Howard Lederer lived in a family of five where he enjoyed gambling on various card games when he was young. He found himself becoming very competitive in the above-mentioned card games while playing his father. After finishing Sr. High school, Howard made a decision to put higher education on hold for a bit and relocated to New York City to play some formidable chess. While playing chess, he was brought in to a poker game going on in the back of the room. Howard’s initial two years were difficult as he would play many hours and lose a majority of the time. He earned some extra money by being an runner for the poker players. He theorized he might better his game by analyzing his life away from poker. He brought about an attempt to get more sleep and focus more on poker.
The actual improvement in his game happened when he began wagering at the Mayfair Club in New York. The Mayfair was a bridge and backgammon association where the greatest players would often wager against one another. Howard had access into some of the best minds in chess. With their help, Howard would sharpen his logical thinking skills. He used these strategy ideas in the game of No-Limit hold’em.
He also assisted his sister Annie Duke learn poker. Annie was a great student of the game as she would consistently be asking questions about the right way to make the proper choice. Howard Lederer told Annie to head out to Vegas and compete in the World Series of Poker competition. She is one of the greatest women players the poker arena has ever seen. Howard headed to Vegas in Nineteen Ninety Three and participated in cash games for the next decade. When the WPT grew in popularity, he made the decision to play more tournaments.