Expose One Card Online
In Texas Hold’em games when the last player to act is laying down their hand they always have the ability to do so either face up or face down. At Carbon Poker these two options exist as well as third option called “expose one card”. This same option is also available both at show down when a player is conceding the pot or when a player wins a pot uncontested.
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Showing one card has several advantages: say for example you hold top pair with a weak kicker and your opponent comes over the top with a strong re-raise. Here you could show the player you’re not on a complete bluff by showing him just the one card that makes you the top pair.
Phil Hellmuth and Annie Duke each Expose One Card
A classic example of expose one card took place at the 2004 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions. This tournament saw Phil Hellmuth and Annie Duke outlast their other seven tablemates to play each other heads up for the championship. The two players battled back and forth each taking turns as the chip leader until the matches pivotal hand took place as follows:
Phil Hellmuth looked down at his cards and sees Kc7h and limped from the small blind. Annie Duke checked her option holding Ks9s. The flop came Kc6c9h giving Hellmuth top pair and Annie Duke top two pair. Hellmuth bet 35K and Duke comes over the top for 120K. Hellmuth was visibly sick at the table as he began mumbling to himself before making the call. When the turn came Jc Duke went all in and Hellmuth started talking to himself saying things like “this is unbelievable”, “maybe she doesn’t know how strong I am”, and “I got a bad feeling here”. He was clearly agonizing over what to do an eventually opted to fold, but in the process exposed his king showing top pair.
Annie Duke gave a great example of when it makes sense to give an opponent information by exposing one card as well – she brilliantly showed Hellmuth just the nine which gave him more to think about in this hand that clearly had made him sick.
Hellmuth was rattled for much of the rest of the match and Annie Duke eventually went on to defeat him to become the winner of the 2004 tournament of champion picking up the $2 million dollars in first and only place prize money.
Warning to Novice Players: Knowing when to show cards is somewhat of an art form, but even so many players, well known pros even, chose never to show their cards under any circumstances. The reason for this is that showing your opponent you cards gives them information they can use later to make better reads regarding your holdings or hand ranges. Unless you’re an expert Texas Hold’em player most pros will advise never showing your cards unless you clearly feel you’ll gain from the situation.
