Rules for showing hands

what are the general rules for showing hands?

For example, if i call a bet on the river, do i have to show my hand? If i am the one betting, do i have to show my hand?

[UATrewqaz]

Whoever initiated the last bet/raise is required to show their hand first, then it proceeds clockwise.

I bet, you call, I must show first.
I check, you bet, I call, you must show first.

I bet, you raise, I call, you must show first.

In the case it checks around on the river the player who checked at it first must show and it proceed around clockwise.

Player A checks, player b checks, player c checks, player A must show first, followed by B.


Alot of new players get into teh habit of calling a bet and immediately showing their hand "I call, I have kings" and the initial bettor then mucks. BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD. Never do this.

It's important to know though that you can find out what the person that called you on the river mucked by going into the hand history. Is this standard knowledge or just something I stumbled upon? I know in casinos the rule is you can ask to see mucked cards.

sorry for not being clearer. i was asking the rules for mandatory showing. If i check to you and u check, do i HAVE to show or can i just fold without showing because i know that's impossible for me to win.

and if i am not part of the hand, can i require that the person who was called to show?

[UATrewqaz]

After someone is required to show and has shown a hand that you cannot beat, you are allowed to muck.

The only time you ever have to show is if it's your turn (aka you had a bet/raise called, you checked first), or if the only hands shown up to that point are inferior to yours and thus you must show in order to claim a better hand.

For argument's sake you could still muck this better hand but you forfit the pot of course.

There is a difference between the rules are proper etiquette. The rules state that the player making the latest sign of aggression (bet/raise) in required to show their cards first.

In order to speed up the game, if you believe you have the best hand, you should turn it face up when the final round of betting is complete. It is generally impolite if you wait until everyone else has shown their hands before turning up your royal flush and raking in the pot (this is called "slowrolling"). If you insist that the last agressor show her hand first, this may and probably will annoy the rest of the players, especially if you do it often.

Note that in most cardrooms, at the showdown, any player at the table may request to see every hand that has not yet hit the muck. The reason this rule is in place is so that you can verify that other players are not colluding with each other. Example: Three players are contesting for a pot. Two players get into a raising war until the third player drops out. When the showdown comes, the player with fewer chips turns up her hand and her "opponent" mucks her hand regardless of what it was. If you were to suspect collusion and request that both players turn up their cards, you may reveal that the mucked hand was in fact a royal flush, a hand that nobody would dare let touch the muck.
THIS RULE IS NOT IN PLACE FOR YOU TO GET EXTRA INFORMATION FROM YOUR OPPONENTS. It is considered rude to abuse this rule simply to find out what your opponent had.

This question probably should have been posted in B&M.