Howard Lederer

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Howard Lederer
Howard Lederer 2010.jpg
Howard Lederer in 2010
Nickname(s) The Professor
Residence Las Vegas, Nevada
Born (1964-10-30) October 30, 1964 (age 48)
World Series of Poker
Bracelet(s) 2
Money finish(es) 43
Highest ITM
Main Event finish		 5th, 1987
World Poker Tour
Title(s) 2
Final table(s) 2
Money finish(es) 7

Information accurate as of 12 September 2010.

Howard Henry Lederer[1][2] (b. 1963) is an American professional poker player and is the brother of poker professional Annie Duke, and author and poet Katy Lederer.[3][4] On September 20, 2011, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a motion to amend a civil complaint, alleging that Lederer and three other directors of the poker website Full Tilt Poker were running a Ponzi scheme that paid out $444 million of customer money to themselves and the firm's owners.[5] Lederer eventually settled with the Department of Justice by agreeing to pay $1.25 million and forfeit various properties in the US and abroad.[6]

Contents

Early life [edit]

Lederer was born on October 30, 1963 in Concord, New Hampshire. His father is Richard Lederer, a writer and linguist who taught at St. Paul's School in New Hampshire. His father was Jewish while his mother was a gentile. He was not raised Jewish.[7] Lederer was a young chess talent and after high school he moved to New York City, where he attended Columbia University. New York City is known for its chess clubs, notably the Marshall Chess Club and Manhattan Chess Club where he played, and at one of these clubs he discovered poker and eventually began playing at the Mayfair Club with other now well-known poker players such as Erik Seidel and Dan Harrington.

In 1994, he moved to Las Vegas, Nevada where he sought out high stakes poker games.

Career [edit]

Lederer is known as "the Poker Professor" because of his demeanor, analytical style and long history of wins. He has made an instructional poker video called Secrets of No Limit Hold'em and he runs the Howard Lederer Poker Fantasy Camp. He also co-hosts Poker Superstars and Learn from the Pros for the Fox Broadcasting Company. His sister, Katy Lederer, wrote a book about the Lederer family, Poker Face: A Girlhood Among Gamblers.

Lederer is one of the founders, co-owners and CEOs of "Tiltware Inc", the owners and creators of Full Tilt Poker, along with Ray Bitar.[8] Since the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006, Tiltware renamed itself to "Pocket Kings" and relocated to Ireland.

He has won two World Series of Poker bracelets and two World Poker Tour titles. In 2008, he won A$1.25 million by winning the $100,000 No Limit Holdem Challenge, billed at the time as the world's most expensive tournament buy-in,[9] at the Aussie Millions.[10]

As of 2010, his total live tournament winnings exceed $5,900,000. His 43 cashes at the WSOP account for $1,541,474 of those winnings.[11]

WSOP Bracelets [edit]

Year Tournament Prize (US$)
2000 $5,000 Limit Omaha Hi-Lo $198,000
2001 $5,000 Deuce to Seven Draw $165,870

Full Tilt Poker scandal [edit]

On September 20, 2011, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a motion to amend a civil complaint, alleging that Lederer, Chris Ferguson and two other directors of the poker website Full Tilt Poker were running a Ponzi scheme that paid out $444 million of customer money to themselves and the firm's owners. The government is seeking a return of $42 million that Lederer allegedly took from Full Tilt's customers.[12][5] The Department of Justice on September 19, 2011, issued a warrant in rem for the seizure of certain banks' accounts owned by Lederer as part of the DOJ's continued actions against Full Tilt.[13] In a September 8, 2012 interview with poker journalist Matthew Parvis, Lederer "takes great offense" to the government's Ponzi scheme characterization,[14] however he eventually settled with the DOJ by agreeing to pay $1.25 million and forfeiting various properties.[15]

Personal life [edit]

Although he is a semi-vegetarian, Lederer once won a $10,000 proposition bet from fellow poker player David Grey by eating a cheeseburger.[16] Obese for much of his life, Lederer eventually had gastric bypass surgery to lose weight. One of his nicknames (given to him by his sister Annie Duke) was "Bubba", which was shortened to "Bub" after Lederer lost the weight.[citation needed] Lederer also credits running and playing basketball as two activities he uses to keep in shape.

Prior to the Department of Justice complaint, Lederer and his wife, Suzie, were active philanthropists in the poker community. In 2009, they hosted their first annual April Fool’s fundraiser tournament at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. The event raised money for the Las Vegas Springs Preserve.[17] Then, in July, the Lederers hosted another charity poker tournament alongside their seventh-annual World Series of Barbecue (a popular Las Vegas social event). The event raised money for the Boys and Girls Club of Las Vegas and the first place prize included a seat on NBC’s television program Poker After Dark.[18]

References [edit]

  1. ^ "F.E.C. Image". Federal Election Commission. 2007-12-31. Retrieved 2008-08-24. 
  2. ^ US Search "Howard H. Lederer"
  3. ^ "Howard Lederer – Official World Poker Tour Profile". Archived from the original on 2006-05-25. Retrieved 2007-10-28.  – Web Archive from 2006-05-25
  4. ^ "Bluff Magazine: Howard Lederer". Retrieved 2007-10-28. 
  5. ^ a b Vardi, Nathan (2011-09-20). "Feds Call Full Tilt Poker A Massive Ponzi Scheme". Forbes (Forbes.com). Retrieved 2011-09-21. 
  6. ^ "Card Player: Howard Lederer Forfeits Millions as Part of DOJ Civil Complaint". Retrieved 2013-1-9. 
  7. ^ San Diego jewish Journal: "Hungry for Words" by Karen Pearlman June 2010
  8. ^ "Team FullTilt: The World's First Poker Dynasty". Card Player magazine. Retrieved 2008-04-10. 
  9. ^ "2009 Aussie Millions Tournament Schedule". Bodog Poker. 2008-12-19. Retrieved 2009-01-04. 
  10. ^ "2008 Aussie Millions Results, Event 9 – $100,000 No Limit Holdem Event". Crown Casino. Retrieved 2009-01-04. 
  11. ^ World Series of Poker Earnings, worldseriesofpoker.com
  12. ^ Berzon, Alexandra (2011-09-21). "U.S. Alleges Full Tilt Poker Was Ponzi Scheme". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved September 20, 2011. 
  13. ^ [1]
  14. ^ Rettmuller, Charles (18 September 2012). "Howard Lederer Breaks Silence". pokerupdate.com. Retrieved 10 October 2012.  (includes interview video footage.)
  15. ^ "Card Player: Howard Lederer Forfeits Millions as Part of DOJ Civil Complaint". Retrieved 2013-1-9. 
  16. ^ YouTube.com. YouTube.com (2008-06-30). Retrieved on 2012-05-08.
  17. ^ Murphy, Stephen A.. (2009-03-30) Howard Lederer Hosts April Fools Charity Poker Tournament – Poker News. Cardplayer.com. Retrieved on 2012-05-08.
  18. ^ Inaugural Suzie and Howard Lederer Celebrity Charity Tourney Slated for July 1st. PokerNews (2009-06-29). Retrieved on 2012-05-08.

External links [edit]

Winners of the World Poker Tour Player of the Year Award
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