Excellent. You were able to hone your abilities. I suggest you were born with a natural talent that you have developed even further. Not everybody can do this well or even at all. This talent I think you’ve found can be put to good use in other fields- study of academics etc.
How did all GMs develop a good blindfold ability?
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Playing blindfolded is first and foremost a learned ability, which you can train the best by... drum roll... playing blindfolded. If playing blindfolded seems too big of a task at first, you can practice visualization with various visualization exercises where you solve a tactic based on a written board position. There are different online resources designed for precisely this reason (like Visualization books on Chessable).
When you start playing blindfolded you might have to constantly go back and remind yourself where all the pieces were (which is mentally very tedious and exhausting) and it obviously gets more hazy the further you get. When you start playing blindfolded, the first goal could be making it to 10 legal moves without forgetting the position, then 15, then 20 and eventually try to play a full game. You can do this online with blindfold setup, but best way is to practice with a training partner who can do the moves for you.
I started learning chess as an adult at the age of 24 and I was able to beat my friend in a blindfold game first time when I was 26, so about 2 years after learning the game. I was rated around 1600 online at that time. The game lasted only 18 moves, so it wasn't very long game and my friend is obviously not a very good player (complete beginner), but that's beyond the point. I wasn't that good player either (and still aren't), but I was able to memorize every piece on the board for 18 moves and make good enough moves to checkmate a beginner.
Considering my memory is average at best and when I started practicing blindfold play, I could only remember like 2 or 3 moves before it started to get foggy, it was definitely not some innate talent but 100% practice and effort to get to that point.
Obviously the stronger chess player you are, the stronger you will be able to play blindfolded if you practice blindfolded play. However, even a mediocre player (say 1600+) can play a game blindfolded to a reasonable level if they just practice how to do it.
Jul 17, 2021
0
#24
darkunorthodox88 wrote:
if you are close to FM and cant visualize the position you just played on top of your head, you are the odd one out.
most expert level players can play at least 1 blindfold chessgame at a time.
But here is a little trade secret. Unless you are really strong, you rarely have the whole chess board in sight when you play blind. Its a sort of ranging focus, like looking through a telescope with only a hazy memory of other things on the board depending on where the relevant action is. You can recall where things are if you decide to focus on that side of the board (like moving quickly the telescope to see a section of the board) but you rarely have the whole thing in direct sight.
studies on chess ability show that even master level players are no better than non-players in remembering random chess pieces on a board. its not eidetic memory (although its probably true that a handful of the very strongest are blessed with this). its years upon years of built in pattern recognition. Some players dream legal chess positions and even combinations.
I agree with most of your post.
Though I suppose I'm one of the odd ones, as I can't play blindfold to any respectable degree.
I've tried on here: even Jimmy-Bot (600) is a challenge for me. Likely because he plays illogical, random moves (moving the position away from any common patterns), and I begin to lose track of where all the imbalances and hanging material is after a while.
Aphantasia was mentioned earlier on this thread, and I believe I have it, which might explain some things ...
Jul 17, 2021
0
#25
BestSell wrote:
darkunorthodox88 wrote:
if you are close to FM and cant visualize the position you just played on top of your head, you are the odd one out.
most expert level players can play at least 1 blindfold chessgame at a time.
But here is a little trade secret. Unless you are really strong, you rarely have the whole chess board in sight when you play blind. Its a sort of ranging focus, like looking through a telescope with only a hazy memory of other things on the board depending on where the relevant action is. You can recall where things are if you decide to focus on that side of the board (like moving quickly the telescope to see a section of the board) but you rarely have the whole thing in direct sight.
studies on chess ability show that even master level players are no better than non-players in remembering random chess pieces on a board. its not eidetic memory (although its probably true that a handful of the very strongest are blessed with this). its years upon years of built in pattern recognition. Some players dream legal chess positions and even combinations.
I agree with most of your post.
Though I suppose I'm one of the odd ones, as I can't play blindfold to any respectable degree.
I've tried on here: even Jimmy-Bot (600) is a challenge for me. Likely because he plays illogical, random moves (moving the position away from any common patterns), and I begin to lose track of where all the imbalances and hanging material is after a while.
Aphantasia was mentioned earlier on this thread, and I believe I have it, which might explain some things ...
oh i know its a real thing, an acquaintance of mine is also an NM and cannot play any blindfold chess, except maybe the first 3-5 moves out of the opening lol. it's rare but it happens. Im actually closer to naka in that when i really need to concentrate i will look at the ceiling to concentrate better. (the reason i do it is when you just want to calculate a long continuation, not seeing the board actually helps me filter the relevant part of a combination, like seeing an online chess game already played and clicking forward, seeing the pieces actually hinders my concentration because my mind is thinking of something and the visual aid is just there without moving, competing with the visual memory).
