Variance in pot-limit Omaha
Due to all poker variants being based on mathematics, mainly odds and probabilities, there is a lot of natural variance involved in the short-term results. Texas Hold’em is the most popular game on the planet right now but many Hold’em players are making the transition to Pot-limit Omaha and are finding that the variance in the latter is absolutely massive when compared to their usual game of choice.
The edges in Pot-limit Omaha are much smaller than in Hold’em, where you often get your money in as a 70% favourite, sometimes even more. In Pot-limit Omaha it is common to be gambling for your entire stack holding just a 55% advantage over your opponent due to the sheer number of combinations holding four hole cards creates.
Bankroll management
is of the utmost importance to a Pot-limit Omaha player, not only to protect yourself from the variance of the game, where losing periods can extend over a large period of time, but to also aid your mentality too. If you play Pot-limit Omaha regularly you will often find yourself getting your money in as a favourite and being outdrawn or running strong hands into even stronger hands more than you would care to admit. The variance involved is enough to put even the most disciplined grinder on tilt.
That last statement is one of the reasons why skilled Pot-limit Omaha players can find the game extremely profitable, especially when you consider that in any form of poker we make most of our money by taking advantage of the mistakes our opponents make. A player who has been on the wrong side of variance for an extended time or has lost three out of his last three all-in pots despite being a favourite is more likely to go on tilt, start playing sub-optimal poker which is a great result for you.
Mental toughness is a great attribute to any aspiring poker player and watching
Poker Videos
will show you this, but if you want to make it as a Pot-limit Omaha player then mental toughness, along with a bankroll of at least 50 maximum buy-ins, is a prerequisite.
