Show one show all - know your poker rules

On the floor of the poker room at the World Series of Poker, there are several gentlemen dressed in suits wandering between tables. They're the floor officials who clarify any questions or problems players might have, and they definitely get used.

Just a few minutes of watching in the Amazon Room at the Rio, you'll see a someone at a table here or there waving and calling for the floor.

Yesterday one of the rules that come up during play at a table was the "show one, show all" rule, as one player called it.

After play had finished on a hand, a player who was mucking the losing hand chose to show one of his cards as he did it.

"Nuh uh, son, show one, show all," said an older player at the table.

While a table mainly full of younger players tried to argue with him about it, the floor was called to settle it.

"I bet you $5 you're wrong," said Stuart, a player from England.

"I'll take your five bucks," said the man in return.

When the floor official came over and heard the situation, he read the rule straight from the rule sheet for the table:

At the end of a hand, if a player exposes one hole card, he or she must also show the other hole card if asked to do so by another player.

It's one of those rules, or table etiquette if you will, that make poker a "gentleman's" game. And showing how true gentlemen play the game, the older player also refused to take Stuart's $5.

"It wouldn't be fair," he said. "I know the rules quite well after years of asking about them. It would be like making a bet that I know who the first president of the United States is."

There are a few new rules in place this year though that some of the old-school players may not know about. They involve electronic devices at the tables.

Cell phone use isn't allowed at the tables, and phones can't be put on the table or used as card protectors.

Players are allowed to use their phones or text message as long as they step away from the table to do it. However, if a player is on his cell phone or texting when the dealer deals the first card off the deck, his hand will be dead.

Players can still listen to music during play though. MP3, iPods and noise canceling headphones are allowed at the table as long as they aren't a part of any communication devices. However, they aren't allowed once play gets down to the money.

Failure to remove headphones once players are in the money can result in a penalty or disqualification.

courtesy of Sarah Polson

News Added: 07 June, 2007

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