Heads-Up Play in Pot Limit Omaha
When it comes to mounting a successful strategy in the game of Omaha, it is rather difficult - and pointless, as well - to try to pinpoint any particular elements which need to be brought to the fore. Naturally, certain characteristics will always be found in any successful poker player. These would include the usual laundry list of skill, intuition, timing, bravado, elusiveness and a whole other range of appropriate adjectives. And there's no doubt that the possession of at least a few of these characteristics will play a substantial role in the success or failure that you achieve when playing Omaha - or just about any other poker variation.
However, the game of Omaha comes complete with its own unique set of challenges. In particular, pot limit Omaha offers an unbelievable amount of both risk and opportunity for players to make memorable performances. However, I counsel all prospective students of this game that they must take a multilevel approach to their strategy if they expect to have any ultimate success.
What do I mean by multileveled? Simply, that to place the entirety of one's focus upon the turning on each card is akin to driving down highway without ever looking in the rear view mirror or checking your speedometer. In other words, while the most critical factor will always be the cards you are holding, as well as the new ones which show up on the board with each successive betting around, you will be unlikely to mount a lasting campaign of success in pot limit Omaha if the entirety of your attention is focused in that direction.
What I would advise you to do the next time you're sitting down to play a game of pot limit Omaha is to consciously divide your mental focus in two sectors. The largest of these (say, 75 percent) should be directed towards the cards. But the remaining quarter of your consciousness should be split in several directions. The first of these would be the game play of your opponents. Are you stacked up against a loose/passive player or a tight/aggressive player? Or neither of the above? Get to know your opponents intimately, study their habits and you will be able to spot movements before they actually occur.
Secondly, it would be highly advisable that you keep an overall view on the general betting patterns of the table as a whole. This is different than looking for individual tics or tells in each opponent. Rather, think of this as a bird's eye view of the betting at large; because the table has a tendency to take on a life of its own, sweeping over individual preferences and creating its own flow of betting. It is the sheer arrogance to think that you can go against the flow, in poker or any other worthwhile endeavor. Rather, identify how the wind blowing and match your play to best accommodate its patterns.