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Date: 21 Mar 2007 19:36:10
From: Ray Gordon, creator of the \pivot\
Subject: I see why even talented players don't become champions.
It generally takes about 15 consecutive years of uninterrupted chess
practice to become a world champion. Kasparov did it in 15, Fischer in 21
(delayed due to his politics as he could have become champion in 1966),
Morphy in 15, Capablanca in about 15, anid so forth. I have now completed
seven years of serious study of chess, four in the late 1980s and three this
decade.

The process of chess improvement is a SLOW one. It also requires a proper
theoretical foundation be established and built upon, and finally perfected
against world-class competition. This is a painful process requiring one to
push their boundaries constantly until every last weakness in their game is
eradicated. Doing this will require one's rating to regress several times,
even up to a few hundred points (if they aren't a junior who protects his
rating or wastes time).

How many people are going to constantly tear apart their game to make it
stronger in the long run when they can't even be sure the long run will pay
off? Few. Instead, players develop a kind of tunnel vision for the type of
game they play best at any given time rather than work towards long-term
improvement.

Now, even if the player does everything right, he is then looking at fifteen
years of hard academic labor, which may or may not pay off, and where he
won't find out if he's doing it right or had the talent to make it until
after he's put in the work.

Americans generally have better things to do than to accept a task like
this.


--
Ray Gordon, Author
Price And Probability (The Value Handicapper's Bible)
http://www.cybersheet.com/horsepix.html

Would someone PLEASE become Ashlee Schull's new #1 fan? She deserves
better.






 
Date: 22 Mar 2007 06:02:02
From: [email protected]
Subject: Re: I see why even talented players don't become champions.
On 21, 7:36 pm, "Ray Gordon, creator of the \"pivot\""
<[email protected] > wrote:
> It generally takes about 15 consecutive years of uninterrupted chess
> practice to become a world champion. Kasparov did it in 15, Fischer in 21
> (delayed due to his politics as he could have become champion in 1966),
> Morphy in 15, Capablanca in about 15, anid so forth. I have now completed
> seven years of serious study of chess, four in the late 1980s and three this
> decade.
>
> The process of chess improvement is a SLOW one. It also requires a proper
> theoretical foundation be established and built upon, and finally perfected
> against world-class competition. This is a painful process requiring one to
> push their boundaries constantly until every last weakness in their game is
> eradicated. Doing this will require one's rating to regress several times,
> even up to a few hundred points (if they aren't a junior who protects his
> rating or wastes time).
>
> How many people are going to constantly tear apart their game to make it
> stronger in the long run when they can't even be sure the long run will pay
> off? Few. Instead, players develop a kind of tunnel vision for the type of
> game they play best at any given time rather than work towards long-term
> improvement.
>
> Now, even if the player does everything right, he is then looking at fifteen
> years of hard academic labor, which may or may not pay off, and where he
> won't find out if he's doing it right or had the talent to make it until
> after he's put in the work.
>
> Americans generally have better things to do than to accept a task like
> this.
>
> --
> Ray Gordon, Author
> Price And Probability (The Value Handicapper's Bible)http://www.cybersheet.com/horsepix.html
>
> Would someone PLEASE become Ashlee Schull's new #1 fan? She deserves
> better.


You are the biggest blowhard ever to hit the newgroups, Ray. Please
make your way to Kansas for the Annual Hot Air Balloon Festival - they
are in need of some inflation devices.



 
Date: 21 Mar 2007 18:14:29
From: Ken Jones
Subject: Re: I see why even talented players don't become champions.
On 21, 5:36 pm, "Ray Gordon, creator of the \"pivot\""
<[email protected] > wrote:
> It generally takes about 15 consecutive years of uninterrupted chess
> practice to become a world champion. Kasparov did it in 15, Fischer in 21
> (delayed due to his politics as he could have become champion in 1966),
> Morphy in 15, Capablanca in about 15, anid so forth. I have now completed
> seven years of serious study of chess, four in the late 1980s and three this
> decade.
>
> The process of chess improvement is a SLOW one. It also requires a proper
> theoretical foundation be established and built upon, and finally perfected
> against world-class competition. This is a painful process requiring one to
> push their boundaries constantly until every last weakness in their game is
> eradicated. Doing this will require one's rating to regress several times,
> even up to a few hundred points (if they aren't a junior who protects his
> rating or wastes time).
>
> How many people are going to constantly tear apart their game to make it
> stronger in the long run when they can't even be sure the long run will pay
> off? Few. Instead, players develop a kind of tunnel vision for the type of
> game they play best at any given time rather than work towards long-term
> improvement.
>
> Now, even if the player does everything right, he is then looking at fifteen
> years of hard academic labor, which may or may not pay off, and where he
> won't find out if he's doing it right or had the talent to make it until
> after he's put in the work.
>
> Americans generally have better things to do than to accept a task like
> this.
>
> --
> Ray Gordon, Author
> Price And Probability (The Value Handicapper's Bible)http://www.cybersheet.com/horsepix.html
>
> Would someone PLEASE become Ashlee Schull's new #1 fan? She deserves
> better.



The sound of one hand clapping.