Show hand early...automatic fold?

[georgiaplayer]

Hello all and thank you for taking the time to read, and hopefully answer, my question.

A friend of mine and I had a tournament the other night with a few other friends. My friend was trying to run the table on his rules and I think that he may have been wrong about one thing. It came down to he and I on the last hand and when the dealer turned over the final card I had a flush. Out of excitement, and without thinking about the final bet, I turned my cards over and stated that I had a flush.

Now my friend told me that my actions caused my hand to be automatically dead, or in his words and automatic fold, and he took the pot. Because I wasn't sure or not as to whether he was right, I let him take it and ended up taking 2nd place.

I cannot seem to find out anywhere else on the net as to whether he was wrong or not so I'm hoping that someone here can point me in the right direction. This way I will be prepared next time he tries it.

[Adamm]

From Robert's Rules "Tournament" section...

22. Showing cards from a live hand during the action injures the rights of other players still competing in an event, who wish to see contestants eliminated. A player in a multihanded pot may not show any cards during a deal. Heads-up, a player may not show any cards unless the event has only two remaining players, or is winner-take-all. If a player deliberately shows a card, the player may be penalized (but his hand will not be ruled dead). Verbally stating one's hand during the play may be penalized.
http://www.texasholdem-poker.com/roberts_rules_of_poker/tournaments

From the TDA Rules, not specific to tournies or cash games...

31 Exposing Cards A player who exposes his cards with action pending may incur a penalty, but will not have a dead hand. The penalty will begin at the end of the hand.
http://www.pokertda.com/rules.pdf

I always thought it was okay in cash games when heads up only, never okay in tournaments, and the penalty was killing the hand. Not sure though, it's one of those rules that changes from room to room.

[HalfSugar]

It very much depends on the venue. In our home games, if someone is all-in and the pot is HU, the player making the decision can turn over his cards if he wants without killing his hand. It makes things more interesting I think.