Across all the variations of the game, the requirement of using exactly two hole cards is the only consistent rule.

In Europe, "Omaha" still typically refers to the high version of the game, usually played pot-limit.

For example, a player may have both a draw to a flush and a full house using different combinations of cards.

The basic differences between Omaha and Texas hold 'em are these: first, each player is dealt four hole cards instead of two.

Counterintuitively, any combination of cards identified as a "hand" - even a lowly pair of twos - is viewed negatively in the low portion.

The middle and right columns show the best five-card high and low hands each player can play on showdown.

Some specific things to notice about Omaha/8 hands are: Pot-limit Omaha (frequently shortened to PLO) is popular in Europe, online, and in high-stakes "mixed games" played in some American casinos.

[8] Second best flushes and straights can be, and frequently become, losing hands, especially when a player is willing to commit their entire stack to the pot.

Furthermore, because of the exponential growth of the pot size in pot-limit play, seeing one of these hands to the end can be very expensive and carry immense reverse implied odds.

For example, if the board is Q♠ J♠ 10♥, and the player has A♠ K♣ Q♣ Q♥, then not only do they have the current best hand possible (their ace-king makes the ace-high straight), but they also have a redraw with the two queens in their hand because if the board pairs, they will make a full house, or four queens.

In fact, with the Q♠ J♠ 10♥ board, A♠ K♠ Q♣ Q♥ is approximately an 80-20 money favorite over a random hand containing ace-king (see freerolling).

"Big O" (occasionally called Five-card Omaha or 5-O) began appearing in Southern California in 2008 and had spread to most of the card rooms in the area by the end of the year.

The place where Courchevel was most commonly played was the Aviation Club de France in Paris.

Following an opening round of betting, two additional community cards are dealt, creating a 3-card flop, where the structure of the game is then identical to standard Omaha.

Courchevel is also available in a hi-low 8 or better variety, and while Courchevel is rarely offered on any of the major online poker sites, as of 2019, hi-low sit-and-go games at the micro stakes level can be found taking place several times a day on Pokerstars, which had the game since 2013.