From the dinner table to the poker table … If you remember what it was like squabbling with your brother or sister, competing for toys and contending for sports superiority, then imagine what it must have been like for the parents of the Lederers, Brenes’, Nguyens and Mizrachis. Their children all grew up to be professional poker players on the World Poker Tour — frequently competing against each other.
Sibling rivalry has long been an interesting subject studied by psychologists and sociologists. Though it is a natural part of brothers’ and sisters’ growth and life experience within the confines of a family setting, bringing those relationships to the poker table in a competitive and sometimes cutthroat environment yields new challenges. The sibling rivalries in poker are intriguing tales of intense competition, but also of support and brotherly or sisterly love.
For most of these players, family plays an important role. Frequently, one older brother has taken up the game and other family members who look up to him have followed suit. Moreover, these siblings coach each other, lend each other buy-in money and either celebrate victories or lament bad beats together. Interestingly, they often find each other competing for the same title and piece of the prize pool — and then it’s every man or woman for one’s self.
These are the stories of the good-natured sibling rivalries of some of the most famous faces of the
WPT.
The
Lederers: Annie Duke, Howard Lederer and sister Katy
Two of the most famous faces in the world of poker are Annie Duke and Howard Lederer. Though their names don’t immediately imply a family connection, their physical resemblance and similar demeanor at the poker table affirm their full-blooded brother-sister connection. Annie and Howard were born and raised in Concord, New Hampshire with their younger sister, Katy. Both of their parents were highly intelligent and taught the children to be competitive at young ages. Family time was usually spent playing games, most often a variety of card games, and all three children learned to use their analytical skills and concentration to conquer anything to which they set their minds.
Howard mastered the game of chess when he attended St. Paul’s Prep School where his father was an English professor, then moved to New York City to attend Columbia University. His love of chess, however, distracted him from college studies and led him into an underground chess community. Through the backroom chess games, he discovered poker and immediately took to its competitive and risky nature. His skills were recognized by those who were well-connected in the New York poker playing circles, and he began to play high- stakes games with the likes of Erik Seidel and Dan Harrington. After making a living in New York City’s poker underground for almost 10 years, Howard began to crave higher stakes and greater challenges. In 1994, he moved to Las Vegas, where he made a lucrative career out of cash games and tournament wins.
Annie took a more traditional route during her college years than did her brother. She attended Columbia University and graduated with majors in English and psychology, then completed graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania. Finally, after five years of pursuing a doctorate degree and one month short of earning it, she left it all to move to Billings, Montana to start a new life with her then-husband. After several visits to Las Vegas to spend time with Howard, though, Annie found that she had a gift for playing poker. While she was living in Montana, he forwarded to her a $2,400 bankroll to begin playing in the local cardrooms where she found a true passion for the game and began to win consistently. She flew to Las Vegas to play in the World Series of Poker, where she placed 13th in her first event and third in her second tournament. Soon after, she and her growing family of six established residence in Vegas where she could pursue her new line of work as a professional poker player.
At one point, Howard and Annie persuaded their sister, Katy, to try her hand at the tables. Though she enjoyed some aspects of the game and had potential, she eventually decided to pursue a career in writing. Ironically, this led to her well-reviewed book, Poker Face: A Girlhood Among Gamblers, which chronicled much of her youth in a home filled with very competitive parents and siblings.
The sibling rivalry between Annie and Howard had never become much of an issue in their lives until they began playing in the same tournaments in Vegas. Overall, they supported and encouraged each other, but finding themselves playing together at the same table at the WSOP Tournament of Champions event, new emotions became involved. As Annie knocked Howard out of the tournament to go on to win the $2 million first prize, she found that she was quite emotional. She was excited about her success, but upset that she was the cause of her brother’s exit. Regardless of the win/loss column though, the amount of respect they have for each other is obvious. You can often see them playing in the highly aggressive cash games around the casinos, but it’s in tournament play that they root for each other — as long as it’s not heads-up.
All of the siblings remain close, though Katy lives in New York City, and Annie has moved to Portland, Oregon to raise her children. As they made poker history together, they continue to amass their individual successes and never miss the opportunity to praise the other for their accomplishments.
The
Nguyens: Men and Ut
It is difficult to write the name of Men Nguyen without including “the Master,” a nickname that he has rightly earned through many years of poker accomplishments and the training that he provides to others who hope to achieve the same command of the game. But Men doesn’t hold his title so tightly as not to welcome other aspiring professionals into his realm of mastery. And when one of his seven siblings, a brother named Ut, showed an interest in coming to America from their homeland of Vietnam, Men immediately welcomed him into his home and offered up his vast world of knowledge about poker.
