When playing poker do you have to show your cards?

Question

Do you have to show your cards if you call a bet on the last hand and you have the losing cards?

Answer 1

If a hand goes to showdown (like in your question, if there is a bet and a call on the river), than ANYBODY who was dealt cards for that hand has a right to ask to see either one of the hands.  

Most of the time on tv and in real live games if someone shows a winning hand, the losing hand will just muck and everyone will move on, no questions asked.  Like slowrolling, asking to see someone's losing hand is extremely poor etiquette.  However, it is the right of ANY PLAYER WHO WAS DEALT CARDS IN THE HAND.  

When you play online, and a hand goes to showdown, you might click "Muck Cards" to try to hide your losing hand, but someone just has to click the last hand button or go through their own hand history of the hand and there it is, revealed.  The online poker sites allow you to do this because it is your right.  If you're railing a big game, watching your favorite poker pro play online, you can still look up the hand history or click on the "Last Hand" button, but guess what?  The hands mucked at showdown are not revealed.  Why? Because you weren't involved in the hand so you don't get to look.

Now, why would this be a rule?  Simple.  Because it helps to deter collusion.  If you suspect that two players are colluding, a player might ask to see both hands at showdown.  If every player who was dealt cards in a hand didn't have the right to see the cards at showdown, you and your buddy can go sit in a game and raise everyone else out of it every hand and no one would know that you're buddy is folding the nuts to you...

Now just to clarify... This doesn't mean you get to see any cards being held in a hand.  If someone folds to a river bet, you don't get to see that hand.  You only get to see the cards that are still live when action has ended on the river and a showdown is used to determine the winner.

Answer 2

actually nah u dont because if ur other opponent decides to show u his/her cards and u know dat u lost then it would be smart to not show em. so no u dont have to show them. by reveiling ur hand it doesnt help u in the long run because up to that point the hand is already intense so if u show there goes ur plan and ur strategy!!! hope this helps

Answer 3

no you dont.  if you guys are both on the last call and the other person flips, and you know you lost, u can just give them face down.  people dont like to show cards cus sometimes the opponent can remember how you played the cards and if u like to bluff, etc.  it can reveal ur strategy, so you dont have to show.  unless both of u guys dont want to show on last call, someone has to.  i usually just flip at same time with other guy.