Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Video with Irina Krush and Grandmaster Ron Henley

            

      
         
          

Sunday, April 24, 2011

GM Ian Rogers shows a nice endgame


Solomon - Steadman, Doeberl Cup 2011 
      

         
         
         
More about this endgame and another one in Karsten Müller's CBM Blog                     
        
         

Videos: Kasparov - Speelman

Video 1 
Video 2       
   

Sacrifices for best practical chances

When is the earliest best moment to play a Pawn sacrifice, Knight sacrifice, Bishop sacrifice, Rook sacrifice or a Queen sacrifice? 
 
Pawn
sacrifice
  
1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.c3 is not the the earliest best moment. Black has no problems to equalize the position and Black maybe even stands a little better.
  
The earliest best moment goes neither to for instance:
1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3 or 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.c3. 

A stronger candidate for White looks to be the Evans Gambit: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4. But Black should with best play equalize the position after 4…Bxb4. 

Black has an interesting candidate in 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5 4.cxb5. Well, if you like a draw with Black it might be a winner…It should be good enough to a draw with best play. 

It is not easy after 1.e4 c5 and 1.e4 c6 to say when the the earliest best moment appears to sacrifice. And for who appears the earliest best moment to sacrifice? For White or Black? Sicilian Najdorf games has seen many sacrifices for both White and Black. Sicilian Dragon too. Also Sicilian Scheveningen. And so on…  

Black can in the French sacrifice the g7-pawn after for example the continuation: 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 Ne7 7.Qg4 Qc7. It might with best play from Black be good enough to hold a draw after 8.Qxg7 Rg8 9.Qxh7 cxd4 10.Ne2. But Black can instead play the safer 7…O-O.

Should we instead first sacrifice in the middlegame?

Comes the earliest best moment to sacrifice first in the middlegame?
If not in a later stage of the opening it should be somewhere in the middlegame.

Should the opponent first be totally strategically outplayed before we sacrifice?

Is it first when the opponent is totally strategically outplayed as the earliest best moment to sacrifice appears? The position could then already be so superior that there is no need for a sacrifice to win the game. But it is necessary many times to end a strategical played game with one or more sacrifices. At least some form of tactics has to be ready to be used. 


Wikipedia about sacrificing:
 

Sacrificing some material is often necessary to throw the opponent's position out of balance. The sacrificed material is sometimes able to be regained with interest a couple of moves later. Pawn sacrifices in the opening are known as gambits; they are usually not intended for a short-term gain, but instead to achieve a more active position. 

Direct attacks against the enemy King are often started by sacrifices. A common example is sacrificing a Bishop on h2 or h7, checking the King, who usually must take the Bishop. This allows the Queen and Knight to develop a fulminate attack. 
 
    
    

Friday, April 22, 2011

Activity of the pieces and Pawn structure

         
Activity of the pieces

The most important single feature of a chess position is the activity of the pieces.

– Michael Stean, Simple Chess 

The primary constraint on piece's activity is the Pawn structure.
– Michael Stean, Simple Chess 

The job of the chessplayer must therefore be to use his skill to create a Pawn set-up which will allow his own pieces the optimum freedom and stability, while denying his opponent's similar scope.
– Michael Stean, Simple Chess 

Look after your Pawns 

Look after your Pawns and your pieces will look after themselves.
– Michael Stean, Simple Chess
        
              

Naroditsky - Kamsky, 2011 US Championship, Saint Louis

          
Video from the 2011 US Championship, where Gata Kamsky speaks about
the game in round 6 against Daniel Naroditsky:

          
     


   
   
The game at Chessgames.com 
More similar games in Caro-Kann
     
             

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Grandmaster and Chess Artist Nicolas Rossolimo

        

     
       
            
   

           
        
         
Nicolas Rossolimo at Wikipedia
         
        

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Hikaru Nakamura visits Washington University 2/26/11

         

     
      
       
   

       
        
          
   

       
       
          
   

       
        
          
Wikipedia about Hikaru Nakamura.       
     
   

Endgame lesson with Grandmaster Nick Pert

        

          
           
        
Endgame DVDs Nick Pert
       
         

Friday, April 15, 2011

Master Moves #10

               
Chess puzzles at ChessBase News from the 2011 Individual Chinese Chess Championship and the 1st Mangini Memorial.   
   
Master Moves #10           
         

Chess Puzzles YouTube

                

            
            

       
           
           
        

        
         
             
         

         
             
          

Amateur Chess Organization (ACO)

           
www.amateurchess.com
     
  
   

   
   

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Brilliant Chess in China

       
"One of the most beautiful chess games that I have seen on last 100 years !!!", is one comment
about the game between Zhao Jun and Xiu Deshun, played in the 2011 Individual Chinese Chess
Championship.
  


The game
annotated at ChessBase News.

       
More similar games 
   
   

Saturday, April 2, 2011

Bring It On

                
                  

         
             
           

Improve your position

              
Always play to improve your position. 
Jeremy Silman, The Amateur's Mind
         
             

Tal - Bronstein, Tbilisi 1959

       
More similar games 
   
   

Bronstein - Tal, Yerevan 1975

       
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Fischer - Taimanov, Palma de Mallorca 1970

    
More similar games   
    
    

Petrosian - Portisch, Palma de Mallorca 1974

       
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Portisch - Petrosian, Palma de Mallorca 1974

       
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Nepomniachtchi - A. Korobov, Aix-les-Bains 2011

     
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Moiseenko - McShane, Aix-les-Bains 2011

           
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About me

I played my first chess game in December 1977 and was lucky to hold draw. I continued to play chess and joined a chess club in September 1978. I'm still enjoying playing chess. I like to do many other things than playing chess. Long walks, some jogging, cycling, reading books, listen to music, watch movies, writing and much more. Life is fun!