Howard Lederer lived in a family of 5 where he loved gambling on different card games when he was young. He discovered himself becoming very competitive in these particular card games as he was playing his father. After graduating from high school, Howard made a decision to put college on hold for a little bit and relocated to New York to compete in some serious chess. While playing chess, he was brought in to a poker game going on in the back of the room. Howard’s first 2 years were rough as he played many hours and fail to win a majority of the time. He made some extra money by being an assistant for the poker enthusiasts. He believed he might improve his game by adjusting his life outside of poker. He made an attempt to get more rest and focus attention more on the game.
The real improvement in his skills began when he started betting at the Mayfair Club in New York. The Mayfair was a bridge and backgammon association where the the most favorable players would often compete against one another. He was able to access several of the foremost minds in chess. With their help, Howard Lederer would hone his strategic thinking abilities. Howard used these strategy concepts in the game of NL hold’em.
Howard Lederer also helped his sister Annie Duke master poker. Annie was an excellent student of poker as she would consistently be asking questions about how to make the proper choice. He told Annie Duke to move out to Sin City and compete in the World Series of Poker competition. She is one of the greatest female players the poker world today. Howard Lederer headed to Las Vegas in 1993 and played cash games for the subsequent 10 years. When the WPT grew in popularity, Howard decided to compete in more tournaments.