Jul 17, 2021
0
#26
darkunorthodox88 wrote:
oh i know its a real thing, an acquaintance of mine is also an NM and cannot play any blindfold chess, except maybe the first 3-5 moves out of the opening lol. it's rare but it happens. Im actually closer to naka in that when i really need to concentrate i will look at the ceiling to concentrate better. (the reason i do it is when you just want to calculate a long continuation, not seeing the board actually helps me filter the relevant part of a combination, like seeing an online chess game already played and clicking forward, seeing the pieces actually hinders my concentration because my mind is thinking of something and the visual aid is just there without moving, competing with the visual memory).
Yeah, that makes sense.
Though it also appears magical, to those like me, who struggle to visualize without the board/pieces in front of them.
I suppose I do glance away from the board when calculating, on occasion. Though I don't see a mental image of the entire board with video-like clarity, as Beth Harmon sees on the ceiling in The Queen's Gambit.
I'll mostly just glimpse the immediate tactics, in that specific section of the board, and only for 2 or 3 moves deep. Just mentally juggling a handful of pieces/pawns, at most. Beyond that, things begin to feel loose and muddy, and hard to hold onto.
I suppose that aligns with what you said earlier.
Then you have extremely visual players who can give blindfolded simuls, and hold the entire games in their heads to completion, which completely boggles my mind.
darkunorthodox88 wrote:
Niska1 wrote:
My goal is to become a GM in a few years (My strength is a bit lower than FM) and I’ve been seeing many GMs and prodigies being able to visualize positions and games in their head very clearly. (On YouTube)
One example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BD8kmawCvIE
How did they develop this ability? Did they have to do a lot of blindfold exercises or it just came naturally with how much calculation/training they did? When I try to visualize the board, I can’t see the whole of it and if there is a piece on h1 and piece on a8 then I can’t see them both.
if you are close to FM and cant visualize the position you just played on top of your head, you are the odd one out.
most expert level players can play at least 1 blindfold chessgame at a time.
But here is a little trade secret. Unless you are really strong, you rarely have the whole chess board in sight when you play blind. Its a sort of ranging focus, like looking through a telescope with only a hazy memory of other things on the board depending on where the relevant action is. You can recall where things are if you decide to focus on that side of the board (like moving quickly the telescope to see a section of the board) but you rarely have the whole thing in direct sight.
studies on chess ability show that even master level players are no better than non-players in remembering random chess pieces on a board. its not eidetic memory (although its probably true that a handful of the very strongest are blessed with this). its years upon years of built in pattern recognition. Some players dream legal chess positions and even combinations.
No, I can visualize games that I played after a tournament, but I can’t visualize other people’s games like when I try reading chess notation without a board. I can’t do it after a few moves in the opening.
darkunorthodox88 wrote:
BestSell wrote:
darkunorthodox88 wrote:
if you are close to FM and cant visualize the position you just played on top of your head, you are the odd one out.
most expert level players can play at least 1 blindfold chessgame at a time.
But here is a little trade secret. Unless you are really strong, you rarely have the whole chess board in sight when you play blind. Its a sort of ranging focus, like looking through a telescope with only a hazy memory of other things on the board depending on where the relevant action is. You can recall where things are if you decide to focus on that side of the board (like moving quickly the telescope to see a section of the board) but you rarely have the whole thing in direct sight.
studies on chess ability show that even master level players are no better than non-players in remembering random chess pieces on a board. its not eidetic memory (although its probably true that a handful of the very strongest are blessed with this). its years upon years of built in pattern recognition. Some players dream legal chess positions and even combinations.
I agree with most of your post.
Though I suppose I'm one of the odd ones, as I can't play blindfold to any respectable degree.
I've tried on here: even Jimmy-Bot (600) is a challenge for me. Likely because he plays illogical, random moves (moving the position away from any common patterns), and I begin to lose track of where all the imbalances and hanging material is after a while.
Aphantasia was mentioned earlier on this thread, and I believe I have it, which might explain some things ...
oh i know its a real thing, an acquaintance of mine is also an NM and cannot play any blindfold chess, except maybe the first 3-5 moves out of the opening lol. it's rare but it happens. Im actually closer to naka in that when i really need to concentrate i will look at the ceiling to concentrate better. (the reason i do it is when you just want to calculate a long continuation, not seeing the board actually helps me filter the relevant part of a combination, like seeing an online chess game already played and clicking forward, seeing the pieces actually hinders my concentration because my mind is thinking of something and the visual aid is just there without moving, competing with the visual memory).
