Italian game might be the best overall opening, and it will show you the correct ideas you need to focus on in the opening phase. Openings like English or London (or any d4 openings) are fine, but like for some reasons I don't feel you can get as much understanding compared to the Italian, or at least might be useful in the future once you gained the required opening knowledge (maybe with the exception of QG).
Is the Italian Game enough to reach 1500 Elo? Or am I wasting time?
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Yes you can hit 1500 elo by Italian or any opening your comfortable with. Ive hit 1500 not knowing openings, principles of chess, etc. after that im stuck to 1500 for a month.Then i decided i should study tactics to get to 1600. After a month ive went from 1500 to 1600. Now im 2000 elo hope my little advice could help you.Also just enjoy the game☺️
cheeseblackbelt wrote:
I have started using the ponziani from 1200 to 2000, and it's only now that I am considering a change. I prepared you an improvised course but it didn't want to load so I’ll just send screenshots Of course there are other lines like with 3. f5, and many others but you shouldn't face them at your level. Also, you might have some early wins with the ponziani, but still can get some strong tacticaly games. I think from 1200 to 2000, 5% of my wins with the ponziani were from tricks, others were just because I got a strong position out of the opening. There's a gothamchess video on it (a good one for once), you can search it on his channel. The chessly course also goes deeper in middlegame plans and other lines so I’d definitely recommend the free trial to learn the ponziani, as there arent a lot of ressources about it else where
Anyway whatever opening you choose, good luck for your chess journey !
I’m genuinely impressed! Thank you so much for taking the time to share those screenshots and the move orders. It’s rare to find such helpful advice in a forum.
Your statistic about the 5% of wins coming from tricks vs. 95% from a solid position is a game-changer for me. It completely kills the myth that the Ponziani is 'just a trap.' Having a strong two-pawn center is exactly what I’m looking for to improve my middlegame play.
I’ll definitely check out the resources you mentioned (I didn't know Gotham had a good video on this!).
Thanks again for the 'improvised course', I’m definitely saving those lines for an eventual study session!
21 days ago
0
#26
PaulFanex95 a écrit :
cheeseblackbelt wrote:
I have started using the ponziani from 1200 to 2000, and it's only now that I am considering a change. I prepared you an improvised course but it didn't want to load so I’ll just send screenshots Of course there are other lines like with 3. f5, and many others but you shouldn't face them at your level. Also, you might have some early wins with the ponziani, but still can get some strong tacticaly games. I think from 1200 to 2000, 5% of my wins with the ponziani were from tricks, others were just because I got a strong position out of the opening. There's a gothamchess video on it (a good one for once), you can search it on his channel. The chessly course also goes deeper in middlegame plans and other lines so I’d definitely recommend the free trial to learn the ponziani, as there arent a lot of ressources about it else where
Anyway whatever opening you choose, good luck for your chess journey !
I’m genuinely impressed! Thank you so much for taking the time to share those screenshots and the move orders. It’s rare to find such helpful advice in a forum.
Your statistic about the 5% of wins coming from tricks vs. 95% from a solid position is a game-changer for me. It completely kills the myth that the Ponziani is 'just a trap.' Having a strong two-pawn center is exactly what I’m looking for to improve my middlegame play.
I’ll definitely check out the resources you mentioned (I didn't know Gotham had a good video on this!). Since you used it all the way to 2000, do you feel like the 'Ponziani spirit' helped you develop better tactical vision compared to more standard openings?
Thanks again for the 'improvised course', I’m definitely saving those lines for my next study session!
What do you mean by tactical vision and ponziani spirit ? Out of the ponziani, the position is often pretty open, which could favor some tactics opening, but I just trained tactics outsoque of the opening. Chesstempo is a good site to train tactics and completely free too if you want
Jenium wrote:
The Italian is a solid, classical opening that's even being played at the highest levels. Besides, there is no real correlation between rating and choice of opening below master level. The only reason why you might want to consider using gambits is to get familiar with different aspects of the game, not because the openings are superior.
That's a grounded perspective. It’s easy to get caught up in the best opening trap, but remembering that there's no real correlation between opening choice and rating at my level helps me focus on what actually matters: playing solid chess.
I like your point about using gambits as a way to learn different aspects of the game rather than seeing them as 'superior' weapons. It makes sense to stick with the Italian for its classical principles while maybe exploring more aggressive lines occasionally just to sharpen my tactical awareness.
cheeseblackbelt wrote:
PaulFanex95 a écrit :
cheeseblackbelt wrote:
I have started using the ponziani from 1200 to 2000, and it's only now that I am considering a change. I prepared you an improvised course but it didn't want to load so I’ll just send screenshots Of course there are other lines like with 3. f5, and many others but you shouldn't face them at your level. Also, you might have some early wins with the ponziani, but still can get some strong tacticaly games. I think from 1200 to 2000, 5% of my wins with the ponziani were from tricks, others were just because I got a strong position out of the opening. There's a gothamchess video on it (a good one for once), you can search it on his channel. The chessly course also goes deeper in middlegame plans and other lines so I’d definitely recommend the free trial to learn the ponziani, as there arent a lot of ressources about it else where
Anyway whatever opening you choose, good luck for your chess journey !
I’m genuinely impressed! Thank you so much for taking the time to share those screenshots and the move orders. It’s rare to find such helpful advice in a forum.
