Why getting GM title is not possible at the age 30+? Is it a fact?

Hi,

Been Playing chess from my college days [ I mean friendly matches] and was serious on settling in Engineering career. Now after that (at the age of 32) playing serious chess [tournaments in clubs] and of course dreaming about getting GM title. Why getting GM is not possible at this age? Is it a impossible thing? If not so how much minimum time and effort one should put on daily basis towards that goal? [including theory and practice]. How the time is shared among the Theory and Practical games?

If you study chess for 30 hours a day for the next ten years then the GM title should be no trouble at all. For those who say you can't study 30 hours a day, Its difficult to study 30 hours a day but not totally impossible. You just need to be on a jet traveling west. By the time you get to be GM you will have logged a lot of frequent flyer miles.

Why do you want to be a GM?

I think there's people who have done it. But it's time consuming and a great risk of just wasting alot of time.

you have no idea what GM really means. it means being a professional, and also, with the IQ of a genius.

That would be like becoming a professional athlete: only few people can, and even them have to dedicate their life to it.

For somebody who plays chess only as a hobby, becoming something like FIDE Master would already be a really great achievement.

I don't think anyone with genius IQ would waste their life mastering a board game :p

Agreed.

I would be willing to bet someone with your rating at your age has never become a GM. Set realistic goals.

try to be world champion first, then GM will seem easy.

plutonia wrote:

you have no idea what GM really means. it means being a professional, and also, with the IQ of a genius.

That would be like becoming a professional athlete: only few people can, and even them have to dedicate their life to it.

For somebody who plays chess only as a hobby, becoming something like FIDE Master would already be a really great achievement.

A study into this was done and showed, out of all the GMs involved, they were slightly above normal IQ. Meaning some were probably much higher, while others must have been lower.

Sorry but I don't believe it. Show some source if you have it.

You probably read of a study of chess players in general.

I'm aware of what I read thanks. Just google it. There is info everywhere on the subject. Dan Heisman was even referring to it during his Q&A session last week.

Funny how you make a bold claim with no evidence whatsoever then demand proof of other people's claims. Where are your sources? Or do you just assume they all have a genius IQ and decided to pass it off as fact?

According to at least one "authority" you can be a GM if you happen to  have 10,000 hours to spare for studying chess (There are 720 hrs in a 30-day month and 8760 hrs in a year) IF this is true it's a lot easier to begin chipping away at those 10,000 hrs when you're a kid without several distractions adults have, like spouses, kids, and jobs for starters.

You can click on the links below for more details. They don't look like links in my browser so it finally dawned on me maybe they don't in other people's browsers as well

http://problogservice.com/2012/03/15/what-malcolm-gladwell-really-said-about-the-10000-hour-rule/

http://michaelnielsen.org/blog/malcolm-gladwell%E2%80%99s-new-book-outliers-and-the-10000-hour-rule/

Yes it is curious?  I might ask what peaked your interest in chess and why you would seek such a goal.  Did you recently become financially comfortable and thus have the time to devote to something but still want to achieve a title of sorts..  Being a GM is like the best in the world its good to love chess but enjoy it first.   Go after a title for sure but GM may be a bit of a stretch from the looks of some of your games.  You are still at the level where you hang pieces. Not giving away material should be your immediate goal, if you cannot do this in say a year I'd reassess your goals.  Alot of folks take pictures of Nature/Animals but not everyone wants to be the Senior editor of National Geographic.  

Speaking for myself, I like to let hobbies be just hobbies. I play the game because I enjoy it and save my ambition for my career.

NimzoRoy - you must have read Malcom Gladwell.  I've heard the 10,000 hour rule as well.  I'm not sure if its true, but its probably close.

I really liked Plutonia's comments.  GM may not be attainable, but start with a smaller goal - like place in the next tournament for your rating bracket.  Or increase your rating X points by 2014, etc.  Meet enough of these goals and maybe good things will happen for you, maybe not.  But unrealistic goals will only lead to disappointment. 

I once dreamed of becoming a GM too.  But with every loss or setback I became disappointed and frustrated!  Then I realized that gaining a title is not the end goal.  For me, I ultimately want to teach chess to my kids and eventually help out at the local elementary school club.  So now I am working towards that, trying to improve my chess and learn about how tournaments work, how clubs are run, etc.  These are much more realistic goals for me, and I find I'm happier with my chess.

At least you started before 35. After that age it's not even possible to wrap your head around how the horsie moves if you don't already know.

awwww   so I guess is out of the question AT MY AGE huh?  oh well......

hahahahahaha   I WISH!

I believe you can do it! "If a man's grasp is not greater than his reach, then what is heaven for?"