Omaha Buttons

So is everyone familiar with "Overs Buttons"? For those who aren't, the idea is as follows. Suppose the biggest limit hold 'em game your casino offers is 20/40. They just can't spread anything higher, as they don't have enough interest. They do, however, have some people that want to play higher than that. Just not enough for a full game. What to do what to do? Offer "Overs Buttons". Everyone at the table has the option of having such a button. If any betting round, other than preflop, starts with only players with buttons, the stakes increase (by either 50 or 100 percent). In the case of Garden City, if no 40/80 game is going, overs are allowed in the 20/40 game, and when they "kick in" the game goes to 30/60. I won't go into the strategy of play with overs buttons here. The point of this post is to propose a new home game with....

Omaha Buttons

The idea is a simple extension (bastardization?) of Overs Buttons. If any street, other than preflop, starts with only players who have Omaha Buttons, everyone is dealt two more cards and the game changes to Omaha High (perhaps you could even try Omaha Hi-Lo, but I'll leave that as an exercise to the reader).

"But wait" said the astute reader. "This is such a great idea, everyone will want an Omaha Button. Then you'll just be playing this weird game where everyone gets 2 more cards after the flop. That's lame!"

Never fear, dear reader. In your 8-handed home game, simply make only 4 buttons available. Draw for them at the start, then obey the following rule. Any time a hand is shown down, if the loser has an Omaha Button and the winner does not, the winner has the option of taking the loser's Omaha Button. This also ensures that at some point in the evening a river fold will be made with the following commentary:

"Well, I think this is pretty close, but I didn't want to give up my Omaha Button, so I'll let you have it."

Pete points out that you could have any number of buttons introduced into the game. 6th Street Buttons, for example, would be a fantastic idea. Next time you spread a home game, give it a try. I bet you won't be disapointed :)