Hehe, I believe my latest ELO is 2541 in chess and yes I am a GM...but you are right that I am not a professional chess player and I suspect for a similar reason that many 2500 table tennis players are not professionals. Simply can't make a good living at this standard!
OP Here.
I tip my hat to you; you must have quite the passion for your game. I don't have a chess rating, although I've been described as 1400, nowhere near competitive.
I know that chess and ping pong has their differences, but ping pong has been referred to as physical chess
When you say consistency is the factor, do you mean that you are more familiar with the ways a game can play out and the appropriate responses? For example, you know the book moves for different openings and gambits, like the Ruy Lopez or the Sicilian defense, but you can also respond very optimally to the different variations that can play out. Same with pawn placement, midgame and endgame strategies(mate with bishop and knight? I recently learned how
). And taking advantage of blunders and weaknesses.
I say this because I'm thinking that professionals can deal with various scenarios much more optimally than those 2100-2300 players. Theoretically, the pros are much more familiar with serves, service return, short game, openers(flips, flicks, loops, etc), handling openers, counter attacking, and off-the-table play. Same with the spin, speed, and placement variations of those shots.
I would imagine that you mean that being able to consistently make optimal plays would seem professional.
I can't disagree with that.
Looking at games between professionals, there are undeniably mistakes everywhere.
I realize that
both players are trying to make optimal plays. Somebody has got to win out(Unstoppable spear and an impenetrable shield, anyone?). One player might be more optimal and more consistent. Also, nobody is perfect.
Time to go pro guys, we've cracked the code. We just have to be familiar with absolutely EVERYTHING(well, mostly everything)!