questionable heads up play

[housenuts]

one hand came down to heads up, and the first player put in a healthy bet on the river. i can't remember what the board was but the other player flipped over one of his cards and said "how do you like the looks of this?". he was trying to get a reaction out of the other player to decide whether or not to call. the other player didn't do much, but i pointed out you couldn't do this.
everyone at the table agreed that when it was heads up you can do whatever you want. is that allowed?

[Eihli]

Head's up I'm pretty sure showing your cards is allowed.

[RED_RAIN]

This is from another thread I recently posted on with more or less same question but in a casino card room it came up during a ring game.

I sometimes flip my cards up to try to get a read on someone who is all in and if it's my action to call or not. Or even sometimes I'll flip one card when I go all in or make a bet and the action is on the other person heads up in home games.

This is Canterbury's Ruling:

2. Poker Etiquette
The following unethical or improper actions are grounds for warning or excluding a player from the card club:
e. Revealing the content of an all-in hand before the betting is completed.

Tournaments or Limit cash games your hand is considered dead if you show it.

No-Limit cash games are the only exception. You can show your hand at any point in the hand.

Also if it's a home game, rules are whatever players go by.

[Spook]

In the 93 WSOP (on classic last night) a player flipped over his hand while deciding if he wanted to call.

[maryfield48]

[ QUOTE ]
In the 93 WSOP (on classic last night) a player flipped over his hand while deciding if he wanted to call.

[/ QUOTE ]

Was he last to act in an all-in situation - i.e. opponent was all-in, or call would put player all-in?

In that case there's no-one to influence, except the opponent who would be well advised not to look at the cards lest he betray himself. That would be a pretty good test for a poker player wouldn't it?

[CaptObvious]

Personally, I don't think it should be allowed. Because you're using it to get information from your opponent much the same way you would string-raise someone to get a reaction. I think if you flip up your hand on the table it should be considered dead; unless theirs certain circumstances with dictate otherwise.
Although, technically, if the cards don't hit the muck pile... /images/graemlins/crazy.gif

[toby]

Perhaps questionable ethically, I think this is entirely acceptable.

[maryfield48]

I was reading Super System last night and Brunson sets out a scenario in which he specifically advises turning over his cards to get a read from his opponent (pp 465-6).

The scenario is Brunson has AA, the flop is 777 (for example), then on fourth street opponent moves all-in. Dolly says he would turn his hand face-up, watch for a reaction, and judge whether opponent has quads.