How to Become a Better Chess Player
good luck and read everything I have gathered below for you / my 9000+ followers. Hope you need some of this
1. It’s no secret that it takes hard work and dedication to become great at something.
Although this idea is well known to most, though, there still seems to be an idea that you also have to be very talented right out of the gate in order to truly become a master of a given craft. This logic often gets applied to chess as well, because so many of the grandmasters we look up to and aspire to play like have been geniuses of a caliber rarely seen. However, there is much more to becoming a masterful player than just being naturally brilliant or somehow naturally talented at chess.
In fact, studies have shown that there is a direct correlation between how good a player is at chess and how much time they have spent practicing. That’s the main factor – practice. Even a hyper-intelligent person needs to practice the game for hundreds, even thousands of hours before becoming truly skilled. The fanciful idea of a savant beating the greatest chess player in the world we often see in movies really only has its place on the silver screen – in the real world, it’s practice which makes us better.
However, this type of dedication does require a certain mindset. The psychology of a grandmaster is much different than that of a chess hobbyist, and the main factor here is indeed dedication. In order to become a master of this game, you will likely need to dedicate many thousands of hours to its study and its practice. You will have to practice as often as you can, and keep in mind that each such practice session makes you better and builds you toward that goal of becoming a master one day. You have to be able to keep that goal affixed in your mind and focus on it if you want to succeed. This is where many falter – sure, you may enjoy chess, but are you willing to dedicate thousands of hours of your life to it? If you want to be a master, you will probably have to.
Still, chess is a game where you get out what you put in. If your goal is simply to improve your game and enjoy playing it while you do so, you can absolutely do that at a much less taxing rate than described above. You definitely don’t have to become a master simply to enjoy chess, and you don’t have to dedicate thousands of hours just to improve your game. Nevertheless, we can all stand to benefit from applying some of the mindset of those grandmasters to our game. A little more dedication, coupled with a few basic principles can go a long way.
For starters, you should never go into a game assuming you’re going to lose. Even if you’re a novice and you are playing against a grandmaster, assuming you’re going to lose is a great way to ensure it. Instead, you should apply the principles you’ve practiced and learned and simply play the best game you can. You likely will lose many times over the course of your chess career, but being a fatalist and assuming that you will do so can only help to bring about your loss more swiftly. Fight with everything you have, even when defeat is imminent.
Likewise, you should never go into a chess match assuming you will win. This is actually a worse mistake to make than assuming you will lose, since arrogance often leads to overlooking mistakes or missing your opponent’s plan. If you fail to have some perspective on the game and instead are too full of pride to see your own mistakes, you will almost assuredly lose. Instead, you should temper your confidence with caution. Hope that you will win, and strive to do so, but don’t hand your opponent the game by failing to pay attention to what they’re doing because you are distracted by your own ability.
If the two points above are properly applied, the result is that you will treat each and every game you play as an important, pivotal battle. This is absolutely the mindset you want to nourish and keep. You should put everything you have into each game, because this is how you improve your skill set. No matter if you’ve lost to this person a hundred times or beat them the last twenty games in a row, you should never assume the outcome. Take each game as an individual, and you will be able to stay sharp and at the peak of your game no matter the situation.
Next, remember to keep your emotions in check. It is very easy to become annoyed at yourself when you make a mistake, or overly angry at your opponent when you miss something and lose a valuable piece. These types of emotions can often color your judgement, however, and can make it difficult for you to keep the bigger picture in perspective. The result here is often more mistakes or more missed opportunities, so you have to be careful. Think of yourself as your own chess psychologist and study the way you react to certain situations. This will allow you to gain valuable insight about how you think, and in turn will allow you to avoid repeating mistakes in the future.
Sun Tzu said in The Art of War “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” Now, this logic is usually applied to battle, but there are things we can learn from Sun Tzu’s words in our chess game as well. This logic fits perfectly into chess, since chess itself is modeled after battle. Remember to keep that perspective, stay away from excess confidence or pride, and most of all, to keep practicing no matter what.
Continuing to study even those you feel you’ve already mastered so that you can keep your skills honed to a razor-sharp edge. Doing so will only help you in the long run, whether your goal is just to improve your skills and have fun while learning more about chess, or to become the next grandmaster of the game.
2. Let me recommend you something : if you are beginner start playing simple but clasically correct openings like: Spanish, Italian with White, and e5 with Black. But when you achieve a good level start playing many openings because it will enrich your general strategic understanding! And also try to undersrand the typical plans, ideas, look at the GM games with commentary, it will help you a lot!
