Showdown
The remaining hands are revealed and compared
Definition
The showdown happens when at least two players remain after the final betting round: hands are revealed and the best 5-card combination — chosen freely from your 2 hole cards and the 5 board cards — wins the pot. On an exact tie, the pot is split. The showdown order follows a precise rule: if there was a bet or raise on the river, the last aggressor shows first; if the river checked through, the first remaining player to the left of the button opens. A beaten player may "muck" — throw their hand away without showing. The associated strategic concept is showdown value: a hand strong enough to win at showdown unimproved, but too weak to get called by worse if it bets. These hands prefer to check and reach showdown cheaply — betting would only get called by better. This triage (value bet / bluff / check with showdown value) structures most river decisions.
River checks through: the first player to the left of the button shows first. Your second pair never bet during the hand — that's exactly what showdown value is for: collecting against missed bluffs and mediocre hands, without building a pot that only a better hand would have paid.