My chess tournament- Part 10- My experience at the NAYCC in Toronto, Canada

I notice you have some problems with French. The first one is vs Zhong, J, where you still can take a draw. The second one is vs Bellissimo, J, where you lose.

I think Bellissimo, J notices it  and saw your game vs Zhong, J. And I think he avoids 1. e4 e5 which is one of your strengths.

@JMB2010 It is an international tournament though...but yeah money would be a good thing but a title will be with you for the rest of your life.

@bean_Fischer He just blitzed out the moves to intimidate me or something, he didn't really know about the other game I played with that line.

I mean, just imagine the 2190 FIDE player when he sees some 1600 with a CM title.

lol. That would be funny. Yeah, there's this 1100 kid who went to Mexico and got a CM title. I played him at a local chess club and beat him quite easily. I don't really count that as beating a CM though.

How did he play French against you? You must win French one of these days. I know 1. e4 e5 is your strength either Black or White.

You like an open tactical game and gambit. I think you have achieved so much with it. What do you think if you play positional?

The last game, you say you were tired. Actually, you just didn't like 1. d4. You expected 1. e4. And you didn't have any interest to continue.

Ok, things you should improve.

1. French.

2. Positional.

3. Openings other than 1. e4 either as White or Black.

@bean_Fischer In round 8 it started as a French Defense.

LOL I like how you trace everything back to openings. And nice try with openings, I'm not gonna study them 

I agree with JMB on the title thing. I mean, yeah, obviously it's a nice prize for kids, nice for anybody untitled, but is it degrading the value of the title by awarding it to somebody who just plays well in one event? In my opinion it is.

I mean, if someone is 1600 rated, but has an FM title, I don't care, I'm still likely going to beat them. Titles like FM, CM etc. should be used to mark out players that have reached a certain level of quality in their chess, and many players that have only got these titles as a result of one good tournament aren't of the same quality as the standard titled player, and it becomes a bit nonsensical to have these weaker "masters" floating around.

@-waller- yeah, it is kinda devaluing the title. 

@doduobird123 thanks!

@Abhishek2, I also wonder about how much opening knowledge helps. For me I study a little bit, just so I don't burn too much clock time in the first 5-10 moves. But beyond that, I would think that general middlegame skill (maneuvering, tactics, strong points, etc.) would count for much more. 

But then again, I am not yet a strong player. What is your opinion?

In my opinion, openings should not be largely focused on until you get to a certain level. What's more important is getting your pieces out quickly and practice your combinations.

You should larn how to fight the French better. It is a solid opening and not hard to learn. The first time I played it, I won. I have a thread on it now.

yes, I am looking for something.

I had a nice find- I looked in the database and found something very similar to my game vs. J Bellissimo:

http://www.chess.com/games/view?id=24030

lol, Lilienthal at 2385? How did they come up with that?

i don't know... 

I have an idea! I'll explore different variations of the French by starting some thematic games soon.

yes. I have got rid of my previous opening 1. d4 e5, and openings are playing a bigger factor.  I also need to work on my positional chess. I'm even working on a backup of my 1. e4 in case someone has prepared against me.

French is not hard to study, unlike Sicilian. It's all about pawn structure. Once French structure is formed, it can stay rigid for awhile. Sicilian on the other hand has dynamic pawn structures on the king and queen side.

It's not hard for your opponent to see what openings you play. He has just to see the first moves.

I am impressed that you have attained an excellent rating despite your wild gambiteering style!

Th downfall of the French for black, is the fact that blacks king is isolated, and thus, white will have his strong pieces pointing at Blacks king! I have been working on having the king castled on the queen side, with all his pieces, and it is working so far. The french is hard to crack for most people, that why I use it now. It all revolves around the pawn chains to.