The TDA received the following very interesting showdown case. How would you rule in this situation and why? Keep in mind that all betting action has been completed and the players are at showdown (if that makes a difference in your decision).
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Message Body:
I wanted to ask you about how to rule on this hand. Consider this example:
Flop comes down 7c6h3h. SB sitting in the 8 seat bets, BB calls, everyone else folds. Turn is 8h. SB bets, BB raises, SB moves all-in, BB calls and announces "Straight" and reveals his hand 54c. River is Kh, SB throws away his hand face-down and it lands in front of the 5 seat. Before the cards are collected, someone not in the hand says, "Wow, no heart?" SB says, "Uh, wait..." picks up his cards to reveal 7h6s for a flush.
I ruled SB's hand live at the time and awarded him the pot, but now I believe I made the wrong ruling based on the rule above. I originally ruled SB's hand was live, because it was "clearly identifiable." However, after having consulted Robert's Rules, Chapter 3 "Dead Hands", Paragraph 2, I think the hand should be dead, because the entire rule suggests that ONLY when a hand is folded "as a result of false information given to the player" AND is "clearly identifiable" can a mucked hand be retrieved. This seems consistent with the "best interest of the game", because the player was deceived. In the scenario above, I think the hand should be dead, because SB folded voluntarily based on accurate information: the BB had a straight.
So which ruling is correct according to the TDA rules?
Thanks for your help,
Name withheld.
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