OT: Chess

[ORRFForever]

When I was young, there were a bunch of us who played competitively. Most of us would get together and study - it was fun but having a date with a woman would have been MORE fun . We would study openings while the "best player" ALWAYS studied end games - no coincidence there.

Whenever I played the "best player", he would play something to get out of the "book" early - so much for my prep.

Our middles games were equal - if anything my middle game was better and I'd get to the end game with a small advantage.

Unfortunately, unless I got to the end game with a large advantage, he'd squeeze out a win because my end game was garbage.

Again, studying end games are painfully boring but, if you commit yourself to it, you will rack up the wins.

 

[Ben Grimm]

... Whenever I played the "best player", he would play something to get out of the "book" early - so much for my prep. ...

Yeah. I don't let players play the Sicilian against me and I play unusual Black openings to get out of book early.

 

[ORRFForever]

I play unusual Black openings to get out of book early.

Yup. And then your opponent's prep is all for not.

 

[Ben Grimm]

Aryan Tari vs Magnus Carlsen (2021)

1) +0.53 (29 ply) 15...O-O 16.Kh2 Kg7 17.b3 Rc8 18.Rfd1 Rh8 19.Rab1 Qc7 20.Bc2 Qd8 21.Rbc1 Nb8 22.Bd3 Na6 23.Ra1 Nc7 24.Rab1 Qd7 25.Rdc1 Qd8 26.Ng1 Na6 27.Rd1 Rg8 28.Ne2 Nb8 29.Rbc1 Rh8 30.Bxf5 exf5

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

On Black's 15th move his king is not threatened and he gives up castling by playing 15. ... Kf8 for no reason that I can see. I posted Stockfish above, but it castles so that's no help. Why does he do this and why doesn't he just castle? Can someone please explain to me what is going on here? Thanks.

​

 

[CLW]

Aryan Tari vs Magnus Carlsen (2021)

1) +0.53 (29 ply) 15...O-O 16.Kh2 Kg7 17.b3 Rc8 18.Rfd1 Rh8 19.Rab1 Qc7 20.Bc2 Qd8 21.Rbc1 Nb8 22.Bd3 Na6 23.Ra1 Nc7 24.Rab1 Qd7 25.Rdc1 Qd8 26.Ng1 Na6 27.Rd1 Rg8 28.Ne2 Nb8 29.Rbc1 Rh8 30.Bxf5 exf5

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

I can't figure out how to post the board (the link is posted above) or the moves in a readable format. On Black's 15th move his king is not threatened and he gives up castling by playing 15. ... Kf8 for no reason that I can see. I posted Stockfish above, but it castles so that's no help. Why does he do this and why doesn't he just castle? Can someone please explain to me what is going on here? Thanks.

​

It's a closed position and he wants to keep the rook on the King side instead of bringing it into the already cluttered center. By walking the King to g7 he opens up the backrank for the Q and rooks. His game plan is probably a King side attack if White allows it.

 

[Ben Grimm]

It's a closed position and he wants to keep the rook on the King side instead of bringing it into the already cluttered center. By walking the King to g7 he opens up the backrank for the Q and rooks. His game plan is probably a King side attack if White allows it.

Thanks!

 

[Ben Grimm]

The perfect score: Keres wins Tallinn 1942 with 15.0/15

"Paul Keres (January 7, 1916 – June 5, 1975) was the clear favourite in the 1942 Estonian Championship in Tallinn. At the time he was considered a possible challenger to World Champion Alexander Alekhine and was the only world-class player in the field. Nevertheless, it is astonishing how clearly Keres dominated the tournament: he won all 15 games without conceding a single draw".

He had 5 WC matches fall through and may be the best non-WC ever.
=================================================================================================
The Winning Academy 4: Handcuffs for your opponent

"What is the soul of chess? André Philidor back in the 18th century answered: "Pawns!" Aaron Nimzowitsch a century ago claimed in My System: "Overprotection of strategically important squares." Jan Markos' answer to this question is rather different. He is convinced that the essence of chess manifests itself best in domination".​

 

[CLW]

Thanks!

As you see the center is closed, hard to get any play there going. White has a clear advantage in space on the Queen side, while Black has more space on the King side. Black's King is very safe on g7 (King safety is important to consider). White cannot really advance in the center or on the King side so his best chances are on the Queen side, but if he tries too hard and moves pieces over to the Queen side to push there Black can counter-attack with g5 to open up lines towards the White King and get a dangerous attack going. The game would become very sharp with chances for both sides.

