PLaying a local live tournament, I raise UTG, get 1 caller. Flop is xxx - I start to slide a stack of chips towards the line, as I do this villain instantly grabs his whole stack to beat me to it.

Ive moved mine maybe 2 inches (nowhere near the line yet) then I stop when I see this and just check fold.

I watched an EPT the otherday where a guy moved his chips (when deciding to call) right onto the line then stopped there to see if he could get a read, which lead to a 2 hand penalty.

Is what I did (or villian for that matter) unethical?

No, the player you're in a hand against did the wrong thing by hyperventilating and shoving his stack in before you were done with your action. Or he leveled you into thinking he had a big hand.

Thankyou. No im pretty sure it wasn't intentional on his part and he was just a but excited. I was just concerned that my actions would be deemed unfair.

Where I play, this is a bet, and I've seen people bound by it.

The written rulebook in this room says that even if the chips don't cross the line, it's a bet if "the player moved the chips forward sufficiently far away from himself so as to make it obvious that he intended to bet." The book also says that the house can call this a bet if it appears intended to unfairly gain information from the other player(s).

Forward motion with chips can be considered a bet in some places. But you are saying you moved yours about 2 inches without any verbal declaration, so I think this drooler screwed himself out of a pot with his actions. It probably felt like he acted out of turn to the dealer. I'd wager ther two of you were the only ones who saw you move the chips. If other players or the dealer saw your action, you'd be out a stack.

You did angle shoot a little bit here.

This rule varies from room to room. You're generally allowed some sort of room to manipulate and stack/count your chips, so 2" seems well within reason, and seems to be legal in your room (you did check/fold).

Robert's only talks about Forward Motion with LIMIT betting (and folding) and the TDA rules don't cover it.

Although if you put your hands behind your stack and started a bulldozer motion with them, I'd rule you'd shoved.... ...two inches or not.

I'll go to the extreme and say that imo this "pump fake" is absolutely an unethical angle. I'm all for the forward motion being binding.

it's all about intent imo. if he did it intending to get a reaction, it's an angle. if he was actually going to make a bluff here, and his opponent just called before he made the bet, it's on his opponent. check/folding is fine. no way I'm going to put a stack in the pot here if the option to c/f is available to me, but at the same time I would never "fake" bet to try and get a reaction

This. If OP intended to do this, it's a d-bag move. But it's not his fault that his opponent was too jumpy.

Intent is huge.

Well if villian didnt move his chips before me I was 100% cbetting, flop was a dry Ax so im betting here 100% of the time.

Im pretty sure the dealer and other players saw what happened as I cut out the raise, shuffled the chips then started to move them forward. It was the instant that I started to move them forward that he made his move. So I decided to just check fold.

Stuff like this is often dependent on written/or unwritten room rules or even dealer descretion. Forward motion rules are there to limit angles, but TBH this just seems a mistake by him that you can profit/not lose legitimately!

could go both ways

villain coulda been bluffin and be on some next level stuff

and OP could just be an angleshooter

I've had a few times where I was reaching for a tourney all-in shove (a move familiar to my opponents) and had the guy to my left reshove over me before I'd officially made my bet. It's never my intent to see someone act out of turn... but if they do, I shouldn't be penalized for it.

What you described from the EPT sounds like DB nonsense that could be angling. What you described from your own action, hardly moving your chips when an eager player acts out of turn... that sounds like dodging a bullet. As long as it isn't a habit with you, I don't think there's anything wrong about basically paying attention to your neighbor.

while I don't think you did anything "wrong here" your intent was to bet so it should stand. Your opponent obviously spazzed and acted before you completed your whole action. Nevertheless it's an angle to try to take it back, so if anything you are guilty of that but you certainly weren't angling in the first place by pump faking or whatever so I really don't think you should feel bad about it. Just call the floor and ask if your bet needs to stand if anything

I don't think I agree with most of this. I watch people count out bets all the time to try and solicit a reaction, only to check. I don't think it's really much different from moving chips towards the line to gage a reaction, although that was obviously not your intent and it's a bit douchey to do so. I think it's douchey, but I don't think it's unethical. And particularly since that wasn't even your intent, I don't think you did anything wrong and I certainly don't think the bet should stand...