rules of Omaha

Do you HAVE to use both hole cards?
If the board is the best hand is it disregarded and the two hole cards used?

Every hand every time EXACTLY 2 hole cards. if the board is kkaat and you have just one K in hand you do not have a boat unless you also have an A or a T. The board never plays.

yeah some people forget and they think they can use 4 cards on the board and one card in their hand but no you must always use two of your four hole cards and three cards on the board no matter what.

Alright thank you. I have been playing omaha waaaaay to long for me to not know that.

You play 2 cards out of the 4 you are dealt and 3 on the board. Key is not to play low flushes at all!!! Play 2 in your hand and 3 on the board

yes omaha is a game of very tight playing. you learn that early on when your sets and straights get beat by flushes all the time

Yes, ie: if the board is showing a straight the pot is not split...it goes to the person who has the best 5-card hand using 2/4 held & 3 from the board.

It is possible to use all 4 cards held when playing HiLo to scoop the pot...best 2/4 held & 3 from the board for the Hi & best 2/4 held & 3 from board for the Lo. This is what makes Omaha exciting (& exasperating ), can have the nuts after the flop & then have a dramatic change of circumstances following the turn and/or the river.

Wow, maybe its just me but Bazerk's post did not clarify anything. Don't let it confuse you. The message is what I said initially, plus he is adding reference to a thing I did not point out about hi/lo, which is that you can make two seperate hands. On hand, using exactly 2 cards from your hand, and 3 from the board to make a hi, and then exactly 2 cards from your hand and 3 from the board to make the lo. The two cards selected may be the same two, a completely different two, or with a card of overlap, it doesn't matter.

PS: perhaps Bazerk was clear to others, but I was not getting that "2/4" meant "2 of 4" read this way sense is made. "2/4" to me is more analogous to "2-4"

Thanks for pointing out that I may not have been very clear...2/4 does = 2 of 4...due to my IRL job I have a tendency to shorthand certain things. I only added the HiLo part because I didn't want anyone to think they were limited to a specific 2 but I think you explained it much more clear.