3. some Good chess books:
My Best Games vol 1-2 (Alekhine)
My Life, Games and Compositions (Benko)
The Art of Bisguier (Bisguier/Berry)
One Hundred Selected Games (Botvinnik)
Botvinnik’s Best Games vol 1-3 (B)
Botvinnik-Bronstein Moscow 1951 (Botvinnik)
200 Open Games (Bronstein)
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (Bronstein)
Secret Notes (Bronstein) (bio plus)
Capablanca’s Best Chess Endings (Chernev)
The Immortal Games of Capablanca (Reinfeld)
Mikhail Chigorin (Adams)
From My Games 1920-1937 (Euwe)
My 60 Memorable Games (Fischer)
Both Sides of the Chessboard (Byrne/Nei)
Chess: The Search for Mona Lisa (Gufeld)
Twenty-five Annotated Games (Hubner)
Ivanchuk Move by Move (Tay)
Vassily Ivanchuk: 100 Selected Games (Kalinichenko)
Bent Larsen’s Best Games (Larsen)
Lasker’s Greatest Chess Games 1889-1914 (Reinfeld/Fine)
How Karpov Wins (Mednis)
Karpovs Strategic Wins 1-2 (Karolyi)
Kasparov’s Fighting Chess 1993-1998 (Karolyi/Aplin)
Kasparov’s Fighting Chess 199-2005 (Karolyi/Aplin)
On My Great Predecessors vol 1-5 (Kasparov)
On Modern Chess parts 1-2 (Kasparov)
On Gary Kasparov parts 1-2 (Kasparov)
Grandmaster of Chess vol 1-3 (Keres early games, etc) (Keres)
Paul Keres Chess Master Class (Neishtadt)
Viktor Korchnoi’s Best Games (Korchnoi/Others)
Viktor Korchnoi My Best Games Vol 1: Games with White (K)
Kramnik My Life and Games (Kramnik/Damsky)
Frank Marshall (Soltis)
Paul Morphy A Modern Perspective (Beim)
Nezhmetdinov’s Best Games of Chess (N)
Tigran Petrosian His life and Games (Vasiliev)
Pillsbury’s Chess Career (Sergeant/Watts) (thin notes)
Selected Games of Lajos Portisch (Varnusz)
CJS Purdy’s Fine Art of Chess Annotation vols 1-3 (P)
How Purdy Won ℗
My 120 Selected Correspondence Games (Read)
Reshevsky’s Best Games of Chess ®
The Life & Games of Akiva Rubinstein vol 1-2 (Donaldson/Minev)
Akiba Rubinstein: The Later Years (Donaldson/Minev)
Rubinstein Move by Move (Franco)
Schlechter’s Chess Game (Crain)
Chess Duels (Seirawan)
Fire on Board (Shirov)
My Best Games of Chess 1935-1957 (Smyslov)
Smylsov’s Best Games vol 1: 1935-1957 (S)
The Best Games of Boris Spassky (Soltis)
Spassky’s 100 Best Games (Cafferty)
Jon Speelman’s Best Games (Speelman)
Chess on the Edge vol 1: 100 Selected Games…Suttles (Harper/Seirawan)
Taimanov’s Selected Games (Taimanov)
The Life and Games of Mikhail Tal (Tal)
Tal-Botvinnik 1960 (Tal)
My Best Games of Chess 1905-1954 (Tartakower)
Three Hundred Chess Games (Tarrasch)
Johannes Zukertort (Adams)
Karlsbad 1907 (Marco/Schlechter)
Vienna 1922 (Evans)
New York 1924 (Alekhine)
Nottingham 1936 (Alekhine)
The Soviet Championships (Cafferty/Taimanov)
Zurich 1953 (Bronstein)
The First Piatigorsky Cup (Reshevsky et al)
The 1974 World Chess Olympiad (Keene/Levy)
Montreal 1979 (Tal et al)
Reggio Emilia 2007/2008 (Marin/Garrett)
Portoroz/Ljubljana Grandmaster Chess Tournament (Hort)
Chess Olympiads (Foldeak)
The Mammoth Book of the World’s Greatest Chess Games (Burgess et al)
Decisive Games in Chess History (Pachman)
Instructive Modern Chess Masterpieces (Stohl)
The 1000 Best Short Games of Chess (Chernev)
500 Master Games of Chess (Tartakower/Du Mont)
The World’s Greatest Chess Games (Fine)
Masters of the Chessboard (Reti)
Learn from the Legends (Marin)
Learn from the Grandmasters (Keene)
The Battle of Chess Ideas (Saidy)
Chess from Morphy to Botwinnik (Konig)
Modern Chess Brilliancies (Evans)
Winning Chess Brilliancies (Seirawan)
Extreme Chess: World Championships 1935 1937 1972 (Purdy)
64 Great Chess Games: Masterpieces of Postal and Email Chess (Harding)
Games of World Correspondence Chess Championships I-X (Harting)
Fifth Correspondence Chess World Championship (Berliner/Messere)
Wijk aan Zee Grandmaster Tournament 1975 (Kavalek)
BARELY or SEMI-ANNOTATED:
Combat: My 50 Years at the Chess Board (Bernstein) (largely dump, brief notes)
Paul Keres: Photographs and Games (not annotated)
Complete Games of Mikhail Tal vol 1-3 (Thomas)
Korchnoi’s 400 Best Games (not annotated)
Karpov’s Collected Games (Levy) (very light notes)
INSTRUCTIVE:
Logical Chess Move by Move (Chernev)
Combinations: the Heart of Chess (Chernev)
Dynamic Chess (Coles)
How to Defend in Chess (Crouch)
Winning Unorthodox Openings (Dunnington)
Creative Opening Chess Preparation (Eingorn)
Decision Making at the Chessboard (Eingorn)
Chess Strategy for Club Players (Grooten)
Exploiting Small Advantages (Gufeld)
All About Chess (Horowitz)
200 Modern Chess Traps in the Fianchetto Openings (Howson)
Winning with the Najdorf (King)
How to Become a Deadly Chess Tactician (LeMoir)
An Opening Repertoire for Black (Marovic/Parma)
Chess: The Art of Logical Thinking (McDonald)
Mastering the French (McDonald/Harley)
How to Beat Bobby Fischer (Mednis)
Strategic Chess (Mednis)
222 Opening Traps after 1.e4 (Muller/Knaak)
Fundamental Chess Endings (Muller/Lamprecht)
Understanding Chess Endings (Nunn)
Understanding Chess Move by Move (Nunn)
How to Play the Goring Gambit (Schiller)
Catalog of Chess Mistakes (Soltis)
Risk & Bluff in Chess (Tukmakov)
