Class A player, how many hours to become one?

I have played a few Class A players OTB (over the board) and they are really, really good. Without any formal rating, I would guess that I am a solid Class D player, having played Class C players and being just a bit weaker than them.

Class A = 1800-1999. Class D = 1200-1399. I would need to gain at the most, 600 rating points. If I am in the middle of Class D, then I would need to gain 500 points. So, how many years would it take to gain 500-600 points, factoring 2 hours a day of study and play?

You need to play OTB, not online.

It's interesting that different people can take very different amounts of time.  Other than just different brains, I wonder what some of the other factors are.

Taking your long games seriously and playing against serious opponents certainly helps.  OTB is the best place for that.   And honestly, I'd focus more on quality playing than quality studying.  It should only take a few (good) books worth of information to take you to 1800, and it doesn't take long to read books (even if you're studying them thoroughly).  It's the working hard to apply them to your game, failing, then looking at why and making adjustments that's difficult.

If you began as an adult, it seems impossible to answer, it just depends.  I knew a guy who took 10 years to crawl form ~1500 to ~2200 working 2-4 hours a day on the weekends, so don't give up! 

In order to get 500 points with ur current level I guess u need at least a year. The only quick way is to get a coach and once u reach A level then u may consider self study to improve further.

I'm no trainer, so just for what it's worth, I'd be amazed if he did it in 3 years or less.

I think trying to gain 100 points a year might keep one busy for a long time.

25,280 hours.  In other words 2-3 years.  You have to build 4 visualization pattern memory banks into  your brain.  The  one memory bank that will take  you the longest is Opening visualization pattern memory bank.

The other 3 are:

1.Tactics visualization pattern memory bank

2.Endgame visualization pattern memory bank

3.Middlegame visualization pattern memory bank

Given 24 hours a day, it's 2.88 years.

He only has 2 hours a day, so 12x longer, or 34 years.

6 or 7 mouths probably...

Sounds about right.  Took me about 20 years. [Link].  Although I took a 5 years hiatus in total.  If I had to do over again, I would have studied tactics much more prominently in the beginning and probably could have shaved off 5 years.  So I guess I could have done it in 10 years...an average of 200 points a year to be more precise.

Oh I see.  But wait.  Starting rating = Current rating - all progress

= 1895 - [(200 points per year) * (10 years)]

=  -105

And then there's this guy:

just study alot, the quickest way to improve is with coaching

 So I guess I could have done it in 10 years...

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Before computers it would have taken you 8-10 years just to build  opening tree by hand.  With computers it takes a few minutes to build the opening tree.  But, it takes 2-3 years of practicing your opening repertoire to become competent at playing the openings in your repertoire from both the White and Black side.   

OP said 2 hours a day for study and play, not just study.  So he's back to 34 years

Luckily for him, that's only if your miraculously specific amount of time, 25280 hours, is accurate.

Only coach can help u fast especially in ur playing strength otherwise u will make the same mistakes over and over again

Sorry. Did math wrong.  Let's see you start at 1000 points and you gain about 1000 points in 10 years.  So that's 100 points a year.  Okay, sounds reasonable. 

"Before computers it would have taken you 8-10 years just to build  opening tree by hand.  With computers it takes a few minutes to build the opening tree.  But, it takes 2-3 years of practicing your opening repertoire to become competent at playing the openings in your repertoire from both the White and Black side."

I only started studying openings seriously when I hit the 1700's.  Before that I would just wing it.

Oh, ok, I agree with you and dale that ~100 points per year is reasonable.

Yeah, I mean you figure if you beat someone at your own rating you gain what about 16 rating points?  So, you have to have a plus score of 7 games in a year to get about 100 points...or something like that.