Too old to start chess?

Haywood, it's enough that you constantly create your own topics full of trash, please don't pollute someone elses 

It's about enjoying your own degradation

I must be some sort of masochist, then. I play, and lose, and love it. I also win, but I'm a rookie, too.

 I'd be interested to know when Fischer said "I hate chess", I haven't read that before.

It's thought that Morphy gave up chess because it wasn't a serious occupation in those days, chess players were looked down upon almost, and so he went into Law. But you may have a point that he didn't enjoy it anymore, or at least didn't enjoy playing against the opposition that was available.

Don't listen to some pompous old fool tell you that you are too old to play the game of chess. He's trying to discourage you because he fears that in a couple of months you'll be able to whip his 1700 something ass. Which reminds Us of the 18 year old music student who approached Mozart and said something to the effect:

"Maestro, I would like some advise on writing an opera." 

Mozart looked at the young man and said, "You are too young to write an opera."

 The student said, "But Herr Mozart you were only 13 years old when you wrote your first opera."

"That is true", said Mozart, "but I did not ask for advise."

So maybe you too are still Too Young to play the Game of Chess!! ;)

snGus

Forget that brain decrease crap--I broke 2000 USCF for the first time in my career and I'm playing better than ever, and I'm 54.  People who believe in that stuff die by that stuff.

There was a player named Harry Pillsbury who learned chess at 16 and by 22 won the strongest tournament in chess history (up to that time)--Hastings, 1895.  I'm not saying you'll be able to do that, and if that's your goal, I think you're not being realistic.  But if you just want to improve and have fun, any age is appropriate to do that.  You'll need to study, practise, and play, in about equal measures, but sure, you can do that.  I hope you'll not be offended if I say anybody can do that, at any stage in life--40, 60, 80--if your goal is only to improve.  Korchnoi is 80 and still studies the game.

So go for it--have fun.  Just don't expect to be a GM.

Now, for some of the comments about Morphy--he did not quit chess in 1859.  Morphy retired (in effect) at 14--he gave away his books because they couldn't teach him anything, and he only played a handful of games with friends and relatives between the years of 1852-1857 when he came home from school.  He was persuaded by his family to play in the New York tournament, which he turned into a two-year affair to get chess out of his system.  Staunton had nothing to do with his retirement; he had conquered all, and proceeded to play the game for fun only, mostly with his childhood friend Maurian at knight odds.  He played some blindfold and odds games during the Civil War (in France and Cuba), but after 1859, he played as a recreation and nothing more.  His last recorded games were from 1869.  

Having now read your profile and the exchanges in the thread about your little group, I must confess I haven't quite figured out to what degree you are deliberately lampooning a certain character type, and to what degree you are that character type, but either way, I think I'll pass, thanks.

If you are deliberately being so ridiculous, it'd be much better if you kept it to appropriate forums and not serious threads.

If you actually are that ridiculous, well, I guess there is not much hope for you.

i be pretty smart too, but has no degree.  i did 3 years in law school though and am a professional writer.  maybe i couldz be involved?  :D

Age does matter.  Generally, the older you become, the slower improvement.  This isn't always the case, but often it is.  I'm 17, I have many friends who are 2000+.  I starting going to a coach when I was 15 and went from around maybe ~1000, which is from never playing in a tournament, only playing with my grandfather, to 1752.  I know people who are younger that went from around 1000 to 2000 in that same time.  My coach who is a WGM stated that the older you are, the harder it will be, which she intended towards me because I was the oldest in that class.  Regardless of your age, you can become whatever you set your mind towards, but hitting 2200+ is a longshot.  Unless you dedicate your all of your time to it, most you'd probably hit is 2000.

The way I see it, unless you're 2200 ELO, you see the game much differently.  Why I say that?  Because a player around 1600 could beat a player around 2000+ if they learn properly.

Just aim for 1600 - 1700 and I guarantee you that you'll be a great player, but if you really dedicate yourself, you'll be absolutely amazing and hit 2200+

People probably have different views, but this is just my opinion.  Don't flame me, trolls. 

