Last week, we presented the first part of my intermediate-level blitz chess game, annotated by GM Roman Dzindzichashvili and checked by Stockfish 6, in an effort to learn from my predictably subpar play. Now, let’s proudly conclude th...
This image comes from "The Book of Games" comissioned by Alphonso X, 1283 Prologue The most significant event to occur in the history of chess was the transformation of the game from its Medieval form into its Modern form. This metamorpho...
© 2015, José Diaz Links Interview with José Diaz José Diaz Official Website
This is the time of the year when kids are passing their final exams in school, so I decided to offer a quiz for our readers too. We did regular chess tests before (for example, here and here), so today I decided to try something new. You...
In The Complete Book of Chess Strategy, IM Jeremy Silman defines prophylaxis as "a move or strategy that stops the opponent from undertaking some type of action or plan." Coined by Aron Nimzowitsch in his seminal work My System (1...
It has been some time since I wrote about my own tournaments or annotated my own games. In general, it seems more legitimate and honest to annotate one's own games. You know precisely what was going on in your head, you remember your emotions, wha...
From time to time I put together various reader questions and comments (while ignoring the, “Die Silman Die!” raves) and share them with the good folks on Chess.com. I try to give a heady mix of subjects so that there will be a bit of ...
Many comments on my previous articles have noted that while my Monday column is fun, it provides little in the way of chess instruction. That's clearly true. As an intermediate player, I've got decent general chess knowledge, but I have to...
Some time ago, we analyzed a typical combination where the key move resembles an uppercut in boxing. (You can find the article here.) Today we are going to discuss a similar tactical pattern where the main piece is again a rook. In the "chess up...
The Traxler Counter Attack With best play, does Black have a chance with 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 Bc5 ? In Part I we examined White's response 5. d4 White's two most common responses however are 5. Bxf7+ and ...
Half the variations which are calculated in a tournament game turn out to be completely superfluous. Unfortunately, no one knows in advance which half. -- GM Jan Timman, The Art of Chess Analysis (1997) As we saw in part one, chess does not...
In the early 21st century, a new permutation of the evergreen Sicilian Dragon appeared: rather than place the queen's rook, obviously, on the open c-file, to put it instead on the closed b-file, supporting an advance of the b-pawn: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3...
In this video series, IM Daniel Rensch is here to educate us all on some chess fundamentals. You will want to go through these courses more than once. This video series will cover everything from basic tactical patterns to complex mating nets. T...
I’ve long insisted that the best way to improve (aside from playing stronger players) is to look at reams of master games. Most games between titled players have some important lesson hiding behind the moves, and I decided to make it easy fo...
Who are the most interesting chess players of all time? It’s an interesting question. Are we talking about the best players ever? Even that’s a tricky thing to define. Are the best players the most accomplished? We could go by supe...
Take a walk with me on the wild side . . . of chess.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . When Tarrasch wrote, ". . .S...
Some time ago we tried to answer the question "Do Grandmasters Know The Rules Of Chess?" and concluded that sometimes even world-class GMs forget the most basic rules of chess. But what about arbiters (called tournament directors in the U.S.)...
© 2015, José Diaz Links Interview with José Diaz José Diaz Official Website
Topic for June: the endgame (Please start submitting questions concerning the above topic for the next column.) The Bad Things About Speed Chess? (For answers to all other speed chess questions received, please read my replies in the for...
Intuition manifests itself first and foremost in the ability, in a somewhat unconscious way, and with a high degree of accuracy, to choose between different lines of play. — GM Valeri Beim, The Enigma of Chess Intuition I ca...
After the moves 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5, not every player of the white pieces agrees to take up the baton and confront the Benoni Defense or the Benko Gambit by playing 3.d5. Some may prefer to send the game toward the quieter English Opening by playing ...
I’ve long insisted that the best way to improve (aside from playing stronger players) is to look at reams of master games. Most games between titled players have some important lesson hiding behind the moves, and I decided to make it easy for you ...
By now many Chess.com members have seen the first trailer for Pawn Sacrifice, the Hollywood movie based on the rise of Bobby Fischer to world chess champion. We've known for a while that Spiderman, or rather Tobey Maguire, was to play the fiv...
"English chess owes more to the Rev. George Atwood than it does to any other person." - Dale A. Brandreth, chess historian and collector extraordinaire As most folks know, the custom of saving games didn't really begin in earnest un...
