Some have lucrative record deals where they're "still not lovin' police"
Other's make it by 15, so in spite of the GM title also have regular jobs I'm guessing.
How do the "Weaker" GM's make a living?
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Guy I sit next to at work is a grandmaster, he is proud to tell me, but not the chess kind. More the organisation that meets in public halls rented for the evening type, or lodges.
I am going out on a limb and saying that, in places where chess is a big deal (Russia) they perhaps have sponsers and/or they probably give lessons either privately or they work teaching classes to lower level players in group settings while being paid by institutions.
Some GMs have regular jobs as well, Luke McShane is a very strong one that springs to mind
Campione wrote:
Some GMs have regular jobs as well, Luke McShane is a very strong one that springs to mind
Yes, I know he works for an investment bank..he's also 2690 so not exactly mediocre as a chess player. Paul Motwani is a teacher in Belgium, Matthew Sadler works in the Netherlands, Jonathan Rowson is a philosophy lecturer just to name some other Brits. I think this shows just how hard it is to make any money unless you're an elite level player.
Teaching and writing
In this age sports are considered a career; how they would have laughed in the early days at such a suggestion. Playing games a career! what nonesense, and like Paul Morphy they would have studied law or some other respectable profession.
Now we even think nothing of state support for sports. What a crazy turn around the world has made in its thinking. That tax payers should help talented persons learn to play games, while other talent struggles to support itself in the pusuit of a scientific qualification.
Jan 25, 2012
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#10
GlennBk wrote:
In this age sports are considered a career; how they would have laughed in the early days at such a suggestion. Playing games a career! what nonesense, and like Paul Morphy they would have studied law or some other respectable profession.
Now we even think nothing of state support for sports. What a crazy turn around the world has made in its thinking. That tax payers should help talented persons learn to play games, while other talent struggles to support itself in the pusuit of a scientific qualification.
Well these aren't the early days, this is 2012. Sports = entertainment for the people. The nation wants it, so why not pay for it? I don't understand what's so strange about it. We pay for sport since Julius Ceasar.
I do think the people rather watch soccer games than chess games but that's another story.
Most of them become GM when they're still being supported by their parents and don't have to worry about income. Only some of them become pro.
"Writing" isn't just books, but newspaper articles, website articles, chapters of books, surveys for New In Chess Yearbooks, etc. In Europe they can play for clubs in five different national leagues for a few hundred euro per game (I guess). Closed tournaments usually have starting money (amounts kept secret), the prize money is only a part of the actual pay.
And many of them have a wife with a well paid job...
Jan 25, 2012
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#12
arjendoefke wrote:
Well these aren't the early days, this is 2012. Sports = entertainment for the people. The nation wants it, so why not pay for it?* I don't understand what's so strange about it. We pay for sport since Julius Ceasar. FALSE, Caesar and other emperors paid for "sports" such as gladiator contests and feeding Christians to lions, NOT the Roman citizens.
I do think the people rather watch soccer games than chess games but that's another story. No argument from me on this point!
The nation wants it, so why not pay for it Because I don't F***ing want to pay for it, that's why. I live in the US, a nation of crumbling, decaying, highways, bridges, dams and nuclear power plants and I don't want MY tax dollars going to subsidize millionaire and billionaire sports team owners who get me and every other tax-paying sucker to build and pay for the stadiums their privately owned teams play in, that's why.
BUT, if people in the Netherlands want to have their tax dollars spent on privately owned sports teams stadiums, that's OK by me.
NimzoRoy wrote:
arjendoefke wrote:
Well these aren't the early days, this is 2012. Sports = entertainment for the people. The nation wants it, so why not pay for it?* I don't understand what's so strange about it. We pay for sport since Julius Ceasar. FALSE, Caesar and other emperors paid for "sports" such as gladiator contests and feeding Christians to lions, NOT the Roman citizens.
I do think the people rather watch soccer games than chess games but that's another story. No argument from me on this point!
The nation wants it, so why not pay for it Because I don't F***ing want to pay for it, that's why. I live in the US, a nation of crumbling, decaying, highways, bridges, dams and nuclear power plants and I don't want MY tax dollars going to subsidize millionaire and billionaire sports team owners who get me and every other tax-paying sucker to build and pay for the stadiums their privately owned teams play in, that's why.
BUT, if people in the Netherlands want to have their tax dollars spent on privately owned sports teams stadiums, that's OK by me.
Not a sports fan huh?
maybe you should move to the Netherlands if you think the U.S. is in such bad shape!
MY POINT OF VIEW IS THAT EVERY HAS A CHANCES CHALLENGE WEITHER YOU ARE GM OR NOT, YOU GOT TO PROVE YOUR SELF ON CHESS BOARD...
How do they make money? Simple. Read The Man with the Twisted Lip by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
Writing chess books and/or coaching junior players, in some cases. There's a difference between "chess professional" and "professional chess player".
kyleevon wrote:
maybe you should move to the Netherlands if you think the U.S. is in such bad shape!
Are you 100% in agreement with everything the United States does or prioritizes? If not, maybe you should find a country that is slightly closer to your thinking on each narrow point and move there! Of course then there wouldn't be any Americans left.
What NizmoRoy wrote is correct. Are you really implying that not being in support of public money subsidizing the private sports industry is somehow unpatriotic? You know you can disagree with your country on much bigger issues than this and still love it.
The whole "If you don't like it here, move" argument is really, really weak.
CerebralAssassin wrote:
they hustle in the streets...
That is funny S#!t... In the movie searching for Bobby Fischer, Josh Waitzkin does play guy who claimed to have beaten a GM( I think) and for a fee, he will play you. No so far fetched on top of funny.
Yes I put "weaker" in quotes because anyone who reaches GM level has shown a level of expertise that is beyond the average club players comprehension...Still, last time I looked on the FIDE website there were 1374 ACTIVE players with the Grand Master title, its probably more now seeing as they spawn at about 50-60 per year.
There are maybe a dozen tournaments a year that pay good money to the winner and higher placings, but apart from the opens in Gibraltar, Philadelphia, Moscow & Cappelle La Grande you only get an invite to the closed events if you have a 2700+ rating or are the highest rated players from the country where the tournament is being held. How do the legions of 2480 -2580 rated guys (and gals) actually manage to support themselves when the chances of them winning significant prize money are next to nil?
Some people say 'writing and coaching' but I read once the average print run for a chess book is only 3000 copies so I can't see that being particularly lucrative. Coaching I CAN see, given that some fairly obscure titled players charge 100 dollars an hour or more to share their wisdom, but I wonder how much satisfaction they get from that as opposed to actually being able to live off tournament earnings?
Many countries have professional club leagues so I suppose there might be decent appearance money in the Bundesliga and others..
Check out the 'grandmasters' pages in Wikipedia and see how many dozens of players you have never heard of with just 'stubs' for their entries, its enlightening in a way..