[Zetack]

Bad decision:

Robert's Rules of Poker:

1. Your hand is declared dead if:

(b) You throw your hand away in a forward motion causing another player to act behind you (even if not facing a bet).
[Obviously not applicable]

2. Cards thrown into the muck may be ruled dead. However, a hand that is clearly identifiable may be retrieved and ruled live at management’s discretion if doing so is in the best interest of the game. We will make an extra effort to rule a hand retrievable if it was folded as a result of incorrect information given to the player.

In this situation not only did the cards not reach the muck, it is clearly in the best interests of the game to have the hand declared live.

The player didn't apparently intend to fold, didn't say fold, didn't much his card. There's certainly no rule that says that tabling your cards face down is a fold.

As a general rule of thumb, when the players intent is obvious you follow the intent. Here you have both the a clear intent and no rule that contradicts that intent (i.e. not rule that tabling your cards face down is a fold).

--Zetack