Howard Lederer lived in a family of 5 in which he loved playing various card games at a young age. He discovered himself getting really competitive in these particular card games as he was competing against his father. After graduating from Sr. High school, Howard decided to place higher education on hold for a little bit and headed to New York City to compete in some formidable chess. While participating in chess, he was brought in to a poker game going on in the back of the room. Howard’s initial 2 years were difficult as he played countless hours and lose a majority of the time. He earned some extra cash by being an assistant for the poker players. He judged he might boost his game by balancing his life outside of poker. He brought about an effort to acquire more sleep and focus attention more on poker.
The real advancement in his abilities began when he started wagering at the Mayfair Club in New York. The Mayfair was a bridge and backgammon club where the best gamblers would frequently challenge one another. Howard was able to access a number of the best players in chess. With their assistance, he would sharpen his strategic thinking abilities. He used these strategic ideas in the game of No-Limit hold’em.
Howard also assisted his sibling Annie Duke learn the game of poker. Annie Duke was a great student of the game as she constantly asked questions about how to make the proper choice. Howard told Annie to move out to Vegas and compete in the WSOP tournaments. Annie Duke is one of the best women players the poker arena today. Howard Lederer headed to Las Vegas in 1993 and competed in money games for the subsequent 10 years. When the WPT grew in popularity, Howard decided to compete in more tournaments.
