Millionaire Chess 3

Wonder what the concession permits go for? Figuring out a potential profit may be risky if a commitment well before announced entries is reguired. But yes, having a booth or room appears to be a lucrative venture.

 Scholastic chess is fine and has been fine and healthy for years. The problem is not that. The problem is that we lose 90 to 99% of these players as they become adults. U.S Chess has had the mentality for years that as long as we generate interest and participation at the scholastic level, chess will grow as a whole. They mostly forgot about taking care of the interest of the adults and attracting more of them. This model has proven a failure.

@Steve11537:

Since you live in Europe, can you explain, IN DETAIL, what type of approach or model you think can work or has worked for increasing interest and expanding the chess-playing base? What the U.S. has done has not been working for decades.

Increasing U.S. interest in chess will probably require a cultural change in the U.S.  My inlaws live in England, and although I can't point to any specifics, their approach to life is a lot different than mine or that of the people that I know in the U.S.

The one thing that I have noticed is that English homes are small, and life does not revolve around the house as it does in the U.S.  They do things outside of the house, even if it's just playing darts or cards at the local pub.

BetterOffSingle

I'm not talking about chess specifically when I mention a cultural change.  I'm thinking more about getting out of the house, developing a variety of interests, competing for the sake of the competition rather than prizes or glory, putting in the effort to become as good as you can at something you like even if your best leaves a lot to be desired.  Most of all, quit worrying about what your friends and neighbors will think.

Jesse Kraai told me that in Europe many cultures embrace the concept of a mental warrior, while here at home we don't. This was his explanation of why chess culture exists there but not here.

Reb points out some of the differences between chess in the US vs. Europe.

https://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/chess-in-usa-vs-chess-in-europe

Atlantic City casino = biggest armpit possible. Makes Vegas look like the Magic Kingdom.

It's over. 

But Nakamura got his hundred grand (by hook and by crook), and gosh, that was finally the whole point, wasn't it? To seduce "big name" GMs with the promise of a major cash grab.

Because if you think the point was to pay you, John Q. Patzer, $5000 or whatever for posting a 4/7 score against a handful of other woodpushers...well, the kool-aid was served cold and friendly-like. 

The by hook and by crook statement is ridiculous.

Get out of the house and toss a few ton - eighties you blokes ! How many have thrown a 9 out 501 ?

If Chess 960 is not embraced by the masses then chess as we know it will die. You can throw money at normal chess events but you are still left with the fact that traditional chess has been dying a slow death not just in the U.S but all over the world.

Yeah and 9x9 chess is the future.

Chess is not going to die, and trying to change the rules isnt going to help.

For everything thing Fischer brought to the table and popularized the game, I'm of the opinion his later years destroyed everything positive he accomplished. The public viewed him for what he was, and associated him with a typical chess player as being out of touch with society.

I see a similiar thing happening with big $ tournaments. Good short term that benifits a few, but on down the road it will give chess a negative image as viewed by the general public.

I'm all for big money for the professionals, don't get me wrong. For hobby players I think it is the wrong way to promote the game, create interest and sustain a greater interest among of players who ejoy playing at clubs, coffee house, parks, book stores etc.

I don't throw 501 I throw cricket. But eight trip 20's and a trip 17 ain't nothing to sneeze at!

Ah ! Cricket ! Best team game at any pub. Points of course used in scoring.

Go for points or the fastest out, always the debate! Love it.

Our pub played double in double out 301, always a waiting line on the sign up board. Serious players waited to play cricket and took over the 2nd board.

Is poker viewed negatively by the public because there are big money events, including for "hobby players", all the time? No, poker is now on TV, and more people play poker than ever.

Are video games less popular among people because there are big money competitions every year? What about Magic? Your argument, while appealing, simply doesn't apply in the real world.

Chess "purists" need to get over the notion that money necessarily somehow corrupts or debases the game, just because they are not used to the notion and have been playing and enjoying chess a different way for years and decades. There is room for small "no-money" tournaments, and there is also room for high-stakes tournaments such as MCO. Chess does not have be played only one rigid way in order to be fun or attractive to the general public.