...Capablanca was said to "play with the endgame in mind" and was celebrated for his ability to steer games into favourable endgames. What does this mean exactly?
The first step is to first identify an endgame that could be favorable to you and then steer the game into that direction; this isn't always so simple. Even GMs sometimes have trouble finessing this against other GMs. However the goal is always the same (regardless if you are a GM or a class B player, or whatever other ability). Think of Capablanca's endgame mindset as approaching chess from a reverse engineering standpoint. How to win a chess game if it reaches an endgame? Simple, get a favorable middlegame that you can steer into said endgame. How to reach a better middlegame than your opponent? Simple, play better out of the opening. Of course, this is more of a theoretical mindset; in practical play, someone will gain an advantage when the opponent blunders. Sometimes examples make the concept more clear to understand.
Following both Capablanca and the Soviets' advice I have studied the endgame before giving a serious look at anything else aside from basic to intermediate tactical concepts and a few opening rules.
Because my tactical vision is poor I like to steer things into endgames where i most will most likely outperform my opponents.
However since becoming a class B player it is now much harder for me to score wins in classical time control. Before I could win even inferior endgames but now my opponents are better at playing endgames and I draw quite a few of them.
I know Capablanca was said to "play with the endgame in mind" and was celebrated for his ability to steer games into favourable endgames. What does this mean exactly?