Fame & Fortune: Poker Champion Annie Duke
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Bankrate: So, if you play blackjack, you're probably able to count cards.

Annie Duke: Which is not illegal, by the way. It's just the ability to know what cards have been played. The casinos will kick you out, though. It's silly. Yeah, I can count cards.

Bankrate: What new projects do you have on the table?

Annie Duke: Gosh, a lot! I've got a book out, "Annie Duke: How I Raised, Folded, Bluffed, Flirted, Cursed and Won Millions." Plus, I have a DVD out, "How to Beat the Big Boys," an advanced strategy DVD. I have another DVD coming out in January for beginners. The reason we came out with them in that order, is because there are a lot of DVDs out there for beginners, but not so many advanced ones. When people see the high production values -- I have the same producer as "Nanny 911" -- they will know it's a quality product. You can get it at www.mastersofpoker.com. I have an X-Box game out with my brother, Howard Lederer and also, a cell phone game. My brother and I also have a fantasy poker camp, which you can read about at www.allincamp.com. In most fantasy camps -- like baseball camps -- you're with people who are long retired. With our poker camp you're with people who are at the top of their game.

Bankrate: You are constantly being urged to play in women's tournaments, but the money's not there. Any attempt on the part of the sponsors to sweeten the pot?

Annie Duke: I don't play in them for two reasons. First, the money. The other is I consider the tournaments an equalizer, with age, sex, background. The ladies' tournaments, it's segregation. It's a bad message to send, to say that women can only win in the ladies' tournaments. I mean, it's not the NFL, where men have more strength.

Bankrate: The women don't seem to come in with the hats and disguises that the men do.

Annie Duke: Well, they're wearing sunglasses now. They do that. Sunglasses should not be allowed. It's like playing with an aluminum bat. The eyes are the windows of the soul, to use a cliche. You have to learn how to conceal your emotions; it's one of the skills.