Ambakisye Osayaba makes his living hustling and teaching chess at a table he sets up in Union Square Park. (Image: Angel Chevrestt\/New York Post)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nBut that\u2019s exactly the story of Ambakisye Osayaba. According to a story run by the New York Post<\/em>, Osayaba once held a job cleaning up Central Park. But he quit that gig six years ago to take up chess as a full-time profession, and he now makes as much as $400 a day playing the game in Union Square Park.<\/p>\nOsayaba situates himself in the southwest strip of the park, where he goes by T.C., or \u201cteaches chess.\u201d He offers several options to those who visit him: a $3 game just for fun, a $5 bet on a match, or a 30-minute lesson for $20.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople walk by all the time wanting to learn,\u201d Osayaba told the Post. \u201cI tell them, \u2018Take a seat\u2019 and before they know it, they\u2019re coming back every day.<\/p>\n
Teaching Proves More Lucrative Than Hustling<\/strong><\/h2>\nNowadays, Osayaba says he\u2019s nearly fully booked with chess fans who want to take lessons from him. However, he doesn\u2019t take reservations. If you want to get an appointment, you\u2019ll have to sit down at the board across from him once a seat opens up.<\/p>\n
According to his clients, it\u2019s worth waiting for the opportunity.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I first came out, I knew the rules but nothing about strategy,\u201d said Victor Raso, who says he has been taking lessons from Osayaba five days a week over the past two years. \u201cI stuck with T.C. because he taught me rather than hustled me.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\nLike many park hustlers, Osayaba doesn\u2019t have much formal tournament experience. A check of the US Chess Federation\u2019s member database failed to turn up a rating for the 59-year-old, suggesting that he had likely never played in an official tournament.<\/p>\n
But that doesn\u2019t mean he hasn\u2019t developed some connections to luminaries in the chess world.<\/p>\n