Why do children quit chess when they grow up?

Got an interesting observation:

Some people I know or know of start playing chess when they are elementary school age (5-10 years old).  They continue to play chess throughout middle school and high school.  Some reach high ratings (Class A+), but others are more average (Class D or Class C).  Once they reach college, they stop playing chess altogether.  And, even when they are done with college, they no longer play chess, not even in their free time.  It seems that for some, they never played chess again upon reaching age 18.

Is there a reason for this phenomenon?

One reason I can think of is lack of time.  However, I don't think it explains everything.  

(1) The amount of coursework in college varies depending on major.  Even then, there are long summer vacations when one could play a tournament or two.  Also, there is blitz chess, which hardly takes any time to play.

(2) The amount of time spent at work varies too.  Of course, I understand that people are too busy to play during weekdays.  I also understand that people have a lot of other obligations - dating, raising children, paying bills, etc.  But the people I am describing won't play chess, not even on weekends or holidays.

One famous example of this is Josh Waitzkin.  However, I know many others with lower ratings who also gave up chess when they became adults.  Any idea why?

Think about it. Like you said, chess takes up time. Some tournaments take a big chunk of a day, others may take two days. And if they are too busy during the weekdays to really do anything else, what do you think they would have in mind when they do have the free time? Something productive that doesn't waste what precious time is left before going back to whatever they must do to eek out a living.

I understand, but as I said, these folks won't even play an unrated game of blitz online.  It's as if they have abandoned the game altogether.

As people get older they develop other interests.  I just recently got back into it after 15 years.  Also, let's face it, chess isn't a friendly game.  If you want a social life spending a lot of time on chess isn't going to help.

A lot of people quit in high school too because of other activities like sports.

            Because growing up is a lot easier than chess.        Don't tell mom.

Thanks for your replies.  

So, I have a related follow-up question: What are some reasons why someone might return to chess in one's adulthood, perhaps during middle age, after not having played chess for a long time?

                 I came back to it after applying for S.S. disability. A divorce, spiritual awakening, the kids are gone to college.

^ I include internet chess as "playing chess."  I'm talking about people who stop playing chess in any form altogether.  And, I do know quite a few people like that.

Edit: Or, were you answering my later "why do people return?" question?

There is no social life in chess. And when they grow up and find there is no social life out there either, they come back to chess because a non-social life without chess is no life at all.

People leave chess in early adulthood for the same reason they leave any childhood activity, they get distracted find theings more exciting and dont grasp what treasures they already have.  Same for sports, religion, art, music etc...

And on the eighth day God created ponies, and saw they were good ^_^ "Thou art exempt from putting away ponies under the childish things clause.  And PC games, because why not?"

I've have seen talended young players stop playing chess.

They were really enjoying playing chess but some who act as couch aren't a trained educator after a game some of them aren't that educational if they explain they made a mistake.

Who would play chess in their sparetime if they have an "angry teacher" telling them to be very serious. "the coach" may not see the way he act as uneducational, he just wants to push the student to perform.

I played a lot when I was a teenager and then quit for many years. For me, I got to a level where every game was very nerve-racking. I just stopped enjoying it, I guess. It's fun to play relaxed games with friends, but once it become competitive, some can handle it and others can't.

Yes, I see that sometimes.  Though in the cases I've seen, it is the parents who are pushing their children to take what really is a game - chess - very seriously.  Some children then see chess as a drudgery and a chore rather than a hobby and this might be a reason why they quit when they leave for college and are not as tightly controlled by their parents any more.

chessdex wrote:

A lot of people quit in high school too because of other activities like sports.

ya' right... and some want to play DOTA than chess..

I played chess often when I was growing up.  My step-father was very experienced and took me under his wing, teaching me quite a bit about the game.  One of my proudest moments involving chess was the very first time I won a game against him.  Please understand that we played practically every evening...just one game, which was the centerpiece of our interaction each day.  Not being on the losing (and, of course, learning) end of the exchange - finally - was exhilarating.

Anyway, after graduating high school, I played only occasionally.  This was in the late 1980's and my only exposure to the Internet at that period of time was my girlfriend's Prodigy account.  I never seriously considered trying to use that new-fangled technology to find people with whom to play correspondence chess. After all, I was young and impatient...geared towards instant gratification, if you will.

As a young adult, I played when and where I could; however, opportunities presented themselves fewer and further between.  Once I hit my 30's, there would be gaps of more than a year between games.  In truth, I had nearly abandoned chess as a recreational pursuit.

As for returning to chess, I serendipitously crossed paths with a member here on chess.com, and they mentioned the site.  I hadn't previously checked it out, and decided to do so.  Within less than a week, I find myself getting back into the game I enjoyed immensely as a child.

Realizing that I am a newbie here (and might as well be new to the game) I figured it best to start from the beginning.  I signed up for a monthly membership on chess.com which includes Chess Mentor, to get back to basics and see where things go.  So far, I am having a blast.

Best regards,

Eric

They quit because it doesn't get you laid lol.

Thanks for sharing your story with us.

I stopped playing for 30 years. One reason was lack of time or rather other priorities that i needed to spend time on. Another was that i didn't have anyone to play with. I tried to get my kids to play, but they were never that excitedvby chess. Ironically, when my oldest son became a senior in high school, he joined the school chess team and suddenly decided he wanted to play in USCF tournaments, and the youngest suddenly decidec he was interested as well. Since i had to drive them to these tournaments, i decided to play as well despite being rather rusty. After about a year and 6 tournaments, my kids again lost interest. So i have stopped playing as well - other than on chess.com. I wouldn't count my games on chess.com as serious. Maybe when i retire, i'll get back into chess and try to study it more seriously.