grandmaster - tag
Practical chess has a time limit. You can only make a certain number of moves with high think time. It’s a well-known fact that the number of possibilities in a game increase exponentially as the number of moves increases. Therefore, it makes sense to study the initial part of the game and try to prepare […]
Knowing what you have to do in a position is the key to getting an advantage and even winning your games. Different positions require different approaches. You can’t attack in every position, just as well as you shouldn’t play quietly all the time. It is important to recognize how a position should be played and […]
The Art of Exchanges is one of those under-the-radar ‘super skills’ that all the strong players possess, and the rest doesn’t quite get. It is perhaps the most important, very underestimated SKILL in chess. Few players, other than IMs and GMs realize how powerful that skill really is. Needless to say, over 95% of club […]
It is never a good idea to disobey chess principles. Although we live in modern days, where the powerful engines have taught us that in chess the principles or “rules” are not always mandatory, for a human it’s helpful to have an understandable guide on how to play the opening phase. Therefore, the principles are […]
Gain ELO Points: Believe it or not, the title of this article is a frequent question among club players and aficionados. I’ve been asked this on several occasions while hanging out at the chess club. I couldn’t help but notice certain hopes for a “quick fix answer” as if there was a magic trick. Well, […]
Benoni Defense and Its Magic. Continuing our series of articles related to Grandmasters from the past, in this article we want to present to you Vladimir Savon. He is a Soviet player who showed great results back in the 70s when he was in his prime. Savon played in 11 Soviet championships and managed to […]
The importance of computers in modern chess is undeniable, but how important is it to you if you are in the 1900-2300 ELO range? I often get this kind of question from students who are quite addicted to the engine’s evaluation in almost every position. In this article, I will reveal my thoughts on working […]
One of the most difficult things for every chess player is to recognize the exact moment they have to stop for a moment and think deep to find the best move. No matter what your level is, this is it, this is the key factor to improve your play. In a training session with a […]
Opening: From our very first steps into chess studying we are taught about the importance of the initiative in the game – a concept somewhat difficult to understand at first glance and one that demands a certain degree of comprehension of the game. Let us start with the official definition of initiative; what is it […]
From time to time our opponents offer a draw and so do we. Let’s try to figure out how to make the right decision about the “draw offer”. Different aspects should be considered here: the situation on the chessboard, level of the opponent, time left on the clock, your current state in the tournament, how […]
