Home Tourney Controversy. Please help.

[Tenacious A]

I run a monthly NLHE tournament. A portion of each month’s buy in goes into a prize pool. We have 6 month seasons. Points are awarded for finishing in the top 8 each week. Top eight and ties at end of the season get to play in the Points Championship Tournament (PCT) for the money that has accumulated in the prize pool.

I busted out early and handed the tournament director role over to Steve, a regular player who knows the rules.

When it was down to four players, Steve told Josh, the chip leader, that his 11 points would be good enough to get him in the PCT. Soon afterward, the other big stack moved in with AK. Josh called with QQ, lost and with only 250 chips left was soon out of the tournament. The smallest stack had barely enough to cover the small blind, and would have likely been out after one more orbit.

Steve miscalculated and Josh’s 11 points left him one point short of qualifying for the PCT. Josh claims (and I believe him) that he would have laid down QQ, and let the short stack bust out. This move would have not only made him more money last night, but would have also given him the extra point he needed to tie for the 8th spot.

So, do I rule that the player is ultimately responsible for himself, and must track points on his own, leaving Josh out, or that Josh should be allowed in as the ninth player, because he based his play on information supplied by the acting tournament director that he took to be fact?

Thanks.