Top 10 Tips

Hello,

I was wondering if some high rated players could give me some tips on becoming better at chess. Please don't make stupid answers either. If you could direct me to a website where I could learn the best ways to play chess, that would be great.

Hi Noah,

The best way to learn a few tips is to actually play a high ranked person like me (just joking) and that way you easy can get some tips by learning. Doing is learning.

Ronaldvdb

read books. look into the eyes of grandmasters. also, analyze ALL your important games in which the goal is to win. if you consistently lose on time, play games in which the main focus is to not lose on time and not do blunders. this will help solve all weaknesses which are just bad habits. back to analyzing games. this is very important because it tells you exactly what you're doing wrong. if you can't lecture on about why you played a certain move, you probably shouldn't have played it. experience, reading books, and analyzing games and actually writing down your thoughts should be the next step in your road to chess mastery.

THIS site has tons of material and training and everything!! I use this site almost exclusively to play/train/study chess and my rating keeps going up and up and up!

I am low rated, and the thing that helps me the most is to go play as much as possible. Play long and slow games that allow deep thought. Work on one opening as white, and pick a response to d4 and e4 as black. Play these openings over, and over, and over again. Eventually you'll start to recognise patterns and common structures.

Don't be afraid to take a break from playing every now and then!

Read Irving Chernev's Logical Chess, ideal for players around your rating strength

A coach said that we should practice by reading two GM games a day and study opening theory and middle and end game strategy and find a stronger player for some blitz or longer time control games after.

Do a lot of tactics. Chess is 99% tactics.

CHESS OPENING PRINCIPLES by SIX FAMOUS GRANDMASTERS

Lasker's rules for the opening (from Common Sense In Chess)

1. Do not move any pawns in the opening of a game but the King and Queen pawns.

2. Do not move any piece twice in the opening, but put it at once on the right square.

3. Bring out your knights before developing your bishops, especially the Queen's Bishop.

4. Do not pin the adverse King Knight (ie. by Bg5) before your opponent has castled

GM Reuben Fine on the opening:

1. In the initial position White, because of the extra move, has a slight advantage. Consequently:

2. White's problem in the opening is to secure the better position, while...

3. Black's problem is to secure equality.

Fine's rules for the opening

1. Open with either the e-pawn or the d-pawn.

2. Wherever possible, make a good developing move which threatens something or adds to the pressure on the center.

3. Develop knights before bishops.

4. Pick the most suitable square for a piece and develop it there once and for all.

5. Make one or two pawn moves in the opening, not more.

6. Do not bring your queen out too early.

7. Castle as soon as possible, preferably on the king's side.

8. Play to get control of the center.

9. Always try to maintain at least one pawn in the center.

10. Do not sacrifice without a clear and adequate reason, eg.:

* it secures a tangible advantage in development * it deflects the opponent's queen

* it prevents the opponent from castling * it enables a strong attack to be developed

Fine's two last questions to be asked before a move is made:

* How does it affect the center?

* How does it fit in with the development of my other pieces and pawns?

Nimzovitch's Seven Axioms (from My System)

* Development is to be understood as the strategic advance of the troops toward the frontier line (the line between the fourth and fifth ranks).

* A pawn move must not in itself be regarded as a developing move, but merely as an aid to development.

* To be ahead in development is the ideal to be aimed for.

* Exchange with resulting gain of tempo.

* Liquidation, with consequent development or disembarrassment.

* The pawn center must be mobile.

* There is no time for pawn hunting in the opening, except for center pawns.

Suetin's four principles for advanced players

* The fight for control of the center

* The striving for the quickest and most active development.

* The creation of conditions that permit early castling.

* The formation of an advantageous pawn structure

GM Hort's 13 rules for all players

* Take advantage of every tempo.

* Develop flexibly!

* Do not make pawn moves without careful planning.

* Begin the game with a center pawn, and develop the minor pieces so that they influence

the center

* Develop harmoniously! Play with all your pieces

* Do not make aimless moves. Each move must be part of a definite plan.

