The Chess Punks Tournament Final draws ever nearer! 

The tournament, streaming on Chess.com this Sunday, October 22, is a PogChamps style tournament where ambitious adult improvers - known as the Chess Punks - will battle it out. 

Coaching each of them are 8 Chessable authors and renowned chess coaches, who we are enlisting for advice in a segment we call Coach's Corner.

Today's featured coach is none other than Grandmaster Daniel King - a seasoned chess writer, commentator, and Chessable author. Daniel's tips, like so many great free lessons on Chessable, are short but very sweet! Here's what he had to say in our interview: 

What is your coaching philosophy?

Focus on the student. 

Suppose a player has only 3 hours a week for chess training. How should they spend their time?

Playing with utmost concentration, then going back and studying the game afterwards. Preferably over-the-board chess. 

What is the biggest factor for improvement for players under 1200 (Chess.com)? Under 2000?

U1200: Slow down.

U2000: Slow down.

What is your preferred way to improve at tactics and strategy?

For strategy, looking at complete games by strong players in your opening of choice so that everything is in context. Such model games are invaluable. For tactics, solving online puzzles is okay, but perhaps setting up a chessboard and calculating is even better. Solving puzzles from diagrams in a book is also not bad - old school! The best tactics books are grouped into different categories which is helpful for spotting patterns. 

What is your preferred way to improve your openings? What approach to chess openings do you teach your students?

Memorizing some key opening lines is important, but one must also understand the moves. With my students, I talk about why certain openings are played, what each player is trying to achieve, and that inevitably leads to a discussion of middlegame ideas. 

What is your preferred way to improve your endgames?

It is important to build an archive in your head of basic endgames (e.g. basic pawn endgames, basic rook and pawn endgames and motifs), and then build a library of classic endgames that illustrate important themes (for example, Alekhine-Capablanca final game, World Championship 1927). 

Calculation is also a very important skill in the endgame, and that can be rehearsed.

Daniel's Courses

If you liked Daniel's takes on chess improvement, you should definitely try his courses on Chessable! These free lessons are great to start with: 

Short & Sweet: King's Kalashnikov Sicilian A starter kit to playing one of the most aggressive Sicilians out there! Learn the basics of the Kalashnikov with expertly explained model games and trainable variations.

Short & Sweet: King's Anti-Sicilians for Black The perfect companion to your Kalashnikov (or any Sicilian!) course. Learn to shut down the Grand Prix Attack, Rossolimo, Alapin, Morra Gambit and more with this course.