TDA Rule 15B
There was a cash game multi-way hand with one player being all-in preflop. The flop got bet with two callers. The turn was also bet with one caller who then folded to a river bet.
However, the player who bet the river then instantly threw his cards face down into the muck, thinking there were no more players left. The cards were clearly identifiable.
TDA rule 15B states:
If a player bets then discards thinking they have won (forgetting another player is still in the hand), the dealer should hold the cards and call the floor (a Rule 58 exception). If cards are mucked and not retrievable and identifiable to 100% certainty, the player is out and not entitled to a refund of called bets. If cards are mucked and the player initiated a bet or raise not yet called, the uncalled amount will be returned.
So it gives a pretty good idea how to handle the situation. However, I was wondering:
(1) what the usual decision by the floor looks like?
(2) and if it makes a difference if the mucked cards literally hit the muck as long as they are clearly identifiable?
3 Replies
1 Floor decisions can be chaotic but as stated The player wins the side pot 100%. I would expect cards to be ruled live. This is cash, but in tournament since all in the cards must be tabled, much higher % the hand is live.
2 Touching muck doesn’t matter. The muck is not magical and instantly killing the hand. There are a few rooms I hear that do still have magic muck rules but none I personally know.
With cash games, house rules vary quite a bit. In one room I used to deal at, your hand is dead if you push it forward over the line at any point. In others, you can literally throw them on the floor and they can still be live. Mostly, from what I've seen, the hand would be considered live as long as the dealer is certain they know which cards belonged to the player.
Another factor is that some rooms don't really have a clear standard for this, so it depends on which floor happens to show up.
This rule is referring to the situation where the forgotten player is still active in the hand, not to the one where he was already all in.
I would expect there to be a separate rule for the situation in OP.
