(s). (I have been using twodimes.net, but ProPokerTools looks much better. I'll be using that from now on.)

The other thing I try to do when I review my playing sessions is to try to refine my reads regarding my opponent's most likely hands. What did I think his bet represented during the hand? What do I think it represents now (as I review the hand) that I have more time to think about it? How close was I?

I find this much harder to do in Omaha/8 than in hold 'em. In hold 'em it is often possible to put an opponent on a relatively small range of hands, but in Omaha/8 the possibilities always seem rather more indefinite. (Does he have counterfeit protection for his low hand? If he's got a two-way hand, is the high just a flush draw or is it a made hand like two pair? Etc.)

But if hand-reading is more difficult in Omaha/8 than in hold 'em, it also seems less important. Hand strength is always relative in hold 'em (top pair can be strong or weak depending on the action), but seems more absolute in Omaha/8 (you've either got the nuts or you don't). That's a huge oversimplification, of course -- but is the general sentiment right? That hold 'em is more about playing your opponent while Omaha/8 is more about playing your cards?

In any event, my question is -- what else should I be doing to improve my game? What was the best thing you did to improve yours?

[gergery]

Yes, you are on the right track. I agree with all your hypotheses/conclusions, except that I find hand reading in O8 as easy as in holdem but that might just be cause I’ve played it more.

Biggest thing you don’t mention is sharing hand histories and comments with other strong players. Also, running thru the actual hands afterward to see what optimal plays would have been given his actual hand. And reviewing the stats/play of other strong players and their lines.

As for me, I use twodimes a lot which is helpful, and posting comments to others on PLO8 hands forces me to think carefully about my own logic which might be the thing that has helped the most. Read Wintermute and Ribbo’s posts as they give very good advice, and cooker, JoshueMayes (doesn’t post much now) and Phil153 have good commentary too.

I have some PLO8 material at my site, btw.

-g

[TheStation]

I am assuming/hoping you have poker tracker omaha

If so, study that, look for where you are losing money on hands and see if there are similarities in the hands that you are losing on