 

[Ben Grimm]

7 Reasons to Watch Tata Steel Chess 2022 On Chess.com

"Here at Chess.com, we will have our own unique on-site live feeds from the tournament hall for the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk aan Zee. Add in the internet's largest chess community and best commentators (in any language—English, Russian, Portuguese, you name it), Chess.com is the place to watch. But how does this small seaside resort in the Netherlands still captivate the chess world, even after the better part of eight decades? By hosting the only tournament that has been held every year without fail since World War II, the site of some of the greatest games in chess history and starring the highest class of player".

For me personally:

1. Personal Favorites: I like Carlsen, Caruana, Giri, Shankland, and defending champion van Foreest. (I listed my 10 favorite players in my sig)

2. Rapport: I want to see him play funky openings and see if he can compete with top 10 rated players such as the top 4 seeds. Is he a future Super GM or just a guy who flirted with a top 10 rating?

3. The Young Guns: 19-year-old Esipenko (2714) is the #2 Junior and Kramnik coached 16-year-old Pragg (2612) is the #13 Junior. Are they the future, Super GMs or just players who will get to roughly the #19/2736 range and then never make the jump to the elite level? @Harbour Dog @CLW​

 

[Harbour Dog]

7 Reasons to Watch Tata Steel Chess 2022 On Chess.com

"Here at Chess.com, we will have our own unique on-site live feeds from the tournament hall for the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk aan Zee. Add in the internet's largest chess community and best commentators (in any language—English, Russian, Portuguese, you name it), Chess.com is the place to watch. But how does this small seaside resort in the Netherlands still captivate the chess world, even after the better part of eight decades? By hosting the only tournament that has been held every year without fail since World War II, the site of some of the greatest games in chess history and starring the highest class of player".

For me personally:

1. Personal Favorites: I like Carlsen, Caruana, Giri, Shankland, and defending champion van Foreest. (I listed my 10 favorite players in my sig)

2. Rapport: I want to see him play funky openings (such as this one where I think he could have beat @ORRFForever Robert Hovhannisyan vs Richard Rapport) and see if he can compete with top 10 rated players such as the top 4 seeds. Is he a future Super GM or just a guy who flirted with a top 10 rating?

3. The Young Guns: 19-year-old Esipenko (2714) is the #2 Junior and Kramnik coached 16-year-old Pragg (2612) is the #13 Junior. Are they the future, Super GMs or just players who will get to roughly the #19/2736 range and then never make the jump to the elite level? @Harbour Dog @CLW​

Esipenko is the bane of Carlsen's existence haha; I think the kid has got what it takes to be a top 10 player in the world. And it feels like he has more experience and better showings in these top tier events than Pragg does.

That said, in the long term; Esipenko, Pragg, Sarin, Abdusattorov, and Gukesh all feel very equal to me. If anything, I might take the last three over Esipenko and Pragg.

 

[Ben Grimm]

Announcing The Chess.com Rapid Chess Championship With $650,000 In Prizes

"Chess.com is thrilled to announce the Chess.com Rapid Chess Championship, our most elite event ever. The first "RCC" debuts with a prize fund of $650,000. This 25-week extravaganza begins on February 12 and culminates in a dramatic finale on August 28. Only the best of the best will be playing: the top 100 in the world, the top 10 women, and the top 10 juniors will have a seat at the table. With only the strongest players comprising the field and the slower time control, fans can expect nothing but high-quality chess. Many top GMs like Fabiano Caruana, Anish Giri, Hikaru Nakamura, Wesley So, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Levon Aronian, and more are expected to participate in this event regularly".

With a prize fund of almost $2/3 M and all the top players, this will be a huge tourney! I hope all of you to get to watch some of it live!​

 

[ORRFForever]

Duplicate post.

 

[ORRFForever]

7 Reasons to Watch Tata Steel Chess 2022 On Chess.com

"Here at Chess.com, we will have our own unique on-site live feeds from the tournament hall for the Tata Steel Chess Tournament in Wijk aan Zee. Add in the internet's largest chess community and best commentators (in any language—English, Russian, Portuguese, you name it), Chess.com is the place to watch. But how does this small seaside resort in the Netherlands still captivate the chess world, even after the better part of eight decades? By hosting the only tournament that has been held every year without fail since World War II, the site of some of the greatest games in chess history and starring the highest class of player".

For me personally:

1. Personal Favorites: I like Carlsen, Caruana, Giri, Shankland, and defending champion van Foreest. (I listed my 10 favorite players in my sig)

2. Rapport: I want to see him play funky openings (such as this one where I think he could have beat @ORRFForever Robert Hovhannisyan vs Richard Rapport) and see if he can compete with top 10 rated players such as the top 4 seeds. Is he a future Super GM or just a guy who flirted with a top 10 rating?

