Thread: Showing Cards
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Old 12-04-04, 12:51 AM
Alaskan Alaskan is offline
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Currently Seattle - From Kodiak
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I think Irish88 wasn't too dumb to show the tens. If the guy didn't have a king he might of showed, hoping to get Irish on tilt, but really he'd just give him info he might not of gotten otherwise. He might also project the image of being pretty tight, so he could come in guns blazing to steal a few pots later on.

But as far as etiquette I believe show one show all is fair. In my home game that is the practice. I don't like how some guys show their buddies a bluff and then snicker, I don't like finding out three hours later that a hard laydown occured that would of given me information on a player...had I seen it. Personally I just don't think its good manners to buddy up in a game, like showing your cards to one person and one person only over and over again would entail.

On the other side though I have been to some games where the practice is if you show one card you show all of them. This isn't during showdown, where I think you must always show both cards if you've been called or need to prove you have the winning hand, but when you're folding after a hand is through.

One of my favorite plays got spoiled by this at a home game. I walked in and was told the "show one show all" rule and I thought okay I have to show my hand to everyone. A couple hours into the night a hand comes off where I'm heads up against this aggressive Korean player that I'll call Lee. The guy is aggressive but he's predictable, so I love having him in the big blind when I'm on the button. A hand comes up where I have 6-4 of diamonds. I know the hands pretty much crap but I raise anyway, in an attempt to steal the blinds and get a free round. The small blind folds but Lee calls after a few seconds of reflection, but he stamps the chips in making me think he's trying to slow me down. The flop comes up 9-9-2. He bets out. Now I know he would not bet out with a set, so usually I would reraise, but Lee had shown he was able to lay down hands once he was involved, so I thought I could get some more bluffed chips off the turn. Also, a call here might look like a smooth call, adding more legitimacy to my represented trips. So I call. The turn comes an 8. He overbets the pot and now I'm sure he has nothing. He has a lot of chips left so I'm pretty sure I can get away with this gut-wrenching play, the all in with nothing. If he bet out with trips I'm prepared to pay for it just worked brilliantly. I move the chips in and he shakes his head pissed and folds.

Here's my play. I hold up my hand with one card - the 4, and ripping off John Juanda I say "I had you Lee." It looks like I'm hiding my 9 and that Lee made a good laydown. If I showed the bluff here Lee would have backed off every hand for the rest of the night because I had seen him do that before. I don't want him to do that. I want him to overplay a weak hand hoping my card rush has ended, not twist in his seat with anger hoping not to get humilated by a bluff again. He isn't the kind to try to catch you in a bluff every hand after that, knowing that if he runs into me with the chip lead (which I had after that pot) he will playing for all his chips...and he won't have a clue as to what I have. Doing this it looks like I just got lucky and he'll take the attitude that he will get me next time.

When someone said we need to see both of them I did, but I didn't like it. It had been one of the best bluffs of my short career but it probably lost me money because not only did Lee hold off for the rest of the night, but pretty much everyone else did. If I saw a guy do that too I'd try to stay out of pots with him (they didn't get to hear my heart beating like mad as my hand pushed the chips in - all the while the non-poker savvy part of the brain is screaming "you dumb shit!")

So, I think you should be able to show only one card and not get penalized, but you should half to show whatever cards you decide to show to everyone.