Poker was as foreign to Ut as the American language. When he came to the United States in 2004, he didn’t know a word of English and had never played poker. However, he had hopes of a better life in America, and Men wanted to provide him with the tools to achieve his goals. Men immediately began to teach Ut the basics of poker, specifically Texas No Limit Hold ‘Em. Ut easily grasped the concepts of the game and began practicing in live games at the Bicycle Casino near his home in Bell Gardens, California. Through one-on-one tutoring from his brother, a world-class champion, Ut’s game improved quickly.
Though Men focused on teaching his brother the finer points of poker, he knew that Ut would need to learn more English than “raise” and “fold.” He enrolled Ut in evening classes to learn the English language, which would give him greater opportunities in America, regardless of the outcome of his blossoming poker career. Men knew from first-hand experience what Ut’s path would be, having escaped the oppression of Communist Vietnam by boat in 1978 and struggling in America without any knowledge of its language or customs. Prior to finding his calling in the world of poker, Men took English classes at night while working a tough job as a machinist during the days. Finally, through much hard work and perseverance, he earned a high school diploma, became a citizen of the United States, and discovered his talent as a poker player.
Ut is now on the same course as his older brother, only he has had the advantage of being introduced to poker with the assistance of a highly-skilled and well-respected instructor. And to follow in the footsteps of Men is no small feat. Men not only plays many hours of poker each day, but he trains a group of mostly Vietnamese players who pay to learn from the master. In addition, Men teaches the rookies, including his brother, about the importance of giving back to their homeland. A percentage of everyone’s winnings is donated to charities that Men has established in Vietnam to build temples and schools in small, poor villages.
Ut seems to be up for all of the challenges that Men has placed before him. In less than a year, he already has several tournament final tables to his credit, including a distant but admirable 89th place finish in the 2005 World Series of Poker World Championship event. And most importantly, he has the faith and backing of his brother. With Men “the Master” on his side, the possibilities are endless for this up-and-coming poker pro.
The Brenes:
Humberto, Alex, and Eric
There isn’t a more popular trio of brothers on the poker circuit than the Brenes brothers. Besides their obvious family resemblance and similarly broken English, their outward regard for each other assures that there is no mistaking Humberto, Alex, and Eric for close- knit siblings.
Humberto is the eldest brother with the most experience in the world of gaming. As a young boy in Costa Rica, he began playing card games at the age of seven with his father, where he learned the value of winning and the importance of money management. After spending some years as a successful tournament baccarat and craps player, he shifted his efforts to the game of poker at the age of 23 and never looked back. Two of the most important lessons that Humberto learned in his youth were the importance of family and the necessity of financial stability. Always with his wife, children, and brothers at his side, the value that he puts on family is indisputable. And in order to provide well for them, he put his college degree and entrepreneurial spirit into action by investing his gambling profits in the purchase of a Costa Rican television station, a construction company, and several food and restaurant businesses.
All the while, Humberto continued to play in poker tournaments for the next 20 years. By teaming up with fellow players from Costa Rica, he established the “Costa Rica Connection,” which established the presence of his home country in the world of poker professionals. They began to travel North America to play in tournaments, but the world became even more aware of their presence when the World Poker Tour filmed the Costa Rican Casino Europa tournament.
Humberto took special care to teach his younger brothers, Alex and Eric, the keys to success. His siblings joined him in business ventures, as well as on the poker tournament circuit. Alex, the youngest of the three, was the first one to follow in his older brother’s footsteps. In the early 1990s, Alex began playing poker in Costa Rica and the United States, and quickly demonstrated that his abilities were quite adequate to compete in the same circles as his already well-respected brother. Eric was always a staunch supporter of his brothers, not missing any opportunity to be in the audience waving a Costa Rican flag as one of them played at a final table for millions of dollars. However, he was the last brother to actually begin competing in tournaments. When he finally made the decision to do so in 2001, it was with the advice and example of the two champion poker players that he knew best.
While Humberto certainly holds the most titles in his poker career, with two WSOP bracelets and numerous other tournament titles, his brothers are following suit. Alex won his first title at the 2005 WPT Invitational and placed in several other tournaments. Eric took his first title at a WPT event as well, stunning everyone with his win at the 2004 UltimateBet.com Poker Classic in Aruba. The Brenes brothers were raised in a close family environment, and they have maintained that bond by working together over the years. As they now travel together through the world of professional poker, they can usually be seen somewhere in each other’s general vicinity, each cheering for the success of the other and yelling, “Viva Costa Rica!”
