So Many Experts on Openings

In that crazy Sicilian Najdorf game that I keep showing around, my opponent followed a book line for 28 moves (!) and resigned after move 32. Four moves later.

This one:

A Heroic Defense in the Sicilian Najdorf - Kids, don't try this at home! - Chess Forums - Chess.com

They sell it because they've made their buyers think openings are good for them (them who, buyers or sellers?)

If you possess mastery of foundational concepts of chess, you don't need any memorization. You always play solid and once out of opening that openings guru is busted

People want to read about openings for different reasons,

1) They see majority of articles, blogs and books on openings so this visibility creates a false impression ops is an important subject

2) Even GMs are telling you that openings are the way to improve

3) developing players have no understanding of the game and think that by parroting some lines can get by and beat the opponent using some tricks and traps

etc.

I do like openings, too. But I don't study them as I now mostly play 960 nowadays relying on principles to a degree I understand them.

I also think there's no opening principles, there are just general chess principles and understanding.

Thanks for stopping by

There are many good books written by IMs and GMs. Here's one that I need to get back to.

11 July 2020

On the Origin: Reading Journal

 

Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested; that is, some books are to be read only in parts; others to be read, but not curiously; and some few to be read wholly, and with diligence and attention.
Francis Bacon, "Of Studies" (1625)

Willy Hendriks, On the Origin of Good Moves (2020) arrived yesterday. I spent an hour last night and a bit more than an hour this morning leafing through the whole book, reading a few pages here and there. Then I reread the chapter on Greco. I had read the Kindle sample in June after Brian Karen asked me about this book in reference to my post on the Chess Book Collectors's Facebook page concerning Peter J. Monté, The Classical Era of Modern Chess (2014). Do look at "Monumental Scholarship: Notes Toward a Book Review" for my initial assessment of Monté's text. Hendriks' book looked interesting, so I preordered the paperback. It shipped Tuesday on the date listed by Amazon as the publication date.

Although I use almost every one of my nearly 400 chess books principally as reference works and rarely read one all the way through, On the Origin of Good Moves may join the small rank of exceptions. In order to encourage myself to keep at it, this post begins a reading journal on my progress.

Hendriks has an ambitious agenda to challenge the common notion that William Steinitz initiated the modern notions of positional play. This myth, he argues, is the work of Emanuel Lasker. He states that he wanted to write a whodunnit, but self-deprecates his writing abilities and so identifies the culprit immediately (10). Even so, Hendriks's take concerning the development of chess history is about the details more than the plot.

continued at:
http://chessskill.blogspot.com/2020/07/on-origin-reading-journal.html

Hendriks who? 

James, only read books by world champs or those who nearly missed the title

Had a discussion about Hendriks on Twitter.  

Can't seem to get my head around that opening ...

very true. I am only referring to things like knowing the opening moves of the Sicilian, for example.

I see you haven't played Fischer yet. It is only your pure understanding and comprehension of game that really matter there no tricks, no traps, no memorization, much livelier games that are also longer 10-15 moves for those mechanical moves we play in the old chess, more creativity, imagination and fantasy waiting for you to be expressed in unfamiliar situations...

A whole book on pawn structure does sound advanced. It sounds useful too.

It's about Pawn structure, its relationship to the pieces (Rooks, Bishops, etc) and the effect that different central Pawn formations have on middle-game planning... Maroczy Bind, Boleslavsky Wall, Botvinnik formation, Jump formations, etc.

Give it a try. You might be impressed.

Although I have never mentioned this (oversight? Modesty? Or am I just looking for another beautiful woman to plant a big, wet kiss on my lips when I am playing speed “because that is just so amazing!”), I am an adult learner in chess. I did not play a game of chess between the ages of 15 and 25 and did not open a chess book all that time. 
So when I took up chess I did what all patzers do. I memorized a few opening lines and ventured forth cheerfully to do battle. Ah! The humiliation! A childhood buddy of Kamran Shirazi demolished my feeble little attempts to play the Evans’ Gambit. He even dismissed my request for another game after he beat me 25 times or so with a wave “No! Waste of time!” (He is a wonderful man-years later he said “I said that Doug? Really?”) I met a guy who could beat me in the variation E4 Nf6 D4 F5–he played black and I got migraines trying to win as white! I remember playing the black side of a Queen’s Gambit and running out of book moves and staring at the position thinking “What in the name of murgertroad do I play now?”

But I overcame it! Tuh duh! How? By doing my own opening analysis, not relying on books but on my own thoughts. A fine player who hung out at the bookshop told me how to do that. His motto was that you have to look at the moves NOT mentioned in opening books. Once, he demonstrated a stunning queen sacrifice in the Scandinavian which was utterly unexpected—and it seemed entirely correct. 
I also learned to study my own games—no computer analysis—looking for my dumb moves in opening structures. And after all this I finally got OK. Never really good mind you, I may have started to late but OK. 
A truly good player starts playing from the first real move he makes—the first move that is not automatic. Only a grandmaster can play a long sequence of moves and then proceed to play. We normal human beings best start playing way before that point,

Sorry for the rambling Roarin. But just studying the openings makes a person think chess is just a game of traps and tricks. And if that is all it is, why would we love it so much? Chess is like an elusive woman, beautiful deep and mysterious. That is why we love it so.

Doug, nothing to be sorry about, actually liked it very much the way you exposed it.

I too was too obsessed about openings instead of being more patient and aiming for the middle, and endgame... 

I think all these coaches have forgotten what Capablanca said - 

"To improve at chess, you should in the first instance study the endgame" -- Jose Raul Capablanca

Or the quote by Stephan Gerzadowicz - 

"Openings teach you openings. Endgames teach you chess." -- Stephan Gerzadowicz

Nice pics there Ronldaho!

Nice insight Momir, it's good to challenge our thinking

*for others*

*for the Game*

and

*for yourself!*

Hey, my friend. Great to have you along!

Lazy minds are becoming robotomized and lobotomized, so don't-challenge-any-chess "truth" seems the safest and cheapest way to happiness  

Of all the books on openings that I own, four come to mind that are excellent teaching tools:

1) Bronstein on the King's Indian

Bronstein explains in detail ALL the major points of this defense, as well as all the major roles of each piece and pawn, with the basic ideas for either side, AND also gives many instructive games.

2) The Nimzo Indian Defence, by Svetozar Gligoric

Gligoric explains the main ideas behind all the major variations of this opening, and gives games (with comments) to illustrate the points. Anyone reading this book will understand all the main points of this fantastic and deep defence. I can't wait to try the Parma Variation of the Nimzo Indian Defence!

2) The French Defence....Properly Played, by Wolfgang Uhlmann

Oh my God, what can I say! Uhlman is THE major exponent of this defence, having beaten even Fischer with it!

Again, many complete games with excellent analysis! Highly recommended!

4) The Chelyabinsk Variation: It's Past, Present and Future, by Gennadi Timoshchenko

It is interesting to note that this fantastic book came out just before the 2018 World Championship Match, in which Carlsen used this defense successfully against Caruana.

This book is the most thorough, of any opening book I have ever seen! Each variation and sub-variation is illustrated with commented games. Absolutely a gem! I am considering playing the Chelyabinsk because of this great work by Timoshchenko!

Again, the great benefit of illustrating with complete games is that you get to see the "idea" or "variation" developing organically into the middlegame and/or endgame, therefore becoming a  great Master Class in the given opening or defense.

Thanks, Kamalakanta!

There’s no opening principles. There’s only general chess principles. The authors you mentioned were successful in articulate them.

They used openings to make specific general.