The players earn money by participating in tournaments. In addition to fees for playing in matches and prize money, they may earn money by delivering seminars, teaching the game, and appearing on television. Top players may make millions of dollars every year. Shogi has many similarities with chess. Both are two-player games that have been around for hundreds of years. They use identical pieces on a board that consists of a grid of files and rows. The only real difference is that checks are not passed in shogi but instead the player who makes the mistake loses a piece. Just like chess, shogi has its elite group of players who are capable of making huge profits. These people travel all over the world to compete in tournaments and they often rely on sponsors to be able to afford their expenses. Some top players have said that you can make as much as $1 million per year if you're very successful. In addition to the elite group of players, there are also public shogi clubs all over Japan. Members pay an annual fee to belong to the club and this allows them to play in tournaments hosted by the club. The more prestigious the tournament, the higher the entry fee. Each player is given a rating based on their ability. Tournaments are divided into categories according to how many points a player needs to win.