Another beginner stuck

Hi everyone,

I have been on chess.com for nearly 7 months now. I read a lot of similar beginner posts and suggestions on the forum yet I am still stuck and rather than playing better, I am getting worse.

I have worked through a lot of the free lessons on chess.com, I have done most of the ones on lichess as well.

As I read on other posts, instead of learning a ton of openings I have studied one in-depth before moving on, I have watched and re-watched John Bartholomew’s YouTube chess fundamentals videos (the one on I undefended pieces 3x at least). I am working through the book Predator at the chessboard to work on tactics specifically and I am doing puzzles everyday. I have slowed down my playing a lot but now I constantly run out or time.

I known I should get a chess coach but I am masters student and right now can’t afford one until I finish my degree and get a job.

I would welcome any advice as I am starting to wonder whether chess is not for me. I can’t seem to think ahead/see moves ahead and I am constantly making blunders.

The more I try and think about the next move the more I appear to be blind sided my something else.

Thank you in advance.

Majinn

 

I think a big issue you have is around the time control. I assume you're only playing 10 mins games at any time?

Look at move 15 - I'm sure you can look at that and see you should have captured that Knight with your bishop rather than moving the rook.  There's no video or book you need to be able to see that and understand the error.

What you really needed to be able to see that correct move was the one thing you didn't give yourself any of... time! You only gave yourself 5 seconds to make that move so rushed into the first thing you saw.

I'd suggest you stop playing 10 mins and switch to 15|10 at least - that will enable you to slow down and review all of your options before moving.

I'd also strongly recommend playing some daily games where you often have as much as 3 days to decide what to do next.

*Edit - multiple typing errors removed and tidier pgn file used*

 

 

PS - this is the advice of a fellow beginner and not an actual expert - but these slower game versions have really helped me!

Thank you for the fast reply. I did see that when I went into analysis mode and I was kicking myself as it was so obvious. I suffer from tunnel vision a lot. I tried working on the vision functionality of chess.com but I don't think I am using it right because it did nothing for me. 

Ok, I will take your advice under direct advisement. I will now switch to 30 minutes games and see if I can attack my problem head-on.

Majinn

Tunnel vision is the exact same phrase that I and another friend have used to describe our own thought processes! You're not alone there...

A good tip on time control (HT Dan Heisman) is that if you're finishing games with plenty of time left on the clock then you're playing too fast. 

If i have 15 minutes on the clock then you can save up a reserve of time for the tricky positions or decisions and spend it studying the board. Don't let the constant ticking off the clock rush you...

 

First of all, 10 minute games are probably way too fast for you. For most of us 10 minute games are too fast for improvement. You've said that you've watched John Bartholomew series? That is good, but even he says that 15+10 is probably the absolute minimum. In some of his later videos he says that even longer time controls are better than 15+10. 

I see that you are playing multiple games per day. You are free to do so, but it is better to play less amount of longer games than multiple faster games of lower quality. You are probably not ready for more in depth analysis, but you should at the very least, do some blunder check after you finish your games. Perhaps you will find some tactics you've missed or something that your opponent has missed as well. In any case, longer games should help you to keep your blunders to a minimum.

I've written a guide which you may find useful. Here it is if you have the time for reading:

https://www.chess.com/blog/nklristic/the-beginners-tale-first-steps-to-chess-improvement

In any case, good luck. I hope you will find this post useful.

Thanks everyone.

Just finished my first 30 minute game. I have to say, the experience was incredibly painful. Even though the other player was rated 498, I got bullied around the board quite a lot and with more time to think about each move, it also meant the other opponent had more time to think about his/her moves as well. I also felt like I just didn't know what to play next and I couldn't see any forks/skewers/pins, etc. 

It also made me realize that I have no idea how to defend as black. 

Anyway, I had a quick look at the analysis and the computer is suggested that I should have made a bunch of moves that would have lost me material. I might take some time off, and revisit this game in details as there seems to be quite a bit that I don't understand just in terms of controlling the center. 

Whilst I am at it, does anyone have any advice on how to best/most optimally review one's game?

Thank you.

Majinn

The important thing is that you have fun. Because unless you become world champion there's always going to be someone better than you... If you're having fun then there are a few things that you might consider. First of all good thing you're studying, but now we have to apply all of that in the game. But before we continue we  must make sure we know at least  a couple of basic checkmates like Queen and Rook, King and Queen, and King and Rook, if you know those well then we move on. As pointed above longer time controls or even better, daily games, where you have a whole day, sometimes 3 depending on your choice, to think of a move. That means you get to think of every possible move. For example, you have a position and you're thinking of a  move then you think let me see, my knight on f3 can go to d4, capture the pawn on e5, go h4, or back to g8. If I move to h4, his queen can capture, the pawn on e5 is defended, going back to g8 makes no sense. No good moves with the knight for now.... Hmm how about I move my bishop then? My bishop can go to this and that square, his possible replies are such and such. That way you can avoid hanging pieces, if you avoid hanging pieces, at your rating chances are your opponent will hang one. Then you go and try to trade as many pieces as you can and promote your pawn to checkmate your opponent.

