[SpleenLSD]

1-2NL at a Florida dogtrack. I've been at this table about 4 hours and I'm the deep stack and (apparent) villan having beaten up on the weak-tights and passive players all evening. At one point when I doubled up a short stack in a set over set hand the winner was literally applauded. I'm a quiet player so I guess the frustration is all sour grapes and not my mannerisms. I'm pretty sure I'm not a dick. A couple hours later and I'm last to act in a 3-way hand. I raise to $12 PF, 2 callers up front. Turn brings me the nut-straight; BB checks, UTG goes all-in (about $250), I call and the BB ($150-ish) calls. River pairs the board and UTG immediately shows the rivered FH.

I say "nice hand" and move my cards to the muck as UTG asks to see my hand. I continue to move my cards forward and insert them firmly in the muck. "Sorry, but my cards have been mucked" I say. BB protests, as do two other players not in the hand. I say, as cheerfully as possible, "guys, the only reason you should have to see my cards is if you think I'm cheating" and consider the hand over. The dealer sez they have the right to see my hand and (somehow) picks my AQclubz out of the muck and shows.

I remain composed but inside I'm seething. After quickly re-iterating to the table that IWTSYH is kindergarden, I ask the dealer how the heck he thought it was OK to pull my cards from the grave like Lazarus. He sez they have an absolute right to see and I was wrong to move my cards to the muck as UTG was requesting to see my hand. *Maybe* I was a bad boy for mucking the cards myself, but once mucked aren't they deader than dead? At this point I racked up & split since it was getting late and I was now in a rare and complete state of tilt, so I didn't get the floor involved. Is it ever OK for my hand to be shown under these circumstances?