You said I’m an odd one out. But I only started playing chess 4-5 years ago when I was turning 11. So I haven’t been playing chess as long as these experts you say have. Could that be why? Also what is the level of experts? 2000 FIDE? I’m able to beat most players who are this rating
Reality check is in order. Online blitz/ rapid ratings are rarely indicative of OTB FIDE rating.
Ever played tournaments with 2hrs/ game ?
StormCentre3 wrote:
Reality check is in order. Online blitz/ rapid ratings are rarely indicative of OTB FIDE rating.
Ever played tournaments with 2hrs/ game ?
Who are you responding to? And my OTB rating is high
Jul 18, 2021
0
#31
Niska1 wrote:
StormCentre3 wrote:
Reality check is in order. Online blitz/ rapid ratings are rarely indicative of OTB FIDE rating.
Ever played tournaments with 2hrs/ game ?
Who are you responding to? And my OTB rating is high
Your otb is what?
ninjaswat wrote:
Niska1 wrote:
StormCentre3 wrote:
Reality check is in order. Online blitz/ rapid ratings are rarely indicative of OTB FIDE rating.
Ever played tournaments with 2hrs/ game ?
Who are you responding to? And my OTB rating is high
Your otb is what?
Between 2100 and 2200 but I stayed at that rating for a year and a half because of the pandemic.
punter99 wrote:
4kingknight wrote:
punter99 wrote:
Good visualization is very important in order to calculate quickly and precisely. I think they mainly solved lots of puzzles "from the book" without moving pieces. That's more helpful than online puzzles where you see the new position after every move.
Playing some blindfold games occasionally is also useful. Nowadays it's easily possible to play blindfold online, I remember when I was a little kid, we played a lot of blindfold chess in the car when we were going to tournaments.
People with aphantasia are very good at blindfold chess, and they cannot visualize anything. Calculation is the common factor between visual thinkers, aphantasics, and Chess. Visualization is not necessary in Chess, and I’m not sure why that wives tale still circulates. Visualization is only one way of thinking.
Okay. But if he wants to become an IM or GM, he must be able to calculate deeply, precisely and efficiently and he must be able to evaluate these positions correctly in his head. If he is able to do all that without what is called visualization, fine. But good visualization certainly makes it much more easier and should be trained.
I guess that wives tale still circulates because the word is often used in chess literature, for example in Aagaard's Excelling at Chess Calculation.
Does the size of the board in blindfold make a difference? When I try to visualize positions, for me it’s easier to visualize a smaller board (about the same size as the board in live chess in chess.com) because I can see the whole of it. Am I supposed to visualize a bigger board?
Jul 22, 2021
0
#34
Niska1 wrote:
Does the size of the board in blindfold make a difference? When I try to visualize positions, for me it’s easier to visualize a smaller board (about the same size as the board in live chess in chess.com) because I can see the whole of it. Am I supposed to visualize a bigger board?
No, I don't think that makes a big difference.
punter99 wrote:
Niska1 wrote:
Does the size of the board in blindfold make a difference? When I try to visualize positions, for me it’s easier to visualize a smaller board (about the same size as the board in live chess in chess.com) because I can see the whole of it. Am I supposed to visualize a bigger board?
No, I don't think that makes a big difference.
People are telling me to look at parts of a board at a time, but that just makes it harder. I’m sure that GMs can see the whole board instead of seeing parts of it at a time?
Jul 22, 2021
0
#36
Sure, you should mainly focus on the more important part of the board, but also not forget the other part. I think everybody does it slightly different. Choose the way, that is the easiest for you.
punter99 wrote:
Sure, you should mainly focus on the more important part of the board, but also not forget the other part. I think everybody does it slightly different. Choose the way, that is the easiest for you.
I try to visualize the whole board but when there’s things happening on the queenside or kingside (example - pawn moving to h6 or pawn moving to b5 or other moves on the side of the board) I try to focus on it, but then I lose focus on the other side of the board, and I have to go back to the beginning of the game and replay the moves all over again.
Back when I was younger and much stronger, I played a fair amount of blindfold chess. What I discovered was that at the early stages of the game I'd need to meticulously remind myself of the locations of each piece, and what was on each diagonal, every move. Then, by about move 15, like magic I'd suddenly see the entire position very clearly and could play pretty easily. Doing this I was able to work up to playing three games at once.