Geller Teaches a Lesson: "Tactics Versus Strategy"

Some chess players are great players; other chess players are great teachers. Again, there is a third category: chess players who are great players AND great teachers. Efim Geller was such a person: a rare combination of player, theory researcher AND great teacher and coach.

He was Spassky's second in the 1972 World Championship match against Fischer, and also was a second to Karpov and Petrosian.

Recently, Quality Chess published a collection of 135 of Geller's best games, commented by Geller himself!

...and this is the difference maker!

Geller's contributions to the world of chess are extensive, both as a player and as a theorist.

In the future I will publish an extensive blog about him. Today, I want to concentrate on one game that caught my attention: Parma-Geller, Havana 1965. Geller had a good tournament, 3rd place, behind Smyslov and Ivkov. One notable fact: the only undefeated players were Geller and Kholmov!

So, let us learn from Geller, who is giving us 135 Master Classes in this book.

Today's lesson:

TACTICS VERSUS STRATEGY

"Schemes that look advantageous from the viewpoint of the general laws of strategy sometimes meet with unexpected refutations based on the tactical pecularities of the position. This doesn't at all contradict the unshakable rule about the primacy of strategy. it simply means that the elaborationof valed schemes requires you to choose the moment with precisionand take into account the combinative possibilities of the opposing side. Bruno Parma was oblivious to the fact that after breaking into his opponent's camp, his queen would end up in a trap- and that by attacking it, Black would obtain the conditions for a counter-offensive."

11-01-19

Note: The two games I found in the database with Nh2, f2-f4 for White ended in draws. Here is one of them: