PLO Cash Games: 5 Tips to Increase Your Winrate

While PLO offers many players a more thrilling poker experience than Holdem, the edges you can get in this game can be even bigger than in Holdem.

This is due to the fact that Holdem strategy videos, articles and other types of content are available in masses online, whereas for PLO you have to purchase some elite courses to get a more strategic insight to the game.

This can be also seen at the tables where the general player population lags behind a lot compared to the very best PLO players in the world. PLO is also far less solved due to it’s 270 725 hand combinations (compared Holdem’s 1326) which requires far greater computing power from any solver.

As mobile poker apps such as PPPoker have grown in popularity, you can find games where many people are just starting out their journey to the secrets of Omaha. No matter if you play live or online, you should apply the following tips to make to most of the games you play:

1. Improve your game selection

In PLO the variance can go through the roof if you’re playing against aggressive opponents who utilise position well. This cuts into your winrate, and you should always be looking for a loose-passive game where you can win more than your fair share of the pots by playing aggressively.

The best way to improve your game selection is to have multiple poker sites at your disposal, and keep an eye on the lobbies more often.

2. Play tighter against open raises

According to different solvers like PLO Matrix, you should not flat or 3bet liberally against open raises with 100bb stacks. Even if you’re a good postflop player, tiny mistakes here and there start to compound and before you notice it, your edge might have vanished.

The exception to this is obviously when you have position on a very loose player – in that case you should look to get involved in a pot with them with a wider range by all means!

3. In games with nitty players, open more AKxx single-suited hands

Due to having excellent blockers to tight 3bet ranges, opening AKxx single-suited hands can be very profitable against players who are not fighting back enough. Your postflop equity will back up this play in case you happen to get called by 1 or more players.

Your goal here is obviously to pick up the blinds without a fight, so do not get too liberal with this play in case there are loose players acting after you.

4. Consider more passive lines when your range lacks board coverage

This concept is basically the same as in Holdem, where you often need to check-call even strong hands when the board is bad for your overall range.

In Omaha, you can obviously hit any type of flop hard with some AAxx and KKxx combos after opening from early position, but you should still mostly play these flops cautiously against a possible caller in position – otherwise players who are somewhat decent will make your life very frustrating postflop.

As an example, if you open AA67ds and get called by the button, you should be more inclined to check on a 5♠4♥3♦ flop than if you were on the button against the big blind.

5. Look for profitable betting spots on boards where texture shifts are likely

On dynamic boards you should plan ahead on which cards you can be more aggressive on future streets. The classic example is the nut-flush blocker bluff, where you have some equity to either bet or call the previous street and the flush draw completes on the next one: Here you can usually bet big profitably to move your opponent off their equity.

Another, maybe a more interesting example would be a situation where you have 3bet from BB against the button opener and he calls.

Let’s say the flop comes T♠ 8♠ 4♥. In case you check-call this flop and the turn is a complete brick like 3♦ or 2♦, you should lead for a pot-sized bet with some part of your range to deny equity. Good hand candidates for this would be combo draws, big flush draws and overpairs with a gutshot.

Final Words

Improving your PLO skill set requires a lot of studying, where you focus on specific spots over and over until they become your second nature. Some methods to increase your win-rate are rather simple though, and you should leave no weapon in your arsenal unused at the tables to enjoy maximum profits. Start implementing these 5 tips and your edge should increase in no time!