Based on a suggestion from refutor, I present the second Caro-Kann Game of the Week -- a Panov Attack where White comes out on top. This is a game between Mikhail Tal and Mikhail Botvinnik during a 1966 match in Moscow (pictured are Tal (left) and Botvinnik from a few years earlier, in the 1960 World Championship).
Here's what Gligoric had to say about this game: ""On the eve of that meeting Botvinnik had been showing his best form, defeating Smyslov, Keres and Spassky; and against Tal again made use of his favourite Caro-Kann. For the first time against his great rival Tal replied with the Panov variation. And he achieved an astonishingly easy victory. There were some who thought with melancholy, he should have done that long before..." (Svetozar Gligoric).
When I started this series/study group, I envisioned that the games presented would be Black wins as we are generally players who are learning to play the opening as part of our Black repertoire. However, after playing through this GREAT game, I see how insightful it is to see the Caro-Kann from the white perspective and guide my opening repertoire to avoid situations like Botvinnik faces against Tal:
As I usually do, I played through this game using the www.chessgames.com "Guess the Move" chess training tool. I thouroughly enjoyed this great game, and scored 80 pts (above par of 72 on this one) -- one of the few times I beat the par score. (Par is the average of all players who have played the game on chessgames.com.)
If you are not a member of chessgames.com, you can simulate/self-score by awarding 3 points for each move by Tal that you can guess correctly. You can fine-tune your simulated version by awarding 1 or 2 points for OK moves and deducting the same for poor alternatives (using your own judgement or a chess engine, such as Rybka or Shredder).
FYI, here's what chessgames.com has to say about their "Guess the Move" tool:
Welcome to Chessgames.com's revolutionary chess training tool, Guess-the-Move!You can review some of the greatest chess games in history, move by move, and try to guess what move the winner played each step of the way. It's a fun, challenging, and competitive way to improve your chess. It's almost like playing against a grandmaster.
Your "opponents" will be some of the strongest players in history. When your GM opponent makes a threat, you'll have to decide how to counter it. And to win the game, you'll have to decide how and when to strike! More than a training tool, it's also a game: you accumulate points based on the merits of your guesses, and at the end, you'll receive a final total score. You can gauge your strength by comparing your score against those of other Chessgames members.
Studying grandmaster games by guessing what move comes next is an excellent way to get better. Some of the world's greatest chess coaches recommend this technique as one of the key methods to improve your chess.
Please reply to this forum with your scores and comments about the game.
Based on a suggestion from refutor, I present the second Caro-Kann Game of the Week -- a Panov Attack where White comes out on top. This is a game between Mikhail Tal and Mikhail Botvinnik during a 1966 match in Moscow (pictured are Tal (left) and Botvinnik from a few years earlier, in the 1960 World Championship).
Here's what Gligoric had to say about this game: ""On the eve of that meeting Botvinnik had been showing his best form, defeating Smyslov, Keres and Spassky; and against Tal again made use of his favourite Caro-Kann. For the first time against his great rival Tal replied with the Panov variation. And he achieved an astonishingly easy victory. There were some who thought with melancholy, he should have done that long before..." (Svetozar Gligoric).
When I started this series/study group, I envisioned that the games presented would be Black wins as we are generally players who are learning to play the opening as part of our Black repertoire. However, after playing through this GREAT game, I see how insightful it is to see the Caro-Kann from the white perspective and guide my opening repertoire to avoid situations like Botvinnik faces against Tal:
As I usually do, I played through this game using the www.chessgames.com "Guess the Move" chess training tool. I thouroughly enjoyed this great game, and scored 80 pts (above par of 72 on this one) -- one of the few times I beat the par score. (Par is the average of all players who have played the game on chessgames.com.)
If you are not a member of chessgames.com, you can simulate/self-score by awarding 3 points for each move by Tal that you can guess correctly. You can fine-tune your simulated version by awarding 1 or 2 points for OK moves and deducting the same for poor alternatives (using your own judgement or a chess engine, such as Rybka or Shredder).
FYI, here's what chessgames.com has to say about their "Guess the Move" tool:
Welcome to Chessgames.com's revolutionary chess training tool, Guess-the-Move!You can review some of the greatest chess games in history, move by move, and try to guess what move the winner played each step of the way. It's a fun, challenging, and competitive way to improve your chess. It's almost like playing against a grandmaster.
Your "opponents" will be some of the strongest players in history. When your GM opponent makes a threat, you'll have to decide how to counter it. And to win the game, you'll have to decide how and when to strike! More than a training tool, it's also a game: you accumulate points based on the merits of your guesses, and at the end, you'll receive a final total score. You can gauge your strength by comparing your score against those of other Chessgames members.
Studying grandmaster games by guessing what move comes next is an excellent way to get better. Some of the world's greatest chess coaches recommend this technique as one of the key methods to improve your chess.
Please reply to this forum with your scores and comments about the game.