Sometimes we win, sometimes we learn, us chess players like to say a lot. It can make us feel better after a loss, but this should be more than just a saying to improve our post-game mood. We should, in fact, be always learning, whether we win, lose or draw. Many players think that they can learn something only from their losses, others only like to show their wins to their trainers. Truth is, all games are equally important. There is no perfect game and play can almost always be improved at some point.
Strategy and positional concepts are an important part of the chess game and improving our understanding of them can play a major role in the overall improvement of our level. Most of the time, the strategy is what makes the difference between a strong player and an amateur. If with other elements, such as tactics or endgames, the method of training is rather clear – solving puzzles or studying the theoretical positions, we are often asked what the way to train strategy is.
Sorry for making you wait so long… but we wanted making it just perfect for you!
We start brainstorming ideas for TCW Academy in early 2019, and by the time we got everything together and start coding and filming, and coding and filming… it was already summer.
Something that we expected to take us 3-5 months, actually took us over 9 months 🙂
Creating a good, sound repertoire that really suits one’s style of play is an important and difficult step for many chess players. If, with the white pieces, it is relatively easier to give the direction of the game and try to take it to positions you are comfortable with, things are a bit more difficult when deciding on a repertoire for black. White is the one who sets the pace, but you can still take the game to roads you are comfortable with. One of the openings that has gained popularity for black against 1.d4, both among amateurs and Grandmasters, is the Dutch Defense.
This is one of the most problematic aspects of learning when it comes to playing good chess. If the acquisition of tactical skills is more or less straight-forward: just solve an infinite number of tactical puzzles and you will be fine, the study of positional chess and improving your understanding is less concrete. I will write here about what worked for me. There are probably other ways to achieve a high level of understanding and positional play, especially involving modern technology, but it is always best to talk about something that is personal and actually worked in practice.
2020 is almost here… and with just 2 more days to go, it is time to look back at 2019 for a quick flashback of the year.
We’ve covered a LOT of stuff.
Publishing over 100 articles and 30 premium courses we touch-base on many different topics from Positional Chess to Opening Preparation, Endgame Mastery, and Calculation.
Studying the games of the classical players is a well-known way of training for the players who want to improve their strength and their overall chess understanding.
What better way to learn is there than from the very best?
Understanding their train of thought, their personality and their training routine can be a great source of inspiration for creating our own path to the top.
The Sicilian is one of the most popular openings for black against 1.e4. It is the favorite of many players and the theory inside it has been studied and discussed to exhaustion. Nevertheless, new ideas still resurface from time to time, which only shows how full of resources this defense is. Although many people believe it to be an aggressive opening, the truth is that it is, in fact, an opening for any style of play. There are, of course, many aggressive attacking lines, but there are also quieter ones, suitable for the positional player.
Studying the games of the classical players is a great tool of learning for those who want to improve at chess. From typical plans in a certain structure to positional and tactical ideas, there is a great deal to learn from the games of the strongest players of our game. You will discover that each player has their particularities, their own style of play and you can learn different things from different players of the same level.
In our previous article, we were showing you a less known idea for black in the Sicilian, castling long in certain positions. This is not the only way you could sometimes surprise your opponent and in this article, we are going to discuss another plan that many times intertwines with the long castling idea we’ve discussed previously. Castling queenside can have a double purpose – first of all, running away from any dangerous attacks on the kingside and center, but it can also be used in an aggressive way when you are preparing counterplay on the kingside.