Life advice from NYC chess hustlers
I used to live in NYC 20 years ago.<p>I played a few of the hustlers.  Some you will lose to, but most aren't actually that good.  They are entertaining though.<p>One moment that I will never forget was watching two hustlers play each other for fun.  The position was something like white had a pawn at a4 and a king at c7.  Black had a pawn at h5 and a king at f3.  Black to move.  Black offered a draw, white said OK, I let out an involuntary, "WHAT?"  They drew and black said, "You really think white can win here?  I'll bet you $5 on that.  I agreed so we played.<p>...   h4
a5    h3
a6    h2
a7    h1(Q)
a8(Q)+<p>Black was in check, and no matter where he moved his king, his queen was toast.<p>Easiest $5 I ever made.