With time and experience you'll be able to spot this moves faster and calculate 2,3,4 moves ahead. Good luck

If all the ingredients are there, (studying, enjoyment), then TIME, takes care of the rest.  Perhaps there should be no anxiety to achieve anything beyond personal enjoyment for a time.  It would be rare to play a very bad move in daily chess if you enjoy analyzing the situation; if you enjoy the process of understanding, etc. As for blitz, it’s just another skill, and still you should at least enjoy. Rapid? It’s often just like blitz. I consider all this online chess as a workout, so to speak, in preparation for over the board play.  But after all, I’m a OG from before the internet. 😛

Always check your intended move is no blunder before you play it. That alone should get you to 1500.

I hope this will be helpful. I gave you a few pointers based on your 30 minute game. If there is something unclear, ask away.

You did not get bullied in that game, you were winning at some points even. The biggest objective for you is to ensure your pieces are safe- don’t lose pieces for free! First order of business when it’s your move is what checks does this position hold, what captures are possible, what pieces can be threatened, and before you end your move- are all my pieces safe?

You should review the opening principles again because pawn f6 does NOT follow opening principles.

Be aware that early on in chess many players will “be aggressive” by bringing their queen out early or storming the board with many pawn advances- that’s OK for you, and you did fine dealing with that this game to a reasonable extent. When opponents play like that remember they are creating weaknesses from those moves and you will be able to exploit them in time.

Keep playing longer times games and daily games. Practice thinking through positions, looking for free candy by your opponent and making sure you don’t give them free anything without an excellent reason. Keep practicing lessons, work on opening principles, and solve puzzles. You’ll improve with time, it might just be a giant leap instead of consistent steps forward- as it often is for us. Cheers!

If you're a bookish sort of learner (I certainly am) then I'd really recommend this:

https://www.amazon.com/Guide-Chess-Improvement-Best-Novice/dp/1857446496

It's not a book of diagrams and puzzles but rather short essays that can help you think about how you approach a game and each decision that you make during a game. I'm just at the start of reading it at the moment and would thoroughly recommend it...

While John B's "fundamentals" series is very good, it is probably too advanced for you just yet. And learning openings in depth (???) is a complete waste of time.

What you should focus right now is to notice when a piece is hanging (can be taken for free).

Take the game that was linked above:

Move 10, you could take on f2 with a huge advantage, but you don't.

Move 12: again.

Move 13: again.

Move 15: white simply hangs a knight on c7, but you don't take it.

These are inexplicable blunders even on the beginner level. Until you fix this, nothing else matters.

You have premium, do more tactical puzzles. 

Hi! My name is Lauren Goodkind and I’m a chess coach and chess YouTuber based in California: 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP5SPSG_sWSYPjqJYMNwL_Q

 

First of all, I hope you enjoy playing chess! That's why you started playing it, right?

 Play your best and also have fun.   If chess wasn't fun, I wouldn't be playing it.  

 

Regardless, I have tips to help you improve your chess skills so you can win more games.  

-I  offer a  free beginner’s free eBook on my website, www.ChessByLauren.com in case you are interested. The book is about asking questions before each move.  

-Learn basic tactics such as the fork, discovered attack, pin, and more.  I offer interactive puzzles on my website: https://www.chessbylauren.com/two-choice-puzzles.php  

-I recommend two books for you: “50 Poison Pieces”   and “Queen For A Day: The Girl’s Guide To Chess Mastery.”  Both books are available on Amazon.com.  Both books are endorsed by chess masters!  

-If you are serious about chess, I highly recommend you hiring a chess coach to help you.  

-Also consider all checks and captures on your side and also your opponent’s side. Always as, “If I move here, where is my opponent going to move?”

I hope that this helps.  

you want to have some fundamentals down before playing complete games. you need to master basic checkmates, (queen, rook and two bishops will do for now), a few basic pawn endings, and just a simple algorithm for choosing a move in positions that you don't know what to do. that algorithm should include checking for tactics for yourself and for the opponent. some ideas on a few direct openings and what each side is trying to do and why, not just so you can play these openings but also so that you can understand some general concepts that are repeated. in terms of tactics, a reasonable goal would be to get to a point where you can spot 3 ply simple tactics (you move, then opponent moves then you move again) in as little time as possible, preferably a few seconds. the first 20 puzzles in puzzle rush usually is of this nature. try to get it right and not mind how long it takes, and then when you consistently get it right, try to reduce your time.

 

 

even survival is fine, as long as you try to get it right more than solve it fast. but my advice is if you can't see it after 5 minutes of hard thinking then just move on, look up the answer and remember the idea. the goal is not to torture yourself for not being able to solve things, but to gain as many patterns as possible so you can trigger those patterns while in a real game, and so when a pattern appears you immediately sense there is a tactic and you try to solve it.