Tournament Director


Unintentionally Showing Cards


A question from Ian Hilton. I


was playing in a tournament (blinds were 200/400, 10 seater table), player UTG called, next four players folded, the next


player then announced raise to 1,600, at the same time he lifted his cards up from the table unintentionally exposing them to the player on his right who then said he had seen the hand and so was folding. The player on the button asked for a ruling. Our TD could not find a sensible ruling in his rules so made the ruling that as he had exposed his hand to a player still in the game his hand was dead, the bet he made stays in the pot and the only bet made is the call of 400. The ruling the club TD made was that his hand was seen and it altered the actions of the player seeing the cards, so putting other players still in the hand at a disadvantage, so his hand was then declared dead.


Could you ask your tournament directors what they would have ruled?


Thomas Kremser:


Cards of a player that accidentally shows his hand will not be declared dead and he will be able to continue to play his hand. The


disadvantage is clearly on his side as the other player(s) have more information and


can make their decision. Exposing cards definitely does change the action for this hand and for this reason the players should be penalized by sitting out for one round.


34


repeated offence. Jack Effel:


This hand is live and should have not been ruled dead. WSOP rules state, “a player exposing his or her cards with action pending will incur a penalty, but will not have a dead hand.” I would rule the player’s hand live, and expose


all cards face up on the table. The player will be forced to play the hand face up, but will be issued a minimum of a one round penalty at the completion of the hand.


Nicolas Fraioll:


Poker is a personal game. Nobody should be able to see any player’s hand. Some kinds of players don’t know how to look a hand like beginners. Actually in that case I will give a warning to the 1,600 raiser but the hand is still live.


And I would tell the other player not to say anything until the end of that hand. Whatever happened now, at the end of the hand everybody will see his hand: (show one show all). That changes the action for one player who folded directly after seeing the hand. I would kill a hand if a player intentionally has showed his cards but he would only lose 400 and not 1,600 because no one has called his 1,600 bet. But if someone has called the 1,600 then he would have lost it.


This is the fourth edition of the Hendon Mob’s ‘Ask the Tournament Director’. Joining Matt Savage, Thomas Kremser and Jack Effel are three new contributors. They are Aviation Club de France’s Nicolas Fraioli, Tab Duchateau from Borgata and Dave Simpson from DTD in Nottingham.


Matt Savage:


I definitely would NOT have killed the hand but agree that him showing the cards could have definitely altered play and therefore I would have warned and even penalized the player after the hand if I felt that it was intentional or a


Dave Simpson:


In this situation no player at the table is allowed the information of another player’s hole cards. If one player sees them all players must see them. Once it has been verified by the floor the cards are then turned over for all players to


see. The bet of 1,600 stands and action carries on as normal with the hole cards exposed. A player raising cards also receives a warning to take more care as a repeat would lead to a penalty.


Tab Duchateau:


A player that exposes his hand does not have a dead hand, so that would not be an option in this case. Since the player exposed his own hand, and perhaps other players with a hand could have seen the cards, while some may have


not, I would let the player play his hand... but I would force the player to expose the hand to the whole table.


Poker Europa | JANUARY 2011 | www.PokerEuropaOnline.com


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