Musikamole said: Can a 50-year-old beginning chess player ever reach master level play before he drops dead? I doubt it. Silman says that middle-aged people can become titled players so he can sell more books. I do own a few of Silman's books a...
BCG1 asked: Now that you admit that you make things up I am very upset. I religiously followed your training advice by pounding down the 22,000 calories daily, as you recommended, and now weigh 800 lbs! I tried the “professor of exobiology” on so...
Jackson W. Showalter, Herman Steiner, and Diane Savereide are all being inducted to the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame this afternoon in Irvine, CA (USA). I am still working on the manuscript for the Showater book and hope to have it completed by Spring...
[Ed note: this is the last of GM Bojkov's excellent three articles about the Grand Prix tournament in Jermuk. I apologize for publishing it so late, but we had a surfeit of articles to publish. It still remains an excellent, educational and enter...
Zebratov said (concerning my article, Memorization – The Great Chess Conspiracy): 99% irrelevancy of memory sounds a bit harsh. Dear Zebratov: I was hoping that this would remain a secret, but I guess the cat is out of the bag and truth must wi...
33speedy asked: I was playing in a tournament today with the black pieces. I played the Budapest and my opponent declined it (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e5 3.Nf3). I thought the way I responded was reasonable (3…exd4 4.Nxd4 b6 5.Nc3 Bb7), but when I went home...
I would like to share with you my recent experience playing in the 2010 US Women’s Championship. One of the most prestigious tournaments of the year took place July 9-20 at the already famous Chess Club and Scholastic Center of St. Louis. Along wi...
NN asked (he’s a chess.com reader but I left his name out since I took some liberties with his question): I would like your opinion on how to study the middlegame? At the moment I rise at 5AM, eat a 4,000 calorie breakfast, do training tactics wi...
Anemone asked: I would like to start to study imbalances. I have the basics of chess but mainly try to find tactics or find the best move to improve my position. Which of your books should I start with? I am also starting to use chess mentor. Are...
Rdecredico said: Memorization is a big part of chess but hardly anyone wants to mention this because it doesn’t sell that many books. Instead, they will spew stuff like: “Don’t memorize! It is more important to understand ideas!” However, if one ...
As I promised you, the entertaining games from Jermuk continued. The second round saw no draws at all. Nana Dzagnidze scored her second win. So did one of the Armenian hopes. She produced a nice game as she managed to exclude the opponent’s black...
People often ask me if they should play blitz, how helpful it is in terms of improving in chess. Experts’ views on this differ. Those who enjoy playing blitz often claim that it is very useful, and serves as an indicator of a chess player’s skills...
This was a hard moment for our team, and I had to cheer them up. The karaoke bar at night sounded like a good idea given my intentions... I still constantly discover the wisdom that the classics used to have. Nimtsovitsch’s thesis of “the threat i...
Gambiteeer asked: I am having trouble learning the Queens Gambit. Recently my opponents have gotten stronger and I am not sure how to handle the different positions which arise from the Queens Gambit. I am also having trouble learning the differe...
The Bulgarian Team Championships took place in Albena between 27 May and 2 June. The tradition to organize the competitions at nice resorts was maintained, as one of the greenest sea resorts hosted the event. Albena is situated on the northern par...
James D asked: I seem to have come to the conclusion that the advance variation against the Caro-Kann is the most aggressive, but what then? I’ve tried various ways to play the Advance for White, but the latest is 1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bf5 4.h4 h5...
Unknown asked: How often do chess masters make beginner mistakes in tournaments? For example, one could have had too much to drink the night before and just gave away a free piece like a knight or bishop simply because they didn’t see something a...
Dsachs asked: I had a question about a tactic in the lines of Pirc where white plays Bc4. For example, 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.Bc4 Bg7. In this setup Black has the chance to play ...Nxe4 when Nxe4 ...d5 forks e4 and c4 and regains the piece....
Richard asked: I have been experimenting with the Fritz chess engine and it uses a number of evaluation symbols as it analyzes alternative moves. I think I get some of them, like +- means white is winning. Does the symbol always apply to White, o...
Millvillage asked: In your years of getting around the chess circuit, have you heard of any medication/treatment for the inflamed blunder gland? Sometimes mine acts up even when I am not playing chess. Dear Millvillage: This kind of inflamma...
When I posted my first article for chess.com about a week ago, a wise reader criticized me for the mild title- minimal advantage for Anand. A whole point advance and the opportunity to start the second half with the white pieces- this sounded real...
[ed note: you can read an English version of this article at http://www.chess.com/article/view/anand-won-the-toughest-match-in-his-life] Когато преди седмица написах първата си статия за chess.com един мъдър читател ме критикува за твърде мекото ...
Mr.unknown asked: My question concerns agreed upon draws, by which players wish to protect their ratings and/or standings in tournaments (as either individuals or team members). This seems to be a form of corruption and abuse of the game. I’ve h...
The match for the World Championship between Viswanathan Anand and Veselin Topalov started one day late, to everyone's dissatisfaction due to the thick cloud of volcano dust that covered Europe and blocked the air traffic. However, the first game ...