* Do not be eager for material gain. The fight for time is much more important than the fight for material, especially in open positions.

* A weakening of your own pawns may be accepted only if it is compensated by a more active placement of your pieces.

* With the help of your pawns, try to get an advantage in space and weaken your opponent's pawn position.

* Do not obstruct your pawns by grouping your pieces directly in front of them; pawns and pieces must work together.

* During the first few moves, pay special attention to the vulnerable KB2 square on both sides.

* Remember that the poor placement of even a single piece may destroy the coordination of the other pieces.

* With White, exploit the advantage of having the first move and try to gain the initiative. With Black, try to organize counterplay.

GM Portisch on forming a repertoire:

"Your only task in the opening is to reach a playable middlegame."

SOURCE: http://exeterchessclub.org.uk/content/ten-rules-opening

GM Fine's 15 Basic Endgame Rules (from Basic Chess Endings)

1) Have fun. If you want to be a pro player, understand that it takes a lot of work. If you enjoy doing tactic puzzles for hours on end, power to you; but don't kill yourself spending hours on opening lines or pouring over master games. Having fun is an important aspect in keeping interested in any activity.

2) Don’t be overly concerned about specific openings. Try to develop pieces (ie. Moving each minor piece once before moving one twice, placing pieces in natural squares), control the center of the board (from the center you can attack all areas of the board), and king safety. You may wish to learn a 2-3 openings (not all their variations) just to help learn about opening themes.

3) Familiarize yourself with tactics; because knowing what a fork, skewer, pin, decoy,  double attack, discovery attack, en prise, removing the guard, interference, etc. are helps you attack your opponent and defend your pieces.

4) Don’t forget endgames. While at a beginner or intermediate level, most endgames involve lopsided material advantages (if a game even gets that far), understanding basic endgames not only ensures victories in tight games, but knowing endgames helps develop planning (ie, knowing that center pawns are easier to promote than rook, knight pawns may help with decisions made during the middle game).

5) Review your games. Getting a computer to analyze a game is a good way to see if you are repeating mistakes. You can also ask opponent’s for constructive advice.

6) Chess books are very helpful and can be found at a library or used bookstores. Find books on tactic training and  endgames that catches your eye.

7) Play people at, above your level but keep the amount of games you play manageable. I’ve seen some online players having 100s of games going on, which seems impossible to maintain the various strategies and not leaving a lot of time to learn and review.

8) Be critical when selecting a move. Instead of telling yourself how good it is, consider what’s wrong with the move even if its surefire mate. Taking a few extra seconds to confirm you move will become a good habit that avoids traps.

9) Play to win. While it’s unlikely that your opponent is Kramnik or Karpov, you should play as if you are playing a master. Don’t intentionally play a poor move to spare feelings or because you think your opponent won’t notice that you left a piece unprotected. Unless the game is instructional, always play to the best of your abilities (remember, that your opponent is also trying to learn from their games as well).

10) Don’t make excuses. Learning from losses is a key component of improving one’s game. If you instead focus on every distraction, you’ll start to look for distractions instead of winning moves.

LOL!

OK Noah, a tip i have is never ever EVER sac pieces for positional advantage. EVER. 

1) Don't listen to that guy ^^^^

2) Be confident

The cheek! Don't fear OP, Yeres is on his way.

The best thing is to play with normal people (no offence), but those other tips do not sound all too good.

Ronaldvdb

Would that we could!

"Always unpins." C. J. S. Purdy

"Botvinnik recalled that early in his teaching career, "I decided that the main things was developing self-dependence... In general, it's best not to teach youngsters but to let them teach themselves." " STUDYING CHESS MADE EASY - Andrew Soltis

"One needs a trainer to know what to work on and to learn methods of study. But the hard work should be done alone." Dmitry Jakovenko

Chessville - Instruction - General - A Collection of Chess Wisdom - Intro

http://www.chessville.com/instruction/instr_gen_collection_wisdom_intro.htm

I am a bad player so I dunno anything