How long would it take an average person to go from beginner to x rating?

Let's say a guy (we'll call him Kevin) starts playing chess at the age of 18. He commits 4-6 hours every day toward playing and learning about chess. Kevin is willing to spend a good amount of money on books, coaching, chess.com membership, etc. Kevin has an IQ of 100 (average) and has an average memory and attention span. 

How long do you think it would take for Kevin to reach 1200, 1500, 1800, 2000, etc.? 

Now imagine our buddy Kevin is a genius with an IQ of 150. How much more quickly does Kevin reach the aforementioned Milestones?

I'm afraid little Kevin will be banned before he can achieve anything substantial...

http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/estimate-my-rating-based-on-play-magnus-app

EDIT: probably wasn't cheating, ratings weren't high.

How about if we call him Kev and give him a gf called tracie?

Wait, wait.  A genius is IQ 150?  Wow, American standards are low.

I dont know what 100 or 150 IQ makes one capable of.

My personal experience is this (slightly older than kevin). I have spent the last year playing chess, by and large at least 10 hours a day, (mostly soft study, but some periods of concentration)

My ratings are 1700 blitz, 1740  bullet, 1825 standard

having this account for for quite a few years but only playing a handfull of games before a year or so ago. I started around 1000 blitz and 1100 standard.

so after a year of a lot of play about a 700 point increase. Otb I have only played 4 games and have won all 4 with a rating of 1436.

Since you have membership I think you can see my chart of progression.

I am a pushover to good players, players like hicetnunc can wipe me off the board on autopilot.

My understanding is that very good players are older than kevin and have been playing since they are 10 or younger with serious ambition.

An IQ of 150 is extremely rare... Kasparov was measured at 135.

I'm not sure what you're getting at. I'm not getting banned and my name's not kevin.

Just learn what you can, and have fun.  Unless your goal is to be a world class player, which wont happen if youre starting at 18.  So committing 4-6 hours a day isnt ncessary.  An hour a day, and a lot of tactics, can get you to Master.

I'm not Kevin. This is a hypothetical scenario. 

I don't think the IQ of Kevin2 gives him much of advantage. The same amount of time spent on playing, coaching and studying would yield similar results. It would be years before our Kevins saw ratings >1500.

Advice still applies

If 13 year olds are becoming grandmasters then I find it hard to believe a bright young adult like Kevin would need thousands upon thousands of hours dedicated to chess to reach 1500.

If you are not keven then why are you asking the question?

Besides that here are some answers

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22682914

http://www.delanceyplace.com/view_archives.php?1975

and a fancy one with numbers that i do not understand at the botom, still a good read

file:///C:/Users/Taylor/Downloads/0912f507483f418e57000000.pdf

what about if kelvin smoked a little crack  what would happen 

13 year olds are becoming Grandmasters after years of playing. A 13 year old GM started playing casually around 8 and seriously at 10. Additionally, you have to consider the stage of cognitive development. At adulthood your ability to learn new ways of thinking begins to diminish. That is why college courses that require analytical thinking such as computer programming have high dropout rates.

I don't think learning to play chess requires new ways of thinking. Chess is a very finite and concrete game. While it's true that almost all great chess players start at a young age, I believe the idea that it's essential to becoming a great chess player is a spurious connection.

your brain doesnt repair as fast as you grow older. so people after the age of 21 are starting their exponential downfall with brain decay. That is why scientists or top chess players dont do much after around 30, although there are several counter examples most people accomplish what they will in their 20's to mid 30's.

This article states that brain decay is noticable at the age of 39. http://www.wellnessresources.com/health/articles/startling_evidence_of_brain_decay_at_age_39/

lol, so obnoxious.

Herp derp