The
Mizrachis: Michael, Robert, and Eric
It would be difficult to discuss the rising stars of poker without including Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi in that list. However, one would be remiss to omit the name of his younger brother, Robert, who actually began playing poker professionally several years before Michael joined the tournament circuit. Michael and Robert have recently been joined by Eric, leaving only one brother who has yet to round out the band of siblings. The trio as it stands, though, is taking the world of poker by storm.
The Mizrachi boys were raised in a competitive family that spent a great deal of time together. It was during those years in their youth that poker was introduced to the youngsters, and the game soon became more of a passion than a pastime for Michael and Robert. Michael took to playing online poker during high school, finding some success but keeping his focus on his studies. As he went off to college to pursue a career in medicine, poker began to consume his time between classes. He often played several online games concurrently and won enough to boost his confidence and establish a bankroll. He finally dropped out of college to pursue poker as a career. At the same time, Robert, Michael’s younger brother, was discovering the same love of poker. Also mastering online play, he built a substantial bankroll in this fashion and then took his skills to tournaments around the world. Eric, Michael’s fraternal twin brother, was attending a Microsoft-sponsored technical school when he decided that he truly wanted to travel as much as possible with his brothers and put his poker skills to use in an attempt to take his game to a professional level.
The three brothers had all taken their similarly competitive personalities and resolved that they wanted to be pro poker players ... together. With the rest of the family hesitatingly supportive at first, they set out as a unit to begin winning tournaments. And winning is what they did. Robert has placed in the money in a number of tournaments, but Michael set the bar pretty high with his victory in the Season III LA Poker Classic for $1.8 million on the heels of a fifth place standing in the World Poker Open at Tunica. He then went on to place 11th in the 2005 WPT World Championship. Eric only recently began playing in the high-stakes tournaments in which his brothers have found success.
Family couldn’t be more important to the Mizrachi trio. With their mother as their biggest fan, they bring many other family members and friends with them for support to the tournaments in which they play. Michael went so far as to take his prize money from the WPT win to purchase a motor home that would enable his wife and newborn son to travel with him across the country … maybe a son who will be winning WPT tournaments in 20 years. Though the good-natured rivalry of these siblings has yet to be put to the test by a heads-up match, the example that they have already set is one of camaraderie, encouragement, and easy-going competition. As some of the youngest players on the poker circuit, Michael, Robert, and Eric have many years in front of them in the business of professional poker to show how brothers can compete in the intense, high stakes world, and remain friends through it all.
The
Kellers: “Thunder” & “Lightning”
While growing up in Phoenix, Arizona, Thomas “Thunder” and Shawn “Lightning” Keller both played card games with the same group of friends. In those early days the identical twins learned a lot about strategy, picked up a thing or two about bluffing, and began to develop the aggressive playing style they both use today at the green felt.
“Shawn was a little more successful than me back then,” says Thomas, who is four minutes older than Shawn. “He actually managed to win $20,000 at a card tournament several years ago.” As Thunder and Lightning matured, they began playing poker together at home games around town. The brothers, who were always good friends, would compare notes after poker sessions to see how they could improve as players.
“A love of poker is something we both share,” Thomas says. “It was nice always having someone around to talk strategy with and to bounce ideas off of.” The sons of a college professor, the Kellers left high school early and headed to Stanford University. In 2001, both earned degrees in economics after only three years. After college, the duo opted to make poker their main source of income. Shawn, however, plays mostly online tournaments while Thomas prefers live play, where he has earned impressive finishes at the 2004 World Series of Poker, 2004 Bellagio Five Diamond Classic, and World Poker Tour Young Guns of Poker show.
Thomas now lives in Las Vegas while Shawn still makes his home near Phoenix. The two talk almost every day, and frequently meet at casinos in Las Vegas, Los Angeles and back home in Phoenix. Usually, however, they do not compete in the same tournament simply because they’d rather not face each other during serious play.
Having grown up playing together, we both know the other’s style pretty well,” Thomas says. “We can read each other in a freakish, scary kind of way.” Even though they rarely compete in the same tournaments, Thomas admits it is the twins’ dream to end up the last two players standing at a WPT Final Table. He says they’ll probably agree to split the money evenly to avoid any kind of ill will, but added that “it would be a pretty tough head’s up battle because one of us is going to walk away with serious bragging rights.”
