How should I study chess? - Chess Forums

SuperObeseMan

Jun 14, 2017

0

#1

Hello chess community, I am new to chess and I think it is a good game to spend some free time, it can be a bit stressing but it is a good exercise for the brain.

My question is what should I study to improve? I have 2/3 hours per day to spend but I dont know what books and materials are good:

I read that I should not concentrate on openings and do tactics, then another articles says doing tactics is not that beneficial so I am so confused, please help me!!!!

IMBacon22

Jun 14, 2017

0

#2

Tactics...tactics...tactics.

Opening Principles.

SuperObeseMan

Jun 14, 2017

0

#3

any book or software you recommend, and how long should I study tactics? I mean how many years?

SuperObeseMan

Jun 14, 2017

0

#4

and should I study openings?

SuperObeseMan

Jun 14, 2017

0

#5

thisoldboy wrote:

In the bath

I guess that is the way they do it in England

ThrillerFan

Jun 14, 2017

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#6

You should probably split your time as follows:

Endgames - 40% (Get Silman's Complete Endgame Course - excellent resource for a beginner)

Tactics - 30%

Strategy - 15%

Games of World Champions Pre-1950 - 10%

Opening Concepts - 5%

Opening Theory - 0%

Then, as you get better, as in over 1600 over the board strength (ratings on here are total cr@p), the Endgames and Tactics numbers go down (never to 0 though) and opening theory goes up. Also, the stronger you get, the more recent the players you should be studying. Like in the beginning, you should study Steinitz, Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, etc. No reason to go for those with very deep opening theory of the computer generation at this point. When you get to be about 1800 or 2000, only then go for the ones like Karpov, Kasparov, Anand, Carlsen, etc.

SuperObeseMan

Jun 14, 2017

0

#7

ThrillerFan wrote:

You should probably split your time as follows:

Endgames - 40% (Get Silman's Complete Endgame Course - excellent resource for a beginner)

Tactics - 30%

Strategy - 15%

Games of World Champions Pre-1950 - 10%

Opening Concepts - 5%

Opening Theory - 0%

Then, as you get better, as in over 1600 over the board strength (ratings on here are total cr@p), the Endgames and Tactics numbers go down (never to 0 though) and opening theory goes up. Also, the stronger you get, the more recent the players you should be studying. Like in the beginning, you should study Steinitz, Lasker, Capablanca, Alekhine, etc. No reason to go for those with very deep opening theory of the computer generation at this point. When you get to be about 1800 or 2000, only then go for the ones like Karpov, Kasparov, Anand, Carlsen, etc.

Thanks , thanks a lot!!!!

This is the kind of answer I was looking for, for strategy what book do you recommend?

NM LogoCzar

Jun 14, 2017

0

#8

Soviet middlegame technique - quality chess edition.

SuperObeseMan

Jun 14, 2017

0

#9

About the complete manual of positional chess, the author says in the prologue that the book is intended for 2000+ rating players, I just checked the free intro.

havelock3

Jun 14, 2017

0

#10

SuperObeseMan wrote:

...

I read that I should not concentrate on openings and do tactics, then another articles says doing tactics is not that beneficial so I am so confused, please help me!!!!

You will hear a lot of emphatic advice but I think it's best to take a balanced approach and not be in a rush. Chess is hard so be patient and steady.

Tactics are fundamental but everything is important. At the end of the day you will be the best judge of how you want to study, what works best and what is most important to you. Maybe you will like fast tactical games, or maybe long positional ones. Who knows? Try everything but don't expect one thing to be "the answer".

SuperObeseMan

Jun 14, 2017

0

#11

Thanks, I am not in a hurry for rating, I just want to understand the game better and maximize my time, I dont care if I reach the 1600 or 1300 or 1900. I dont get mad when I lost, I just review the game and move on to the next one or watch a youtube video.

havelock3

Jun 14, 2017

0

#12

SuperObeseMan wrote:

Thanks, I am not in a hurry for rating, I just want to understand the game better and maximize my time, I dont care if I reach the 1600 or 1300 or 1900. I dont get mad when I lost, I just review the game and move on to the next one or watch a youtube video.

