Alright i've come to the point where lack of opening knowledge kills. In OTB i've beaten 1800-1900 players but then lost to weaker players in the 1700's because I didn't know the opening too well. i was wondering how everyone here on chess.com studies openings? do you have to buy a separate book for each one? I dont want to just know the moves, i want to know the theory behind it.

I've been playing the scotch, Sicilian defense Najdorf variation, KID, and i recently started the ruy Lopez with only 1 loss in about 10 games. Although i know these openings well my knowledge on them is still limited. I would like some recommedations for books or whatever else you use.

Hey Ahmed, I know the feeling man, we are about the same USCF (1700ish) and learning the higher you play, the more you have to know openings or the whole game will be spend trying to equalize (especially in American chess)!   

The everyman series on books are pretty good for teaching basics.  It's a painstaking reality that we have to learn book or continue to lose to chess librarians.

I just started the Ruy too after playing the King's Gambit for years.  You could always learn some offbeat lines, but they can only go so far... so I think studying the mainline of most of the openings gives you good ideas about what they are about... Trash the Scotch man!  you are going to bore yourself to death!  lol..

Play over whole games played by masters or better in the opening lines you are trying to learn.  This way you not only learn the opening moves, but the various middlegame plans and what works or doesn't work for both sides, and even how to play the typical endgames which result.

Don't take a whole lot of time trying to figure out every variation.  If the game has notes, read them and try to follow on the board in your head, as if playing.  No more than 15 minutes per game, but try to play over as many as you can.

It beats memorizing some opening line that tells you at the end you have a "+=" but leaves you with no idea how to exploit the so-called advantage.

Then, try to put the ideas you pick up from the masters into practice in your own games.  You'll quickly find if an opening is comfortable for you and fits your style of play well.

For now, choose a narrow repertoire (don't play both the Scotch and the Ruy vs 1.e4 e5, choose one) and stick to that until you know it thoroughly (think a few years). Pick openings that you can keep playing your whole life, don't go for cheap tricks.

As Estragon says, every time you see an annotated game played anywhere with one of your openings, pay close attention.

And yeah, I would buy some books. I think an all-purpose encyclopedia style book is indispensible. Nunn's Chess Openings is getting a bit old, so perhaps the latest edition of Modern Chess Openings is the best now. After every game you play, look up what the theory was supposed to be and compare with what actually happened.

Maybe some Starting Out or Chess Explained book on your favorite opening, not immediately the heavy theory tomes. But the most important thing is to work with these books, play through the lines and understand the point they're making. So don't buy a whole stack, buy one.

You can often check the Variation Index of opening books on Amazon (look inside the book), to see which variations they cover.

Actually, reading the Amazon reviews for MCO, and noting that a second hand NCO can be had for $6.50 ex shipping, I'd still go for that.

I concur with Estragon's recommendation. I would recommend putting special emphasis on :

• what's happening in the center in the early opening stage (what squares are the players fighting for ?)
• what's the basic plan of each side at the beginning of the middlegame ?
• what are the general features of the ending ? (strong / weak pieces - critical squares...)

To illustrate my thoughts, here is an example from my own practice on chess.com in the KID

I have found "Basic Chess Openings" (king-pawn) and "More Basic Chess Openings" (queen-pawn, etc.) by Gabor Kallai very helpful for knowing the basic principles of most openings - available at a very cheap price online.

I haven't worked on my openings for a few years (about 20) so they're almost nonexistent. When I was working on openings I had a chess computer that had a "Book Practice Mode". It would pseudo-randomly play an opening based on popularity. More popular openings, like the Ruy Lopez, would be played more often then, say, the Scotch Game. While it was playing the opening it would randomly play a move that was out of book so I could learn what to do when my opponent strayed. I could force it to play a particular opening if I wanted.

I don't know if any modern software has a feature like that. If they don't, they should. It was great. I never knew for sure what opening it would play or where it would play a weak move.

I recommend the Chessbase DVDs on openings - but then again, I learn very well from that type of media.  Once I watched the one on the Alekhine defense, my rating soared and I wasn't beaten by very many folks lol.

DaPharoah

You need a book or resource that will enable you to understand the ideas behind each opening well.

For your level, i recommend Mastering the Chess Openings by John Watson. As other people have said, focus on a specific 2 or 3 openings/defences and then master them.

Don't bother with using MCO on those openings until you know them extremely well.

I love studying the videos. I like the fritztrainer ones. (you can download many of them illegaly, I'm told). The are great.

Just choose a system which doesn't need much theory. Najdorf and Lopez are so theoritical you always have a chance loosing against a weaker player because he knows the opening better.

Most otb players who don't like theory play closed sicilian against c5(1 e4 c5, 2. Nc3 or f4) or a lot play (1 e4 c5, c3) or (1. e4 c5 2. Nc6 Bb5). Personally i like to the accelerated dragon against e4 as black, I played the Najdorf too but it is too agressive and too much theory, also I don't like pawn storms towards my own king.

i like to pick openings which are kinda forced so you don't need to learn a lot of theory. With black i play the nimzo or queen gambit(Tartakower System) against d4.

I know two pretty good otb players which always play d6 against d4/e4(universal) because they don't have time to study, but it is not for everyone i think.

Just some ideas.