Your statistic about the 5% of wins coming from tricks vs. 95% from a solid position is a game-changer for me. It completely kills the myth that the Ponziani is 'just a trap.' Having a strong two-pawn center is exactly what I’m looking for to improve my middlegame play.
I’ll definitely check out the resources you mentioned (I didn't know Gotham had a good video on this!). Since you used it all the way to 2000, do you feel like the 'Ponziani spirit' helped you develop better tactical vision compared to more standard openings?
Thanks again for the 'improvised course', I’m definitely saving those lines for my next study session!
What do you mean by tactical vision and ponziani spirit ? Out of the ponziani, the position is often pretty open, which could favor some tactics opening, but I just trained tactics outsoque of the opening. Chesstempo is a good site to train tactics and completely free too if you want
My bad, I used some pretty broad terms! By 'tactical vision,' I just meant the ability to spot those forcing moves and combinations in complex positions. And by 'Ponziani spirit,' I was referring to that specific aggressive style where you challenge the center early to create those open, sharp games you mentioned.
Regarding your tip, I've mostly used Chess.com for puzzles until now. In your experience, what are the main differences between Chesstempo and the puzzles here?
21 days ago
0
#29
Chess.com puzzles are limited, I know you have diamond membership but still. The tactics on chesstempo are free and unlimited, the rating is more accurate, and idk why but I often feel when I do cc puzzles that they aren’t very likely to happen in a real game. I just have taken the habit to do tactics on chesstempo (which also have a lot of other great feature) and it worked well, while cc puzzles didn’t seem to bring my play much
21 days ago
0
#30
PaulFanex95 wrote:
Regarding your tip, I've mostly used Chess.com for puzzles until now. In your experience, what are the main differences between Chesstempo and the puzzles here?
Sorry, I'm not the person, but I think since you've diamond membership here, it won't make much difference
But if I must say, the puzzles there, for some reasons, make more sense and are much harder. In cc, 2000 can be solved even by a 1000. Compared to Chesstempo? Even a 2000 rated player will struggle a lot to solve a 2000 rated puzzle. The website reflects more toward OTB rating, and for some reasons, it feels "applicable." I'll say give it a try, maybe the UI isn't as great as here, but I guess nothing wrong will happen
21 days ago
0
#31
cheeseblackbelt wrote:
idk why but I often feel when I do cc puzzles that they aren’t very likely to happen in a real game.
ayyy we got the same feeling lol
#6 I've tried the Evans Gambit and the Fried Liver and know them well but now I'm sticking to the Giucco Pianissimo.
DoYouLikeCurry wrote:
I mean the Italian is one of the most popular openings at all levels for a reason. It certainly wouldn’t be the reason you don’t hit 1500. If you want to make it more likely, consider learning the Evan’s gambit for the line in the Italian where it is possible, this was a favourite of Kasparov and definitely has some teeth.
To be honest, I’ve never tried the Evans Gambit before, and I didn't even realize it was a branch of the Italian! Mentioning Kasparov is a bit intimidating—we’re talking about one of the GOATs, after all. I’m not sure if his games are the best comparison for my 1150 level, but I really appreciate the suggestion. It sounds like a great next step to add some 'teeth' to my Italian Game once I feel more comfortable with the basics.
Ineffaceable wrote:
Openings are only as good as the person who uses them
Point taken! It’s not about the car, it’s about the driver
HolesExplorer wrote:
Yes it's enough.
Actually, 1500 needs roughly ±400 ratings from your current ratings that a lot of rating margin to the end of this year. People usually hit the wall around ~1300 or ~1400 that would still take time.
But I believe in you, go for it.
Thanks for the vote of confidence! I’m aware that jumping 400 points is a huge climb and those walls at 1300 or 1400 are definitely going to be a challenge. It’s good to know the Italian can carry me through them if I put in the work. I’ll keep grinding!
arthie935 wrote:
The italian is good at all levels, if you study it well you could reasonably use it all the way up to the 2000s if you go for that
Thanks for the encouragement! To be honest, 2000 Elo feels like a different planet right now, so I'm trying to keep my feet on the ground. For now, I'm just going to focus on the grind and keep working hard to hit that 1500 goal first.
21 days ago
0
#38
PaulFanex95 wrote:
Thanks for the encouragement! To be honest, 2000 Elo feels like a different planet right now, so I'm trying to keep my feet on the ground. For now, I'm just going to focus on the grind and keep working hard to hit that 1500 goal first.
Haha ask any 2000 - they will all tell you one thing: they are worse than you expect them to be
They still make stupid blunders and mistakes. Maybe not as frequently and they think some moves ahead, but once you reach there, you will realize it's actually dumber than you thought it was lol
AydenSiuChess wrote:
why not play scotch?
Thanks for the suggestion! I’ve actually played the Scotch a few times in my 6,000+ games—and even the Danish Gambit, which is way crazier. But right now, at my level, I’m trying not to overcomplicate things by learning too many different lines. I’d rather stick to one thing and learn it well before moving on to something else. I appreciate the tip, though!
Hanish2312 wrote:
can try bird's
Interesting point! I guess every opening has its limits once your opponent knows the theory. As for the Bird’s, thanks for the suggestion, but I’m trying to avoid falling into the trap of learning too many different systems right now. I'd rather get comfortable with the few openings I already know and face the challenges it brings than split my focus. One step at a time!
can try bird's