 Kantar was born in Minneapolis.He learned the game at 11 and started teaching it at the age of 17, first to his friends and later at the University of Minnesota, which he attended.Beside the 1977 and 1979 Bermuda Bowls, Kantar has won 15 North American Bridge Championships (NABCs) and is World Bridge Federation (WBF) and American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) Grand Life Master.