Howard Lederer grew up in a family of five where he loved gambling on various card games at a young age. He discovered himself getting very competitive in these card games as he was playing his father. After finishing Sr. High school, Howard made a decision to put higher education on hold for a bit and headed to New York to play some formidable chess. While competing in chess, he was brought in to a poker game taking place in the back of the room. Howard’s 1st two years were rough as he would play countless hours and fail to win most times. He made some extra money by becoming an assistant for the poker enthusiasts. He believed he might better his game by adjusting his life away from poker. He made an attempt to acquire more sleep and focus attention more on poker.
The real advancement in his game began when he began wagering at the Mayfair Club in New York. The Mayfair was a bridge and backgammon association where the best players would often compete against each other. Howard was able to access some of the best minds in chess. With their assistance, Howard would hone his cunning thinking skills. He applied these strategy ideas to the game of NL Texas Holdem.
Howard also helped his sibling Annie Duke learn poker. She was a great student of the game as she constantly asked questions about how to make the correct choice. Howard Lederer told Annie to move out to Sin City and play in the World Series of Poker competition. Annie is one of the strongest women players the poker world ever. He moved to Sin City in 1993 and competed in money games for the subsequent 10 years. When the World Poker Tournament grew in popularity, he made the decision to compete in more tournaments.