My philosophy exactly. After all it's a hobby.

SuperObeseMan

Jun 14, 2017

0

#13

pl4ych4ss wrote:

You are not very beginner. You played 5 rapid games. 4 wins and 1 draw. Rating nearly 1300.

I just followed the principles of the opening, develop and attack, that is what the book on chess for dummies say.

jambyvedar

Jun 14, 2017

0

#14

Get Idiot's Guide To Chess bg GM Wolf. It will give you an overview of basic tactics, endgames and strategies that you mus know. This book will also improve you. You also need a tactics puzzle book. Get World Champion's Guide to Chess by Polgar. It contains tactical puzzles appropriate for you. It also contains some chess tips.

sea_of_trees

Jun 14, 2017

0

#15

Don't study just play.

Life is short.

kindaspongey

Jun 15, 2017

0

#16

Possibly of interest:
Simple Attacking Plans by Fred Wilson (2012)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708090402/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review874.pdf
Logical Chess: Move by Move by Irving Chernev (1957)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708104437/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/logichess.pdf
The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played by Irving Chernev (1965)
https://chessbookreviews.wordpress.com/tag/most-instructive-games-of-chess-ever-played/
Winning Chess by Irving Chernev and Fred Reinfeld (1949)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708093415/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review919.pdf
Back to Basics: Tactics by Dan Heisman (2007)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708233537/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review585.pdf
Discovering Chess Openings by GM John Emms (2006)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627114655/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen91.pdf
Openings for Amateurs by Pete Tamburro (2014)
http://kenilworthian.blogspot.com/2014/05/review-of-pete-tamburros-openings-for.html
https://chessbookreviews.wordpress.com/tag/openings-for-amateurs/
https://www.mongoosepress.com/catalog/excerpts/openings_amateurs.pdf
Chess Endgames for Kids by Karsten Müller (2015)
https://chessbookreviews.wordpress.com/tag/chess-endgames-for-kids/
http://www.gambitbooks.com/pdfs/Chess_Endgames_for_Kids.pdf
A Guide to Chess Improvement by Dan Heisman (2010)
https://web.archive.org/web/20140708105628/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review781.pdf
Seirawan stuff
http://seagaard.dk/review/eng/bo_beginner/ev_winning_chess.asp?KATID=BO&ID=BO-Beginner
https://www.chess.com/article/view/book-review-winning-chess-endings
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627132508/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/hansen173.pdf
http://www.nystar.com/tamarkin/review1.htm

kindaspongey

Jun 15, 2017

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#17

UtrechtRose wrote:

Yusupov's books (e.g. Build up Your Chess volumes 1, 2 and 3) are very good. However you have to work hard to get their benefit. A passive "play over the games and soak it up" approach does not get you very far. ...

kindaspongey

Jun 15, 2017

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#18

UtrechtRose wrote:

... Many players on chess.com seem to obsess about openings, when playing a good opening is the least of their problems. I reckon that most of them would improve more from learning the entire content of Averbakh's slim little book "Chess Endings, Essential knowledge".

In the beginning of Averbakh's Chess Endings Essential Knowledge:
"... the study of the simplest endings should precede the analysis of the openings and the middlegame."

SuperObeseMan

Jun 15, 2017

0

#19

Thanks chess people, I ordered the silmans book and the first of Yusupov, I will work with both and the tactics from here and chesstempo.com.

I will follow Thriller fan percentaje distribution by just adding 5% to the study of of the openings I like using, reducing to 35% endgames.

SuperObeseMan

Jun 15, 2017

0

#20

the Ray Gordon video? I just watched it, good stuff on hanging pieces, I have to be more careful with that.