Mastering the Chess Openings (1-4) (Watson)
Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy (Watson)
Simple Attacking Plans (Wilson)
The Road to Chess Improvment (Yermolinsky)
RECOMMENDED IN THREAD:
Antology (sic) of Chess Beauty (Belov et al)
Barmen 1905 tournament book
Simagin (Woodger)
Avderbach game collection
Grandmaster at Work (Kotov/Adams)
Szabo’s Best Games
Oxford Encyclopedia of Chess Games
Paul Keres: The Road to the Top and The Quest for Perfection
The Nemesis: Geller’s Greatest Games
Aaron Nimzowitsch: On the Road to Chess Master, 1886-1924
Judit Polgar Teaches Chess (vols 1-3)
Power Chess: Great Grandmaster Battles from Russia (Keres)
The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played (Chernev)
The Greatest Ever Chess Endgames (Giddins)
Gyula Breyer: The Chess Revolutionary (Adams)
4. What is the best first move for white in normal chess?
"... For players with very limited experience, I recommend using openings in which the play can be clarified at an early stage, often with a degree of simplification. To accomplish this safely will take a little study, because you will have to get used to playing wiith open lines for both sides' pieces, but you can't eliminate risk entirely in the opening anyway. ... teachers all over the world suggest that inexperienced players begin with 1 e4. ... You will undoubtedly see the reply 1 ... e5 most often when playing at or near a beginner's level, ... After 2 Nf3, 2 ... Nc6 will occur in the bulk of your games. ... I recommend taking up the classical and instructive move 3 Bc4 at an early stage. Then, against 3 ... Bc5, it's thematic to try to establish the ideal centre by 4 c3 and 5 d4; after that, things can get complicated enough that you need to take a look at some theory and learn the basics; ... Of course, you can also play 1 d4 ... A solid and more-or-less universal set-up is 2 Nf3 and 3 Bf4, followed in most cases by 4 e3, 5 Be2 and 6 0-0. I'd rather see my students fight their way through open positions instead; however, if you're not getting out of the opening alive after 1 e4, this method of playing 1 d4 deserves consideration. ... a commonly suggested 'easy' repertoire for White with 1 Nf3 and the King's indian Attack ... doesn't lead to an open game or one with a clear plan for White. Furthermore, it encourages mechanical play. Similarly, teachers sometimes recommend the Colle System ..., which can also be played too automatically, and usually doesn't lead to an open position. For true beginners, the King's Indian Attack and Colle System have the benefit of offering a safe position that nearly guarantees passage to some kind of playable middlegame; they may be a reasonable alternative if other openings are too intimidating. But having gained even a small amount of experience, you really should switch to more open and less automatic play." - IM John Watson in a section of his 2010 book, Mastering the Chess Openings, Volume 4
5. study plans are a cheap guide to improve.
I think the study plans are a cheap guide to improve.
There is a lot of information out there, and I don't think you only need help from one place. Your going to have to study a lot of material when you get better if you want to improve at a good speed. I for one only played blitz for over 15 years and my rating as you can see is not very good even still. Don't be like me. Play games with long time controls, and study books. What books? That is a good question.
You have a list from spongy but I'm not sure if it's helpful to give you 20 books when you have no idea which one is the one you need to read at your level. I haven't read a lot of those books so I do not think I can really help you in that department.
If someone mentioned that you don't need a book because you are so low rated, but I don't agree. If all you do is play chess you are going to improve at a very slow pace, even if you get hammered by someone better than you all the time, as those bashings, as instructive as they may be, won't allow you to improve if that is all you are doing.
Another thing is how much money are you willing to spend? Do you even want to spend money on chess? There are tons of videos you can look at to help you with your chess on youtube, however, those videos, mostly, are not for beginners. John Bartholemue makes videos for beginners and so does that other guy that Qwerty mentioned.
How much time did you want to spend studying chess? That is a question that has to be answered by you at one point or another in your chess career. I do not know how old are you, but if you are older, a late starter, then you may have a job, and won't have much time after you get off work. If for some reason you don't have a job then you have time, however, such time could most likely be spent doing something else, as chess isn't ever going to put food on the table for most people.
The problem is that there are a lot of books that could help you, but, you can only go through 1 at a time.
