May's monthly update is here and we're recapping the Candidates Tournament, hooking the world's number one player up to a lie detector, and highlighting some of the chess world's true artists. Also, a much-requested dashboard for following event...
There's no way around it—every chess game starts with the opening. These first few moves are crucial to determining how the rest of the game will go. Because of this, learning how to play the opening well can drastically improve your results...
Established veterans face a new generation of up-and-coming talent in the Candidates Tournament, with three contenders under the age of 21. Meanwhile, teenagers continue to set new records and break the boundaries of what we thought was possible. ...
Last month marked 88th birthday of GM Eduard Gufeld, who was born March 19, 1936 in Kyiv, Ukraine. Even though he died over 20 years ago in 2002, he is well-remembered for his entertaining style of play and strong sense of humor. Among many pictur...
Chess Played Quick (CPQ), Chess.com's series of events where top chess streamers complete bounties for prizes, is back for another edition! Chess Played Quick - Doubles (Bughouse) Edition 2024 happens on April 8 at 12 p.m. ET / 18:00 CET / 9:30 ...
As eight of the world's very best grandmasters—GMs Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura, Alireza Firouzja, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, Gukesh Dommaraju, Vidit Gujrathi, and Nijat Abasov—descend on Toronto, Canada for the...
One of my first chess books was Richard Reti's Chess Textbook. The title of the book was a bit misleading, since the book was absolutely useless for total beginners. I assume that it was implied that any Soviet schoolboy knew the rules of chess as...
Dylan Quercia is a multi-faceted creator, chess player, and coach who has helped students improve their game for over 20 years. Dylan—a.k.a. Coach Q— is also one of the driving forces behind the film King Chess, an award-winning docume...
The world is full of chess advice. You will find all sorts of ideas in books, videos, and articles. While most of the wisdom you receive will help your game, here are five popular pieces of advice that you are better off ignoring. Don't Play B...
FIDE recently awarded honorary grandmaster titles to IMs Iivo Nei and Andreas Dueckstein. I think it is a very good practice to reward famous chess veterans for their past great results and lives devoted to chess. While reading this news, a questi...
Hi, my name is Lula. And I play chess... or at least I did, until I accidentally took an eight-month classical chess break and moved to Paris, France, to pursue my dreams as a chic cat mom. But now I'm back, and I just played my first tournament...
I had the chance to sit down and interview Detroit legend, National Master John Brooks! FM James Canty, also a Detroit native and chess family to Brooks, was there to aid tech support and even give a few of his own thoughts about Brooks. They were...
Artificial intelligence is well on its way to controlling the world, or so the computers would have us believe. In reality, computers on their own are still pretty dumb things, even when they appear smart. We spent some time asking ChatGPT some ...
A fan-favorite Chessable course creator, GM Erwin l’Ami has quite literally written the book on some of the most popular ways to start a game with the black pieces. Thousands of people have benefited from his work as one of the chess world...
WGM Ticia Gara is a three-time Hungarian women's chess champion who has represented her country on an international level. Among the finest players in her nation, she has scored impressive draws against legendary grandmasters including GMs Nigel S...
The recently concluded FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Championships are already history, and chess actors have left the ancient city of Samarkand, Uzbekistan. While it was a very exciting event, many less experienced players didn't follow it at all. W...
Every chess player dreams about scoring a huge upset. Maybe you want to beat your dad or grandmother at chess for the first time. Perhaps you’re trying to get your first win against a player rated over 1000, or even 2000. Although it’s...
We celebrated GM Magnus Carlsen's birthday a few days ago by inviting you (and GM Hikaru Nakamura) to take a Carlsen quiz. We now turn our attention to today's birthday boy: Nakamura himself! Along with Carlsen, Nakamura is one of the most...
Chess drama this, chess drama that… If you’ve been on Twitter/X in the last couple of months, you’ve probably been inundated with discussions over whatever the latest scandal is that day. It can get tiring… maybe you&rsqu...
Any experienced tournament player knows that playing for a win with the black pieces can be quite challenging, especially against a well-prepared opponent. Indeed, in most openings, White gets some initiative right from the start of the game due t...
CM Ilija Stanojevic is a popular online chess coach with significant experience in teaching beginners as well as more advanced players. His lessons are customized to his students' skill levels and playing styles, with a particular focus on middleg...
Do you still remember when you were bitten by the chess bug? Followed by that feverish desire to improve in the game? Only to realize that you started “too late” to amount to anything? In this era of prodigies and 12-year-old grandma...
Ask any mom what she wants the most at the end of the day, and you will most likely hear: “Quiet time, please!” Adding chess to a mother’s full plate might not sound sensible, but, if at all possible, some amazing benefits can be...
Whether you're a fearless attacker or a calm defender, I promise there's a chess legend who shares similarities to your playing style. That is unless your playing style is memorizing 10 moves of theory and then blundering your queen. But I'm sure ...
IM Szidonia Vajda is an accomplished player and coach, holding the international master and woman grandmaster titles as well as two Hungarian women's championships. She has represented Hungary at multiple Olympiads and is now sharing her knowledge...