Nah, i just found it wasn't for me.  So i screwed around for a few years and am now a web writer/author.  :)  thanks man.  i'll go check it out!

k, i up and joined.  :)

First of all my serious believe is not nonsense just because you say so, even so you might believe you are god. Second does your alien point make no sense, first we talking about humans and alien would feel totally differen and secondly maybe the would even enjoy it twice as much.

I have often discovered in chess, in business, stock trading and commodities, you need to be good in it and knowledgeable to understand its beauty and the better you get the more you can discover its beauty.

Well maybe Fischer said that he hated chess, wich i cant recall. That doesnt mean its because he got too strong in it, maybe he simple doesnt enjoy it because of all the bad he associates it to, because of the people who stole his title, who published books without permission and the guys who sold his stuff.

Well if billionaire would say he hates money, because people slept with his wife to get money, would you also conclude the more money you get, the more you hate it.

As i said it was incorrect because you made it up, not because you came to a conclusion that was impossible to hastly make. 

The most important point you and me are far to weak to be able to experience the beauty a real strong player can experience. I believe  its far greater.

for chess realism............fishers ( 125 games winning streak) awareness that progress was nil,he had reached a chess peak and down-hill was the future.His life "WAS CHESS" w/ no fall back position. Greatness may be based on total didication and genitics, it leaves little room for growth based on change. Fisher just could not handle loosing ! 

You aren't too old to start Chess, and you aren't too old to become good at it, unless your idea of "good" is highly unrealistic. 

I remember being 24 years old, and I was convinced that my best days were behind me.  I could feel the changes in my body, and they were already real.  Suddenly, champion athletes were younger than me.  In the intellectual department, I could already note that I couldn't just absorb memories like a sponge.  I found a gray hair on my 25th birthday. Yes, it was too late for me.

It's a crock.

The changes in your body and mind are very real, but it will be another 20 years before they become a limiting factor.  My peak athletic ability occurred at 35, because it was in that part of my life that it became important to me.  I finally learned French well enough to read a novel when I was 40.  It would have been easier if I had just taken French in college at 22, but being 40 didn't prevent me from doing it.  Most of the decline in physical or mental ability prior to age 40 is actually from disuse, as opposed to genuine effects of aging.

Now, I'm 48, and there are several things which I think I really am too old for, no matter how hard I try, but that's a pretty recent development.  I took up Chess at 45, and I'm not very good at it compared to most tourney players, and I am improving very slowly.  I think my advanced age has something to do with that.  I also tried to learn Hebrew starting at that time, and find it much more difficult than French was.

The moral of the story is that someday, you really will decline in ability to learn, as well as physical ability, but that some day is decades away for you.

You probably will never become  a GM, but as best I can tell, that's not necessarily a bad thing.  I think the people who really excel at Chess put a lot of time and effort into it.  So much so that it really does interfere with a lot of very important things.  Enjoy the game.  You can get good enough to beat most people, but no matter what happens there will always be people better. 

As 4 the little twib(coairrob 777) whose 17 year old mind is full of wordly info. Well as one who was there in the 60s ( 70 is the age ) your chess prospective needs some aging,yea i know u read all the books and played those important touraments( your # ? hundred thousand in a long line). So tell me something new ....fight a few battles.Get beat up a little and then tell me about ratings................by the way if u need an agent ? 

well thats not true, on what do base that? who should he be afraid to lose to??

also i think its a weird coincidence that i and nigel both mistook an engines play for fischers play. i know all say engines are dumb, but you still cant argue that they still are stronger than everyone and we both thought that ultra strong engines looked like fischers player?? also that means nothing im pretty sure fischer wasnt afraid of anything and why would he need to improve (and who knows if he didnt) he was the strongest player who ever lived. 

well he had much to fall back to, he was a verry smart person. he could operate the stock market or write books. he was a true genius and it  not only shined through in chess.

Also its weird that people on this site all talk about fischer, while they even said that silman said tactics come from superior position, even so it was fischer who said it.

I once lost 60 games in a row, does that count too?

I'm 9 and I'm improving quickly. Half yers ago I was like that:"Oops, my queen is hanging."10 moves later:"Now is my rook hanging!"LOL

Age should never be a barrier to anyone. True, the young seem generally to learn this game and progress more rapidly. Nonetheless, us old codgers have our days too!

yes you are right, it took me a few hours to realise that