Howard Lederer grew up in a family of five where he loved taking part in different card games when he was young. He discovered himself getting really competitive in the above-mentioned card games while competing against his dad. After finishing secondary school, Howard made a decision to place higher education on hold for a bit and moved to New York to compete in some formidable chess. While competing in chess, he was introduced to a poker game going on in the back of the room. Howard’s first 2 years were rough as he played countless hours and don’t win most times. He made some additional money by becoming an runner for the poker players. He believed he possibly could improve his game by adjusting his life outside of poker. He made an effort to acquire more sleep and focus even more on poker.
The actual advancement in his skills happened when he started gambling at the Mayfair Club in New York. The Mayfair was a bridge and backgammon club where the best players would regularly challenge one another. He was able to access a number of the foremost minds in chess. With their assistance, Howard would hone his strategic thinking skills. Howard applied these strategic ideas to the game of No-Limit texas hold’em.
Howard also helped his sister Annie Duke master the game of poker. She was a great student of the game as she would consistently be asking questions about how to make the correct decision. He told Annie to head out to Las Vegas and compete in the World Series of Poker competition. She is one of the strongest female players the poker world has ever seen. He headed to Sin City in 1993 and participated in cash games for the next 10 years. When the World Poker Tournament gained popularity, Howard made the decision to play more tournaments.