I'd say you should read annotated games from a book like Logical Chess Move by Move. I say that because those books are going to give you ideas. Idea's you will eventually use to win chess games. I personally like Logical Chess Move by Move because it helped me win someone OTB who likes to always stop you from pinning his knight with your bishop by wasting time and playing a flank pawn move. Though for the beginning part of the game I am talking about it served him well, it eventually led to a disaster. In principle, it's a bad idea to move flank pawns just to prevent someone from pinning your knight, however, it's not so easy to take advantage of that sometimes... It's principles that that that you must learn as a newb, and by reading through Logical Chess you will learn even more stuff like that.
Your also going to need theory, for that, as I suggested you can go through the beginner study plan, if you pay for a diamond membership. There you will find the key topics of chess, and you can learn them in any order you choose.
There are alternatives, however the books are starting to pile up already....!!! Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess is a good beginner book, but, even that may be too advanced for you, but then again it may be the thing you need to improve. Before you start buying books I urge you to do your research, and make your own decision. It's not going to be easy either. Getting books and putting them on the shelf is not going to help you. You also have to study them correctly. I like the study plans because it covers all phases of the game.
In my opinion tactics trainer is too much for you. Why do I say this? Too many times I hear about people that take forever to solve a puzzle, and if they get it right, they only get one point, but if they get it wrong, bam, minus 12 points! If you are not fast at coming up with the right answer like I know for a fact a lot of people aren't, then, tactics trainer at least on this site is not best suited for you as a beginner who has not already learned the patterns. For people that say that everyone starts off the same they are slow at first and get faster as they learn more and more patterns I'd say this, have fun in your fairy tale dream world, end of discussion.
The point, is some people are fast, some people are slow. I don't know which one are you, but if you are slow, tactics trainer is not ideal for you, unless you just go unrated, which is helpful still. For now stay away from chesstempo tactics trainer, as those tactics are probably too advanced for you, even the easy ones.
For those of you who think I am saying some people that play chess are stupid and some are not you misinterpreted what I was saying. Just because someone makes chess moves slowly doesn't necessary mean they are "thinking slowly." Therefore, this has absolutely nothing to do with intelligence, and more to do with 1 learned patterns already known, but in the beginning more about how the person thinks. Does he take forever to think about a simple trade? That is a bad thinking algorithm or bad time hog to have that a lot of people do have when they are starting out. Some people just like to work out everything in their head, or can't do it all in their head but they sit there and keep trying until they realize they can't and just make a bad move. This is my theory that I observed watching numerous people play chess. I hope it helps. Even if you don't fully agree with me you can agree at least in part somewhat...? Maybe... Oh well, I spent too much time on this!
There is a free app, called chess tactics, where you can solve a number of beginner tactics. You'd have to pay a modest amount to solve more. I'd say solve them all once and keep solving them until you can do them in your sleep. Start with the free one and do that.
Do puzzle rush whenever you have extra time to goof off. I wouldn't do it too much.
If you are serious about improving, and are going to spend a lot of time on chess, then A Guide to Chess Improvement is probably a book that you will eventually need. You may not need it now, but get that later on when you've improved 100-200 rating points. I'm thinking back to that book now and remember that some of that stuff that is in that book is deep, maybe you don't even need it. I don't know. However, that book gives you a good picture of what you have to do to improve, and also gives a lot of theory that could come in handy. A lot of the stuff was straightforward for me, but it may not be for you.
There is a mate in 3 that I know if I showed you, you would probably not get even if I gave you all day to solve it. Actually I take that back. You might be able to solve it, given enough time, however, chances are you won't, not in a million years, without help. Sometimes the problem is just that one must learn the patterns first, then solve the puzzles after the pattern has already been learned, in a somewhat, different instance. The object in the beginning is the familiarize yourself with tactics, and other patterns. 9 times out of 10 chess is about patterns that already have been learned. Do as many tactics as possible. I'd say at least an hour of tactics a day, at least that is what was told by someone who is very high rated. She actually told me either 30 minutes to an hour, take your pick, whichever one suits you better. If I where you I'd look at Dan Heismans website and pick a good tactics book from it. If you have enough time to learn, I'd say get Baines, and also later on when you are finished with Baines get Back to Basics. Your going to have to make flash cards of all that crap. Yes, both books.
I'm not entirely sure if all this is suitable for your level, as you are very low rated. So I wouldn't take this too seriously, plus I see a lot of people like you post a one sentence help me post, and never write any responses, kinda makes me think people who do such things are just trolls. Oh well, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt.
I am not a very high rated player, so before you take anything what I say seriously I would go to your local club and run through all the advice given by be and others to them and see if they agree, if not just do what they say, they may know more.
If anything just listen to this, "Chess is hard, and it's going to take a lot of effort to get better, and you may have to spend a lot of money to improve, and your money will be forever lost, because you will probably never make anything playing chess. Also, you may have to study a lot of different things, just do them one at a time."
