As far as private lessons, I have been told that while a child may do well enough, he is unlikely to win tournaments unless he has coaching.
Well, WIN tournaments...sure. I don't care if he wins tournaments, though. I would think it was great if he continued to enjoy the game and got better and better and his rating improved. I think you're right that intensive study is needed to really excel. There's no doubt that it's a complicated game and that raw talent will only take you so far. Practice and instruction are necessary and I can see that quite clearly. DS is learning a lot from his CD ROM and I am working to find people who will play with him, online and in person. I got him an account on Chess Kids today and his first game was against a player with a 720 rating and hundreds of game under his/her belt. He tried hard and did take some powerful pieces, but was clearly outclassed, though he lost a rook to a mousing accident. However, he managed to stalemate at the end by getting his king out of range.
