Every chess game starts with a "time control" - how long each player has to move. And every game ends with a "result" - why did it end? A friend asked me about how each time control impacts the result, and I had no idea! So I took a look. ...
It's a shame that the grandmaster Nigel Short is not as well known to the general public as much as he used to be. In the 1990s he was one of the best chess players in the world and even played a match vs. Garry Kasparov, trying...
Yes.* *Speed chess is good for you (meaning it can help your slow chess, too) but doing it "incorrectly" could be harmful. Let's digress... A few years ago our Main Line Chess Club hosted a seminar by WGM Jennifer Shahade. At the end...
At of this writing, GM Hou Yifan is the sole leader of the super tournament in Baden Baden. Her play in this tournament so far is simply unbelievable and each game is a textbook example of good chess. Photo: Georgios Souleidis. Here is t...
GM Emil Sutovsky recently posted some shocking news on his Facebook page: a computer program, Ponanza, beat the best shogi player in the world. Not only that, but the computer program pretty much introduced a novelty on the very first move: no pro...
The Chess.com member Cubronzo asked: “I’ve been playing chess for about a year now and my playing strength keeps going up and down. My main problem is my ability to see ahead in a chess position. Do you have any advice on how I could c...
There are many different ways to improve your chess, but few of them can compete with the time-proven method of studying games played by great chess players. Indeed, this way you learn all the elements of chess from opening to endgam...
Amateur chess is often a back-and-forth, muddy, and even stormy adventure where a position’s assessment changes from move to move. However, it doesn’t have to be that way. The “trick” is to learn as many basic patterns (...
Earlier this year, Chess.com included a brief mention of the death of renowned logician Raymond Smullyan, who often used chess as the medium for his puzzle creations. He was quite the chessic sorcerer -- even his picture above makes him look like ...
While wanting to write an introduction, putting my thoughts on the topic into words has proven to be a most difficult undertaking. Although I predominantly scour books, newspapers and periodicals for the bulk...
Anthony Edward Santasiere - This name evokes images of the New York chess scene during the 1920, 30s and 40s: Frank Marshall, Edward Lasker, Albert Pinkus, Fred Reinfeld, Sammy Reshevsky, Abe Kupchik, Isaac Kashdan, I.A. Horowit...
![How Chess is Like... [FILL IN THE BLANK]](https://images.chesscomfiles.com/uploads/v1/article/17541.449e2da2.300x169o.810797651e4a.png)
Chess is many things. A game. An art. A hobby. A science. A sport? But it is also a metaphor that is used in the media to tap into the symbol of intellectual struggle. If you want to show how intricately strategic and thoughtful and craf...
There is one thing chess players at all levels have in common: we want to play better. From the player who just learnt how to move the pieces all the way to Magnus Carlsen. And the good news is that there is always room for improvement. Bu...
In a recent interview, the man who's a perfect five-for-five in writing New York Times bestsellers explained that he now has to chase his audience. And that means podcasting. Fittingly, renowned author Malcolm Gladwell explained t...
Millions of people around the world play chess regularly—but how do you become good at chess? Define what "good" means Practice lots of puzzles Review your games Create a study plan Be patient 1. Define what “good at chess...
No matter where you are in chess, you can always get better. And with the right habits and attitude, getting better at chess can be both fun and simple. To get better at chess, you will need to learn the rules, play a lot of games, review your pla...
Preface: An official U.S. Women's Chess Championship has existed for nearly 80 years. The USCF lists 1937 as the first year. There have been many strong and important women players over the early...
"It is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles; if you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you wil...
"I detest endgames!" said Dawid Janowski more than 100 years ago. He elaborated further by saying that a good chess game should be decided in the middlegame. Today such an opinion would make most professional chess players smile, but please reme...
One of the biggest open tournaments of the year (Gibraltar) was marred by a bizarre incident that happened in the last round. The women's world champion, Hou Yifan, lost her game in just five moves! Media instantly spread the news thro...
This article is a bit different in that I’ve written about chess books and I’ve written about chess coaches, but I’ve never blended the two together. In doing so, I will show you how your chess teachers can turn your chess books ...
If getting people to pay you for advice was as simple as asking, everyone would be doing it! The same goes for chess coaches looking to develop their professional career. While Chess.com does provide the tools you need for teaching, we ...
The Chess.com member Canyounotquit wrote: “I really want to know why and how I lost this particular game. I had a piece lead and still I lost badly. I’ve no idea where I went wrong.” JS: Everyone loses games. But, wh...
Ask chess players about the period known as romantic chess and they will probably mention the names of La Bourdonnais, Anderssen and Morphy. Indeed, all three of them were called unofficial world champions of their time. ...