Play as many games as possible, and study as much as you can. Use your time wisely. Remember tactics tactics tactics. Don't forget to learn the endgame!
https://www.chess.com/article/view/how-to-start-out-in-chess
https://www.chess.com/article/view/study-plan-directory
"... In order to maximize the benefits of [theory and practice], these two should be approached in a balanced manner. ... Play as many slow games (60 5 or preferably slower) as possible, ... The other side of improvement is theory. ... This can be reading books, taking lessons, watching videos, doing problems on software, etc. ..." - NM Dan Heisman (2002)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627084053/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/heisman19.pdf
"... If it’s instruction, you look for an author that addresses players at your level (buying something that’s too advanced won’t help you at all). This means that a classic book that is revered by many people might not be useful for you. ..." - IM Jeremy Silman (2015)
https://www.chess.com/article/view/the-best-chess-books-ever
Here are some reading possibilities that I often mention:
Simple Attacking Plans by Fred Wilson (2012)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708090402/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review874.pdf
http://dev.jeremysilman.com/shop/pc/Simple-Attacking-Plans-77p3731.htm
Logical Chess: Move by Move by Irving Chernev (1957)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708104437/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/logichess.pdf
The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played by Irving Chernev (1965)
https://chessbookreviews.wordpress.com/tag/most-instructive-games-of-chess-ever-played/
Winning Chess by Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld (1948)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708093415/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review919.pdf
Back to Basics: Tactics by Dan Heisman (2007)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708233537/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review585.pdf
https://www.chess.com/article/view/book-review-back-to-basics-tactics
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5856bd64ff7c50433c3803db/t/5895fc0ca5790af7895297e4/1486224396755/btbtactics2excerpt.pdf
Discovering Chess Openings by GM John Emms (2006)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627114655/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen91.pdf
Openings for Amateurs by Pete Tamburro (2014)
http://kenilworthian.blogspot.com/2014/05/review-of-pete-tamburros-openings-for.html
https://chessbookreviews.wordpress.com/tag/openings-for-amateurs/
https://www.mongoosepress.com/catalog/excerpts/openings_amateurs.pdf
Chess Endgames for Kids by Karsten Müller (2015)
https://chessbookreviews.wordpress.com/tag/chess-endgames-for-kids/
http://www.gambitbooks.com/pdfs/Chess_Endgames_for_Kids.pdf
A Guide to Chess Improvement by Dan Heisman (2010)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708105628/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review781.pdf
Studying Chess Made Easy by Andrew Soltis (2009)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708090448/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review750.pdf
Seirawan stuff:
http://seagaard.dk/review/eng/bo_beginner/ev_winning_chess.asp?KATID=BO&ID=BO-Beginner
http://www.nystar.com/tamarkin/review1.htm
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627132508/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen173.pdf
https://www.chess.com/article/view/book-review-winning-chess-endings
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708092617/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review560.pdf
6. Why I play Chess!!
Why I play Chess!!
A game is always won through a mistake. When you see a good move, sit on your hands and find a better one. I don't believe in psychology. I believe in good moves.(NM Coach-Bills) Many have become Chess Masters, no one has become the Master of Chess. The essence of Chess is thinking about what Chess is. Good positions don't win games, good moves do. What would Chess be without silly mistakes? Every Chess master was once a beginner. Chess is not like life... it has rules! One bad move nullifies forty good ones. The reason we all love chess so much is because it gives us so many opportunities to be wrong.The day Chess replaces Psychology is the day we understand each other a lot better ... on the chessboard, lies and hypocrisy do not survive long. Chess is a game. Chess is a battle. Chess is war. It is art, science, logic, and beauty. Chess is the ultimate contest between two minds. Chess is the mental torture of one's opponent, and the mental torture of oneself. Chess is drama. It is tragedy. It is tears and frustration. Chess is despair. Chess is laughter, joy, and triumph. Chess is a friendship formed through a contest. Chess is 16 pieces, 32 men, 64 squares. It is openings and endgames, tactics and strategy. Chess is combinations. Chess is planning. Chess is the sharpening of the mind, the exercise of the brain. Chess is thinking. Chess is pure thought. Chess is tension, toil, and strife. Chess is losing. Chess is winning. Chess is beating and being beaten. Chess is where all excuses fail. Chess is a hobby, a mania, a fixation. Chess is an addiction. Chess is a waste of time. Chess is a distraction. Chess is passion. Chess is truth. Chess is life. Chess is my life 24/7 365.
Chess…is, in my opinion, one of the few supreme products of the human intellect, if, as I often doubt, it is of human origin. Chess is the triumph of the intellect and genius over lack of imagination; the triumph of personality over materialism.
7. Highly recommended chess tips - Chess tips to all
Many ask me for advice and tips and here you get it collected, hope you all can benefit from this little post, hope you enjoy reading and that you get a little wiser.
Highly recommended chess tips to all my friends and Chess buddies and i hope it help you with upcoming games in future and it is to serve youth to help them to
gain chess knowledge and competitive skills.
STOP playing blitz, rapid, and bullet. You will not be able to implement what you're trying to learn into your games if you're moving fast. Play slow time controls, and Daily Chess.
Opening Principles:
- Control the center squares – d4-e4-d5-e5
- Develop your minor pieces toward the center – piece activity is the key
- Castle
- Connect your rooks
Tactics...tactics...tactics...
The objective of development is about improving the value of your pieces by increasing the importance of their roles. Well-developed pieces have more fire-power than undeveloped pieces and they do more in helping you gain control.
