Howard Lederer was born into in a family of 5 where he enjoyed gambling on numerous card games when he was young. He found himself becoming very competitive in the above-mentioned card games as he was playing his father. After finishing Sr. High school, Howard decided to place college on hold for a little while and headed to New York to play some big-time chess. While participating in chess, he was introduced to a poker game taking place in the rear of the room. Howard’s 1st two years were tough as he would play countless hours and don’t win a majority of the time. He made some extra money by being an assistant for the poker players. He theorized he might better his game by analyzing his life outside of poker. He made an effort to acquire more sleep and concentrate even more on the game.
The actual advancement in his skills began when he started gambling at the Mayfair Club in New York. The Mayfair was a bridge and backgammon association where the greatest gamblers would frequently challenge one another. He was able to access a few of the foremost minds in chess. With their help, Howard Lederer would hone his strategic thinking techniques. Howard applied these strategic ideas to the game of No-Limit Texas Holdem.
Howard also helped his sibling Annie Duke master the game of poker. Annie was an excellent student of the game as she constantly asked questions about how to make the correct decision. He told Annie to move out to Sin City and play in the World Series of Poker tournaments. Annie is one of the greatest women players the poker world today. Howard relocated to Las Vegas in 1993 and competed in cash games for the next 10 years. When the World Poker Tournament grew in popularity, Howard made the decision to compete in more tournaments.
