Annie Duke: More Than a Woman

Annie Duke has wowed the fans of pro poker tournament over the years. She has made a name for herself as far as her poker career has been running, and has been dubbed as 'Annie Legend', 'The Duchess of Poker' and 'The Duke'. The fans, especially the ladies admire her for she competes with the best pros in poker, men and women alike.

She hails from Concord, New Hampshire and was born in September 13, 1965. Duke belongs to a family of academicians, starting with her father, who was a linguist, writer and teacher in New Hampshire's St. Paul's School; her sister is a poet and writer; and her brother, the famous Howard Lederer, who attended Columbia University but opted to drop out to pursue his career in poker. Annie Duke herself attended Columbia University and graduated with a degree in English and Psychology.

Duke started playing in local venues in the state of Montana. But in 1994, she and her husband relocated to Las Vegas to pursue her career in the pro poker circuit. Duke was eight months pregnant with her third child when she landed 10th place at the main event of the 2000 world series of Poker. At the opening of the 2004 World Series of Poker Tournament of Champions, Duke took home $ 2 million. And as of 2005, Duke has accumulated $ 3.1 million worth of tournament winnings and one World Series of Poker bracelet.

She has written an autobiography about her life, her adventures and experiences in the pro poker circuit. Annie Duke has come a long way as pro poker player, but she's not playing full-time. She is married and a mother of four children, and has a career in ieLogic which is a software company dealing with online gaming. Her family resides in Portland, Oregon.

Annie Duke has always remained grounded and family-oriented. Even the famous Phil Hellmuth admires her for her achievements as a family woman. Her brother, Howard Lederer has been her ally in the poker circuit. Some alleged statements from spokesman, Daniel Negreanu, made Lederer issue an intense statement as retribution. Duke and Lederer have also promoted poker video games where they have their own virtual characters.

Annie Duke has always been proud of being a woman in the pro poker circuit. And she refuses to play in exclusive, women's only tournaments since she believes that being a woman, in a game dominated by men, doesn't make her less of a competitor and professional.