Now we will look at 5 practical things you can do to help you achieve your development objective.
They are:
- Give priority to your least active pieces.
- Which piece needs to be developed (which piece is the least active)
- Where should it go (where can its role be maximized)
- Exchange your least active pieces for your opponent’s active pieces.
- Restrict the development of your opponent’s pieces.
- Neutralize your opponent’s best piece.
- Secure strong squares for your pieces.
Don’t help your opponent develop.
There are 2 common mistakes whereby you will simply be helping your opponent to develop:
- Making a weak threat that can easily be blocked
- Making an exchange that helps your opponent to develop a piece
Pre Move Checklist:
- Make sure all your pieces are safe.
- Look for forcing moves: Checks, captures, threats. You want to look at ALL forcing moves (even the bad ones) as this will force you look at, and see the entire board.
- If there are no forcing moves, you then want to remove any of your opponent’s pieces from your side of the board.
- If your opponent doesn’t have any of his pieces on your side of the board, then you want to improve the position of your least active piece.
- After each move by your opponent, ask yourself: "What is my opponent trying to do?"
- Expand your position:
- Gain more space.
- Improve the position of your pieces.
- Decide on what side of the board to play.
- Queenside: a-c files.
- Center: d-e files.
- Kingside: f-h files.
Compare, space, material, and weakness(es)
Play where you have the advantage.
- DO NOT HURRY. Regroup your pieces, and be patient.
5 Habits to learning Openings.
- Understand the moves
As simple as the systems you choose to add to your repertoire may be, there is still some theory to go through. One way I have noticed to work in order to remember the moves is to try to understand why you are making that move and not another. In other words, understand the ideas in the position, both for you and for your opponent.
This way you’ll know what you want to achieve and what you want to keep your opponent from achieving. You’ll see that the right, theoretical moves will suddenly come easier to mind! Of course, this “trick” is almost impossible to apply to sharp lines with only moves.
- Play through annotated games
Seeing many games gives you a wide chess understanding.
Try to include in your training not only games in the openings you play but various openings and pawn structures. Seeing how they are played and reading the explanations will help you over the board, in similar situations where you are out of the book.
Again, try to understand the ideas and how the players think in order to be able to imitate them in your own games.
- Watch online games
It is important to be constantly connected to the latest games. Besides the fact that seeing many games is good for your chess in general, it allows you to stay connected to the latest trends and novelties in openings. You might come across a new, interesting idea in an opening you play that is worth analyzing and including in your repertoire.
- Study the main pawn structures
This habit helps again with your chess in general – you will know what kind of plans to choose, which pieces to keep and which to exchange and how to ideally place them.
How can this help your opening?
It also gives you an overall understanding of the opening; by knowing more than one plan you will be able to adapt better to any changes your opponent might come up with and find the right continuation.
- Read chess literature
Most model games are played by classics; therefore it is very important you study them and if the games have commentaries, even better. Playing through long analyses is not the point in this case; choose written annotations where the authors explain the process of thinking and the ideas in the positions.
Why your openings fail.
Before you blame your losses on your choice of opening, you should first understand 2 of the main reasons why your opening could fail:
- You expect too much from your opening
- You don’t understand the opening well enough
Here’s the important details:
- You expect too much from your opening
The opening is just the start of the game. The purpose is to develop your pieces and achieve a decent middle-game position. Accept that you cannot always get an advantage from the opening – and if you do – that’s a bonus.
A typical example to further illustrate the point
Picture this. A chess player achieves a good middle-game position against a stronger player. However, since his opponent is a stronger player, over the course of the game his position gets worse. He eventually loses and isn’t even sure why he lost. Should he blame the opening for his loss? Of course not.
You cannot expect your choice of opening to compensate for a lack in other important middle- or endgame skills
More often than not, in games below master level, it’s not your choice of opening that fails you. Rather, it’s your (lack of) knowledge and understanding of how that opening should be played that fails you.
Which brings us to the 2nd reason why your opening may fail you:
- You don’t understand the opening well enough
Memorizing the main variations of the opening you play can be useful – as long as your opponent plays the moves you know or expect. But what happens when they deviate from the moves you memorized?
The moment an opening deviates from the main lines, your true understanding of the opening will be tested.
Magnus Carlsen often makes effective use of such opening deviations. He avoids his opponent’s opening preparation by occasionally choosing a move that – even if it may theoretically be an inferior move – neutralizes his opponent’s opening preparation. He does this because he believes his strength lies in his understanding of the game. Naturally he wants to play to his strengths, so he is willing to make a small compromise if that will steer the game into a direction where his strengths come into play.
How well do you understand your opening?
You can test your understanding of your opening by checking how well you can answer the questions below:
- Where do each of the individual pieces go in my opening and why are those the best squares for them?
- Which side will my king castle and is this always the case? When do exceptions come into play?
- Which are the typical traps and tactics that occur in my opening?
- What typically happens to the pawn-structure in the center and what are the middle-game ideas that flow from it? (Because middle-game plans depends mostly on the situation in the center.)
- Which piece-exchanges are usually to my advantage in this opening? Which exchanges should I avoid, and why?
