Can you put your chips over the line?

Quite a few casinos have a betting line on their poker tables – I like it so much that I really dislike those that don’t. It adds clarity to the game and it’s good at preventing string bets and ambiguity when a player has chips in his hands - one of my bugbears is someone having a handful of chips (presumably to intimidate through bet sizing) and “pump faking” before dropping only a couple in front of him. 

There’s effectively no good reason not to have one.

I’m in a 1/2 game in a casino that has such a line and I’m running pretty well. I’ve probably played more than 1/3rd of the hands in the last hour or so as I’m been getting cards and catching flops when I needed to. I’m probably sat at $550 from a $300 buy in. 

I’m in MP and look down at AA. Pretty good considering. I raise to $15 (would normally raise less but given how good I’m running and my table image looking loose I want to look loose) and get given no respect by getting calls from the cut-off, button and BB. Wish I’d raised more now. Flop comes down AKK. Dear god I hope someone’s got a part of this. BB leads out for $25 (he has about $250 behind). I call hoping that someone else has hit but the C/O and button fold. River is a blank and BB bets $50 – only hand I’m behind is KK but I’m pretty sure this guy would not have flat called with KK to my pre flop action so I call. Turn is not a K so I’m home and hosed – BB leads out for $100. I Hollywood for a minute before asking how much he has – he says about $100 and the dealer counts $113 so I announce all in. 

BB then tanks and says I’ve not put chips over the line – the dealer had already thrown the all in button in front of me so there’s no confusion over action. He says he wants to see chips over the line. I really can’t be arsed to argue so I slide out 2 stacks of red, 2 extra and 3 singles over the line. As soon as my fingers are off the chips he announces call and flips over K-J for a rivered full house. I insta turn and scoop the pot.

I found his insistence of me moving chips over the line a bit weird – there is no confusion as I’ve announced all in rather than a number, the dealer has put the button in front of me and I’ve quite obviously got him covered (as an aside I hate the phrase “I put you all in”, it’s impossible to put another player all in but some players use this phrase all the time). I’ve never seen it before or since. If it makes any difference he was probably mid 50s or so.

Anyone ever seen this before?