Umm no they're not. They can't lose but can win, that's the definition of freeroll. If it doesn't go to showdown, there's obviously going to be no reason for anyone to forfeit anything is there.

#1 if that happens in your home game somebody should be getting an ass whooping. especially you if you say King high gets the pot.
#2 other dude has the nuts. I think chopping the pot and getting a new deck, and possibly checking both people for cards.

Thanks for defining freeroll for me. Did you read the rest of my post? If it does go to showdown they can lose, therefore by your eloquent definition above, no freeroll.

If you want to risk your stack hoping you don't get called, go ahead. But if you do the ruling (assuming correctly made by non WSOP staff) would be that your hand is fouled and you lose the chips you bet over the course of the hand.

deck has a factory error obviously.

Dealer's fault....they need to check the deck when they first arrive at the table.

spread the cards
scramble/wash
shuffle
strip
shuffle
shuffle
cut
card sleeve at the bottom of the deck
deal

If the deck has been in play and is therefore not suited (in order) spreading the cards face up may not help. Pretty hard to spot a duplicate card when they are all jumbled (think duplicate 2h or 4c).

Clearly the problem is the card security in the room, and the staff procedure for replacing damaged cards and combining used decks.

Awesome!

I had this happen at the CalNeva circa 04' in Reno. Funny situation. Also As and 2 nut flush to showdown hand. The funny thing is, i understand that the chance of getting to show down this method is seemingly more possible (no one is folding the nut flush there) but how is it always discovered this way. i never see duplicate cards discovered in a A Pair or situation. Someone must have slipped it in unless this was a new setup shortly prior to this event.

norman chad needs to stop putting decks together obv

I used to play at one place that would always have at least two of the place owner's relatives playing at their 2 table sng. it was a small game, so they only had one dealer and when this dealer wasn't there, one of them dealt. so one day the owner was dealing while his wife was playing this sng, oddly enough, she got to heads up against the chip leader since the final table started. guy had a 5:1 advantage and she still managed to win. remember, her husband was the dealer.
I never played there again.
As an online poker player that doesn't pay too much attention when playing live: what kind of things can I pay attention to so I know the house I'm playing is not marking cards or doing other things? The example I gave was kinda obvious and even though I don't pay too much attention, I couldn't miss that. I'm worried about the more subtle things though.

An unset deck isn't spread faceup genius. It is fanned and then scrambled. And the procedure is shuffle shuffle box shuffle, ffs.

U are a very angry individual. I dont think i like you, sir. In fact, im sure i dont.

is this a joke?
im serious btw..

Automatic shuffle machines on tables wont solve this problem.

Only way to solve the problem is to get one of the auto shuffle/dealing machines like they use for the Pai Gow tables. They read the cards as they are spat out of the machine, and therefore know EXACTLY which cards which seat holds.

I remember from the 2006 main event, 2 tables over from me, turn and river both being Qh.

Time traveling angles are the worst...

Norman Chad's deck obv.

this happened to me while playing Omaha at the Soaring Eagle in MI awhile back. Two ace of hearts were tabled at showdown. The floor came over, huddled for like 10 minutes, stopped play, made everyone not in the hand take their chips and leave, interviewed the dealer for 10 minutes in private, interviewed each of us in private, went in the back and watched the video, came back, ruled that we chop the pot, dealer was supposedly sent home... took like 1.25 hours to get our chips back...

It is not the dealer's fault. In WSOP cash games unless a new deck is being introduced the new dealer is not supposed to spread the deck when he sits down. Blame the policy, not the dealer.

If u just play it like you would play aces in that spot you should be fine imo.
Of course if you bet flop and turn big and then shove for 5x pot with aces it`s obvious you knew your cards were suited.
why not, who looks at the suits of aces, maybe you don`t have your glasses with you or you`re really tired.

This needs more love

looks like P'Shop to me...

+1

Roll the tape bro.