- Which are the key positions that I need to know if I play this opening?
That said, what can you do to improve your understanding the opening you choose to play?
If you couldn’t answer the above questions as well as you would like to, I recommend you check out a openings database and select a number of games (say 20-50 games), where your choice of opening was played by masters. Go through these games and keep the above questions in mind. You will soon start to notice the typical patterns in that opening. By studying a whole number of games in this way (and whilst referring to the list of questions above) you will get a much better understanding of the opening.
Tip: When you’re looking for an opening to learn – go for main-line openings. There is a good reason why they are called “main-line”. They are time-tested and over the course of your chess development, you will be glad you studied them. “Sideline-openings” have their place and require much less study but if you are serious about improving your chess–sideline openings will not give you a solid enough foundation.
Let’s take a look at when it makes sense to castle opposite sides and when it doesn't.
You should castle on the opposite side when at least one of the following factors is true:
- When you are up in development and your opponent has already castled, you should consider castling in the opposite side. That way you will have a clear game plan and will also be able to capitalize on your development advantage.
- When you have a damaged pawn structure (doubled paws, missing pawns, far advanced pawns, etc.) on one of the sides you should consider castling on the other side.
- When opponent’s pieces are especially active on one side of the board, it is usually best to castle on the opposite side.
- If you want to complicate the game you may consider this option. That may be true if you must play for a win due to a tournament situation, when the draw is not enough. Also that maybe done when you're playing against a stronger opponent, who is much better in simple/technical positions. That maybe your best bet.
You should not castle on the opposite sides when at least one of the following factors in true:
- When you are behind in development and you need extra time to develop your pieces, it is usually not a good idea to give your opponent a straight forward way of launching an attack.
- When the opponent’s pawns are advanced towards the side you’re about to castle, it is not a good idea to castle there (especially if the opponent’s king is castled on the opposite side). It will just give him a positional edge in the attack.
- When there are open/semi-open files in-front of the side you’re about to castle, you should probably reconsider your decision to castle there (especially if your opponent has castled on the other side). That will give him more attacking possibilities, such as rook lifts, various sacrifices, doubling of pieces on the file, etc.
- If you playing against a weaker opponent you may want to avoid castling opposite sides, in order to avoid sharp game and keep everything under control.
Note: These are general rules, not laws, meaning that there are always exceptions to them. When you’re making a decision what side to castle you should always take your time and evaluate all “pros” and “cons” and base your decision upon your own analysis. This is a very important decision. It pretty much dictates which way the game will continue. Take your time and think twice.
How to solve chess tactics.
Chess Tactics are probably the most important part of the game you can work on.
Chess Tactics are broken down into different “motifs” with the most common ones being:
- Forks (Double-attacks)
A fork, or double-attack, occurs when your move makes 2 or more threats at the same time. A fork or double-attack is a powerful tactical idea because it’s hard (or sometimes impossible) for your opponent to defend against multiple threats at the same time.
- Pins
The power of a pin lies in the fact that the pinned piece essentially can’t move since doing so would expose another, more valuable, target. The point is that you can often find a way to take advantage of the immobilized (pinned) piece.
- Removing the Defender
When a piece or important square is defended, then that piece or square can become vulnerable once you remove its defender. This is usually done by a trade, threat or sacrifice that removes the defending piece.
- Discovered Attacks
A discovered attack occurs when you move a piece away that reveals a strong threat from a piece that was behind it. The power of this idea lies in the fact that you can also use the moving piece to make a strong threat of its own.
- Tempo-moves
A tempo move is a move that gains time by making a threat that forces your opponent to defend passively. This kind of move is particularly useful if you can use the tempo to achieve a tactical (or even strategic) advantage.
How do you find tactics?
Whenever you are doing tactics, you will notice that the side with the tactical shot will generally always have one or more of the following advantages:
- Advantage in space.
- Advantage in material.
- Weaknesses in the opponent’s position. Such as weakened pawn structure.
How do you calculate tactics?
Look for Forcing Moves:
Checks
Captures
Threats
You look for these 3 things in the order given.
Checks are the most forcing, as the King is being threatened.
Captures are next, as you are threatening to win material.
Threats are last, since they are the least forcing of the three.
Forcing Moves are easier to calculate out, as they are forced lines of continuation.
Start by looking for any Checks you may have. Calculate them out as far as you can.
Then calculate out any Captures you may have. Calculate them out as far as you can.
Then calculate out any Threats you may have. Calculate them out as far as you can.
Once you have found the Forcing Move you think is correct. Play it! Right or wrong, go with what you think is the correct move.
After each tactic, whether you got it right or wrong. Make sure you understand the tactical motif, and why you had the correct, or incorrect answer.
Pawn Structures.
Pawns on d4-e4/d5-e5.
If you OWN the center:
You have to be able to consolidate the center from attack by suitable development.
You use the center to cramp the enemy development.
You have to be ready to advance the center at the right moment to start an attack.
If you are FIGHTING AGAINST the center.
You have to place your pieces aggressively to prevent consolidation.
You have to try to destabilize the center with appropriate pawn levers.
This type of center is strong only when it is sufficiently protected and potentially mobile.
