In honor of National Chess Day this October, we’re celebrating our very own grandmaster, Kayden Troff, whose hat says it all: ‘Life is a game, chess is serious.’

Troff grew up in West Jordan, but has travelled the world to play chess throughout his childhood. He holds the title of International Chess Federation Grandmaster, the highest rank a player can earn. Once this title is earned, it is held for life. Of the hundreds of millions (yes, that number isn’t a typo) of worldwide players and competitors, only around 2,100 people hold this title.

Troff doesn’t remember life before chess. At age 3, he sat down at the chessboard with his dad and brothers and has been playing ever since.

He spent most of his time from three years old to 18 immersed in chess. When he was six, his dad took him and his two brothers to a week-long camp with Igor Ivanov, a world-renowned Grandmaster from St. Petersburg, who defected to Canada in 1980. Ivanov won the Canadian Closed Championship four times, and won the U.S. Chess Federation Grand Prix series nine times.

“[Ivanov] played against all of us, blindfolded. He emphasized that all strong players can do that.”

Troff spent more than 20,000 hours playing blindfolded, studying, watching strong players, and solving chess puzzles. He learned openings, middlegames, and endgames. On top of that, he played games with family, online, friends, and in tournaments.

For a little perspective, 20,000 hours is 833.33 days, or 119.05 weeks, or 2.28 years of nonstop time.

Here are some highlights of Troff’s chess career:

• Youngest winner of the Utah Speed Chess Championship at age ten
• Winner of the 2009 North American Youth Championship (12 and under)
• Silver medalist (12 and under) at the 2010 World Youth Chess Championships in Greece, behind future Grandmaster Wei Yi
• Held the highest quick rating for all U.S. players under 13 from June 2009 to October 2010
• Won the US Junior (U-21) Championship in 2014
• World Champion for ages 14 and under in Maribor, Slovenia, in 2012
• Earned the Grandmaster title at age 16 after reaching a 2500 Elo rating at the Saint Louis Invitational in May 2014

After his early success, he started to feel burned out and took a break from competitive chess. He spent two years in Australia as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, another two teaching chess, and a year doing administrative work for a roofing company.

“It’s easy to forget why you were doing it in the first place. Taking that step away allowed me to better understand what I enjoyed.”

He is back in the game now, and streams matches on Twitch, under ChessSharkz (watch him play). He recently moved to North Carolina to work and teach the next generation of chess players at the Charlotte Chess Center.

“It’s one of those things that it’s not ever difficult to do, to play, to be engaged with. It feels like it’s part of me.”

Keep the spirit of National Chess Day alive: make your own move and play a game of chess. If you don’t have a board at home, or anyone to play with, you can head to Chess.com, where you can find online players at your own skill level, or play against the computer.

If you don’t think you have what it takes, or aren’t “smart enough”, Troff suggests you just start playing.

“There’s a place for you. I’ve met people of all different ages and all different backgrounds. I’ve never looked at someone and said, ‘You don’t make the chess player requirement, get out of here.’ There’s a place for everyone.”

By Erin Dixon