Guys, one thing you all forgot to mention is that, regardless how well someone does with a simulator, it's very different to actually fly a real plane outdoors. Sims normally don't have cross winds, winds that vary in speed and direction, sun glare and actually having to "track" your plane while it's flying. Those of us that have R/C experience are well aware of R/C GENERAL RULE NUMBER 1:
NEVER TAKE YOUR EYES OFF OF YOUR MODEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Unlike on a sim, where your plane is always in the middle of the screen, a real plane is always moving and, if you look away for even a second, finding your plane can take several seconds since it won't be where it was when you looked away