The value of opening preparation
I recently returned to tournament chess after a hiatus and frequently found myself in winning positions (with both colors) by move 20 against players 1800+ USCF. I mainly attribute this to my opening preparation. Many players underestimate the value of opening study, partially because many club players focus mainly on the theory when they don't understand how to exploit a theoretical advantage or tactically blunder soon after exiting theory, but if used correctly, opening preparation can greatly improve your competitive results.
It has been said that it is easier to attack than defend. It is also often true that it can be difficult to play worse positions, as your primary focus is often trying to equalize while your opponent can play actively. GM Bobby Fischer once said 'tactics flow from superior positions', and if you are always on the defensive, you won't have very many chances to execute winning tactics in your games. Study of the openings can help you fight for the advantage from the beginning, putting the pressure on your opponent and making it more likely to obtain a favorable imbalance. You can use this imbalance to push for a win while your opponent plays defensively for a draw.
Exclusively memorizing opening variations can be counterproductive at club level. However, if study of variations is combined with a systematic study of master-games, structures, common patterns, and thematic ideas in the openings you play, you can be well prepared both when you are in theory and out of theory. If you combine this with analyzing all of your games (and playing many games in an opening), the increased understanding in that opening can be very difficult to face, especially if your opponent hasn't studied the opening as much as you.
To emphasize my point, here are the results in my online games for some openings that I've done a lot of analysis on.
How effective opening preparation has been for me in improving my results can especially be emphasized by my recent game in the Boston Chess Congress. I was able to play the first 16 moves on the increment, as I'd memorized them long before the game, and played the same 23 moves (not counting a transposition) as I did against a local expert to reach a won endgame.
For those that are interested, this variation (and much more) is covered in my GM endorsed 1.e4 repertoire which can be purchased here. A product review by Milliern can be viewed here. I spent roughly 6 months and hundreds (perhaps thousands) of hours working on this course; you can be sure that it is high quality. For those that want deep understanding without knowing a lot of theory, there are 64 annotated games and dozens of introductory lines which illustrate the basics and main plans without getting into much of the theory. For those that want to deeply study the theory, there are 1254 variations with an average line depth of 14.25.
As I am biased toward my course, it wouldn't be fair to recommend only my repertoire for those that are interested in studying the opening. The Grandmaster Repertoire series by Quality Chess tends to be very high quality, though very theoretical and without annotated games. The Starting Out and Move by Move series by Everyman Chess can be a great way to learn a new opening, especially as they emphasize understanding the ideas and plans. Databases can also be a great way to learn openings, as you can explore what has been played by masters and what scores well, check master-games, and use it as a post-game reference to look for improvements. Analyzing with an engine can also be useful, although the horizon effect can be especially bad so early in the game (theory tends to be more accurate than engines), but if you already are deep into a theoretical position, engines can help players see the tactical resources. There is also a lot of excellent video series available on the opening, although most of the best ones are paid (and generally quite expensive relative to books and Chessable courses). They can be found on websites like IChess.net and thechessworld.com. Chess.com and ICC offer some good opening videos, but only for premium members. Youtube can be a great resource for starting off, but generally, those videos are either superficial/for weaker club players or are an introduction to a paid product.
I have had a lot of success with serious opening preparation and I hope that those reading this benefited from hearing my perspective.
