Why do strong players stop playing chess

In hopes of getting decent at the game or for leisure.

Perhaps (in some cases) it's that they realise that they will have to keep putting greater and greater efforts in to make smaller and smaller improvements, and these may still not be enough to even keep pace wit their rivals.

Definitely the hunger declines, so does the capacity to fight long games.. and very practically they want to get out of the 64 squares where they bound themselves for 10-12 hours a day for the last 2-3 decades.. we play for fun, at max representing our school upto that.. but those who plays professionally, to them chess can be extremely demanding, mentally, even physically too.

Why do smart people give up lucrative careers to push pawns?

I would imagine the mental toll of blunders/errors overtime after studying so many hours would make many players go crazy like Bobby Fisher. Another reason is chess doesn't support many people financially because only the top 10 or so players in the world can earn a living from it. Or maybe they just get bored of it and frustrated by having to dedicate so much of their life to it.

Is it hard to make money as a GM? All the tournamnets awards thousands of dollars for the top 5 places. They can just go play in a toyrnament each weekend and earn 10000 per month

How much does your average 2500 or 2600 gm earn annually

Then that's like gambling because they have to pay a entry fee everytime. Even so it takes incredible amounts of dedication and study to even become a GM, unless your born with God given memory like Magnus Carlsen. Also you make winning seem like an easy task for these players, it is the complete opposite. Just look at Vishy Anand this past WCC. A few miscalculations and your easily lost as a GM in standard time controls.

Like every other interest= there interst will chage= but will alwas come back

I can hardly imagine another profession in which one tiny mistake can mean the utter destruction of everything you've worked hours to achieve. Perhaps trauma surgeon qualifies, but little else. The terrific mental pressure these guys put themselves through, day after day, year after year, for almost no financial reward, is just unimaginable to me. 

If you're a lawyer, a financial analyst, a teacher, an internist, a plumber--or nearly anything else--you have the leisure to consider your decisions and the flexibility to reverse your decision should it turn out to be the wrong one. 

At the top levels of chess your entire reputation stands, not just on one move, but on EVERY move. To me, the surprise is not that many of the top players quit, but that ANY of the top players stay.

The answers here are geared towards "why don't they remain chess professionals?" I am more curious why do they avoid all competitive chess?

You would need to believe that they love the game and have developed friendships in the chess world. So why not play in open tournaments or the local chess clubs for the enjoyment of playing without putting the pressure of needing to win on themselves. Play like the other 99%. Play because you love the game. Is their view that if they can't be the best then why bother playing? Why stop completely rather than keep on as a past time you enjoy.

When you reach the top,you can't go any higher.

I imagine they quit competetive chess completely because, except among other GMs, there's no competition. How much fun is it for either side in a terrifically unequal contest? It would be like entering arm-wrestling contests against 10 year olds. Yes, they might encounter the occasional master who would give them a good game, but, except in larger population centers, how many clubs have even one or two masters, let alone IMs or GMs?

That's the trouble with reaching the very top of the game. You either keep competing at the very top, or you find something else to do.

(Come to think of it, maybe a lot of them move over to chess websites and compete anonymously to their heart's content. Lots of high-level competition without the crushing pressure of the tournament circuit).

Migraines.

Add to the list: Jeff Sarwer, Julia Sarwer, Pascal Charbonneau.

It's time and money. I stopped 'serious chess' because I couldn't justify the study time needed to progress from expert to master. I made enough prize money to support my chess expenses, but there was no way I could make a living at it. I have several friends who came to the same conclusion, some of them senior masters and IM's.

There are better things to do than staring at chess pieces all your life.

There are a few good articles on the web about Jeff Sarwer, that answer why he quit. He played in a blitz event a few years ago too and did pretty well as I recall.

They make thousands of dollars at the chess tournamentsn like kramnik and giri just won money in qatar masters. All gms make good money

Fischer dropped out of high school

I think that it's better to play for pleasure then for profit, and once you've got enough money and enough glory, you have less need to have a career.

Don't forget Kasparov. :)