The Open Center, Open e, or d file.
Deploy your pieces as actively as possible.
If you have an Isolated Pawn, you need to keep pieces on the board, and play actively.
If you are playing against an Isolated Pawn, you want to exchange pieces, and aim for an endgame.
Control the open file.
Half Open Center. Pawns on d4-e6, or e4-d6/e4-d6-e6.
Half Open Centers can lead to positions of imbalance.
Half Open Centers are not permanent and can change at any moment.
Deploy your pieces as actively as possible.
If you have a d6-e6 pawn structure, you must find a way to free yourself, or you will remain passive, and give your opponent the initiative.
The side with the advanced central pawn will develop his pieces actively and try and start an attack.
Blocked Pawn Center.
What are the guidelines for blocked pawn centers?
- Pawn Breaks.
- What are the “good and bad” pieces?
- Exchanging the “bad” pieces.
- A good understanding of where the pieces should be placed.
- Blocked centers lead to flank attacks.
- Gain space, and attack.
Isolated Queen Pawn Centers.
Long term the IQP is a weakness, and the opponent should be thinking of the following:
- Active development,
- Blockading the pawn.
- Trading pieces, where the IQP becomes a weakness in the endgame.
- Generally defensive ideas – slow your opponent’s attack.
The side with the IQP, should strive for the following:
- Trade off the IQP.
- Avoid exchanges.
- Keeping the pressure off of the IQP.
- Active piece play.
Doubled Pawns.
If you have the doubled pawns:
Doubled pawns can be a weakness. You want to avoid piece exchanges, unless it benefits you.
The side with the doubled pawns will often times have the bishop, or knight pair, which allows them to take advantage of a color complex.
Doubled pawns create half open files. The half open file can be used for active piece play.
A center pawn push can eliminate doubled pawns.
A doubled pawn can be used to restrain the opponent’s pawns, and or pieces.
Maneuver your pieces to active squares, where they can limit the opponents piece activity, and control the square in front of the doubled pawns.
If you’re playing against doubled pawns:
Doubled pawns can be a weakness. You want to initiate piece exchanges.
If you can, you want to freeze the pawns so they cannot move. This creates targets to attack.
Hanging Pawns.
Hanging pawns are useful in the middlegame, especially if they can be pushed forward at the right moment with pieces behind them.
Hanging pawns tend to become weaker as pieces are exchanged and can be a liability in the endgame.
When you’re playing with hanging pawns:
- Keep pieces on the board.
- Start an attack.
- Advance the hanging pawns at the right moment, to unleash the power of the pieces behind the pawns.
When you’re defending against hanging pawns:
- Attack/Destabilize the hanging pawns.
- Force piece exchanges.
Pawn Chains.
An effective pawn chain can win a game for you.
Active piece play.
Attack the pawn chain at the base if possible.
Try and make your pawns work with your pieces.
Trade off your bad pieces for your opponent’s active pieces.
Use a pawn chain to gain space and cramp your opponent.
Passed Pawns.
Passed pawns can be used to tie the opponent down in the opening, middle, and endgame.
You always try to create a passed pawn in the endgame.
When you’re playing against a passed pawn:
- You want to try and blockade the pawn.
- Create counter play, by playing around the passed pawn.
- Passed pawns become stronger as the endgame approaches, so you want to keep material on the board.
When you have the passed pawn:
- You want to advance the pawn, gaining space, and tying down the opponents pieces.
- Passed pawns become stronger in the endgame, so strive for exchanges.
Immediately after every move by your opponent, you should answer the following two questions:
- What are your opponents threats?
- A mate threat, or other attacks against the King.
- A gain in material.
- Gaining a very good position for a piece.
- Gaining control of an important square, file, or diagonal.
- Any tactical. Or strategic advantage the opponent can gain on the next move.
Evaluate which threats are real. Only real threats should be taken into consideration. For example, if your opponent is threatening to gain the Bishop pair, you should evaluate the position to determine if this is really a negative.
- What are the consequences of your opponents last move?
Almost every move has pluses, and minuses to them. For example, you advance a Pawn to gain control of some squares, but you also lose control of squares. You move a Bishop to gain control of a diagonal, but you may also lose control of an important square, or Pawn. And any of the following:
- Opening a file, or diagonal.
- Blocking a piece with another.
- Weakening a square, or Pawn structure.
- Leaving a piece undefended.
- And many others things you will learn about.
Some of the most important elements are:
- The most important consequences are given by Pawn moves because they cannot move back. With every Pawn move, you gain, an lose control of squares. Pawn moves generally open files, ranks, and diagonals. Therefore, any Pawn move must be well evaluated.
- All moves have one common, and important consequence: Time. This is why all moves should bring you closer to your objective (Game Plan)
- The side of the board you castle on is an important consequence. Opposite side castling tends to lead to more aggressive play, while castling on the same side may lead to less aggressive play.
- When moving a piece, it is important to understand that some squares become defended, or attacked, while others become unprotected. This is the cause of many blunders, and or oversights during games! By remembering this, and understanding this, you can cut down on many of your mistakes, and benefit from those mistakes made by your opponent.
Cheers!!
Regards
@Hilddea
