I have to disagree on this, even though small, there's still luck in chess.
How? well, if you get to play black or white, that's luck, if you're in a tournament and you're paired against someone who happened to be on a bad day and you beat that player, that's luck too.
Instead of saying "Good Luck!", we could select suitable phrases from the international language of chess (i.e. French) ...
Bon chance!
Bon voyage!
Bon marché!
Wishing somebody a "Good Luck" is always good,because the same returns to you,as you wish for others!
no one would play chess if it was a game of luck... then again look at poker
There's skill to playing poker, luck too of course, but the people who consistently make more than they lose over time aren't being lucky. Basically each hand is mostly down to chance, but how you profit by many of them is largely down to skill in knowing the probabilities and reading your opponents.
This may have been discussed before and I missed it, if that is the case, than I apologize. I was discussing with someone on the site today the idea of wishing someone luck before the game, and I was wondering what people thought of this "tradition" I guess you could call it.
For me, I don't like it, and here are some of my reasons
1.) Chess is in no way a game of "luck". Unless you consider your opponent making a blunder when they were in a winning position that turns the game around "luck", then there really is nothing else of chance to contend with.
2.) Coming from me, and most of the chess players I know, it's fairly insencere. I'm not saying that I like seeing my opponents carelessly hang pieces against me, or make complete blunders that change the course of the game in one move, but that doesn't mean that I still don't really want to win. I am a very competetive person, I want to win every contest I come into contact with, losing is not fun, ever. So even if there were chance involved in chess, why would I want chance on the side of my opponent?
Yeah, I know that #2 makes me sound like a complete jerk, and that's fine. I'm not the type to rub it in an opponents face when I win, and I will recognize a good game from them when they play it, but that doesn't mean that the game was a whole lot of fun.
I always took it to be a general expression of goodwill rather than an actual suggestion that luck is part of the game, entirely equivalent to 'good-day', 'hello', 'Qapla!' or 'may your seed be numerous as the stars'.
Perhaps you should use your exalted position to introduce a new standard greeting, I suggest Qapla!
Don't forget... we're all lucky to be alive.
Indeed, we may be wishing our opponent not be struck down during our game!
Unless you're a pro, there's lot of luck going on in a game.
Sometimes I'm about to loose, but my opponent makes a mistake (not a huge blunder, but something that gives me the upper hand) and I take advantage of it. It's luck because maybe 80% of the time he/she won't make the mistake, but I got lucky enough that he/she made it.
Of course, we also assume that such a thing as luck exists and we are not all on a predetermined course. (I had to write this post, in essence.)
I've normally used "Good luck" in the past, but I think I like the idea of using *handshake* in the future, with a "Hello."
I abandoned "good luck" years ago for the same reasons bandied around in these posts. But as for *handshake*, it just seems very empty and could still be interpreted as "I must break you."
I always say "good chess," which is simple and seems to get the point across.
Good Choice!....like " Enjoy "!
Maybe people say to throw others of their game, to kind of syche them out.
Seriously though -- if "Good luck" offends you I think you need to lighten up. Don't take it so literally, and instead consider the intent behind it. You can be guaranteed it's innocent and cordial virtually 100% of the time.
It's a matter of being polite.
I don't believe a thing like "good luck" is always meant to be taken literally. It's about politeness, manners, and sportsmanship. No different then saying "good game" regardless if you really mean it.
Just think if we started our games with a message stating "I hope you lose" since that's what we really want.
btw, there was a lengthy thread regarding luck in chess a while back and if you look up the definition of luck, one could argue that there is luck in chess.
hahahah now this "i hope you lose" really made me laugh, good comment!
I once typed "Break a leg" to an opponent on this site.
His immediate response was "Break your ego".
I explained that it was just a figure of speech that means good luck, but the hostilities continued.
Some people are just like that. Especially on the internet.
I agree, all it is tradition, for many games and sports, its just tradition. If you explicate it as so, it doesn't seem the appropriate...
Have you heard of BCC= BENEVOLENT CONVERGING COINCIDENCES and of course V.V.