3. The Young Guns: 19-year-old Esipenko (2714) is the #2 Junior and Kramnik coached 16-year-old Pragg (2612) is the #13 Junior. Are they the future, Super GMs or just players who will get to roughly the #19/2736 range and then never make the jump to the elite level? @Harbour Dog @CLW​

At my age, everyone seems to be able to beat me (smile).

 

[Ben Grimm]

At my age, everyone seems to be able to beat me (smile).

Alexander McDonnell vs Louis Charles Mahe De La Bourdonnais (1834)

I found your first loss to the French. Except for politics, I've gotten slightly more conservative. I play only 2 chess openings now and I'm in bonds, but my only child got an internship with a multi-$B corporation today. @ORRFForever

 

[Whoot Whoot]

broke 1700 in lichess

 

[Ben Grimm]

broke 1700 in lichess

Congrats! That's the highest goal I've ever contemplated.

 

[Whoot Whoot]

Congrats! That's the highest goal I've ever contemplated.

thanks i keep it simple stupid as i am learning white always is 3 or 4 knights
black i turtle and wait for an error

 

[Harbour Dog]

broke 1700 in lichess

Congrats! What time control?

There's no better feeling than hitting a new high; even if it's by a single point!

thanks i keep it simple stupid as i am learning white always is 3 or 4 knights
black i turtle and wait for an error

There something extra satisfying about defending a cramped space successfully for most of the game, and then jumping on an error.

I remember years ago, I spent a couple months only playing the Reti opening with White, and I read about some Grandmaster who's name I've forgotten; who used to play it frequently.

There was a quote from him saying something along the lines of him not being at the level of the other GMs he played, but he just played very simply and defensively, and then counterattacked when the chance came.

He obviously deserved his rating, but the sentiment always stuck with me. He felt like he was playing an easier game than everybody else, just because he was so rarely overextending.

 

[ORRFForever]

Alexander McDonnell vs Louis Charles Mahe De La Bourdonnais (1834)

I found your first loss to the French. Except for politics, I've gotten slightly more conservative. I play only 2 chess openings now and I'm in bonds, but my only child got an internship with a multi-$B corporation today. @ORRFForever

Good for your child. Well done.

Including politics, I've gotten much more conservative.

 

[Ben Grimm]

thanks i keep it simple stupid as i am learning white always is 3 or 4 knights black i turtle and wait for an error

Me too. I played the Pirc recently. Now I just play the first 2 moves of 2 openings and then improvise. It's so fun, freeing, and relaxing getting away from set openings.

 

[Ben Grimm]

This is a beautiful chess related NFT.

Chess: Magnus Carlsen targets all-time rating record of 2900 at Wijk aan Zee

"World champion makes his first move at ‘chess Wimbledon’ on Saturday
​

Magnus Carlsen will launch his new campaign to achieve a 2900 Fide rating, the Everest of overall tournament performance, when the world champion makes his first move on Saturday (1pm start) in the opening round of the “chess Wimbledon” at Tata Steel Wijk aan Zee. Reaching the round number after being previously twice stalled at 2882 is the 31-year-old’s major target for 2022. After four successful defences of his global crown, Carlsen says he will only do so again in 2023 if his opponent is the current No 2, Alireza Firouzja, 18, or another grandmaster from the new generation".
==========================================================================

How the AI Revolution Impacted Chess (2/2)

"In the second part of the series, Joshua Doknjas examines opening system influenced by the neural network engines and discusses the modern battle between two well-prepared players".​

 

[ORRFForever]

Me too. I played the Pirc recently. Now I just play the first 2 moves of 2 openings and then improvise. It's so fun, freeing, and relaxing getting away from set openings.

Ah... God bless the Pirc. I have not seen it in a while.

With so many players playing on-line blitz games, openings are becoming less important because players are sacrificing early and often.

If I am playing blitz as White and my opponent opens with the Spanish (Ruy Lopez), I am ALWAYS looking for the Bxf7 sacrifice...

Is it solid move? No, it is not, but if you are playing blitz, watch your opponent panic...

and White has options : Ng5, f4 (take Black's e5 pawn and open up the f file), Qf3, etc...

It's a LOT of pressure and a LOT of calculating for your opponent while his clock is ticking... quickly! You'll be surprised how many players panic and tuck their King on f8 or g8 - and now his h8 rook is useless.

Even if you are playing with longer time controls, if you keep the position complicated, you'll get compensation for your Bishop.

Again, while studying openings is fun, it really is a waste of time.

 

[ORRFForever]

white always is 3 or 4 knights

???

I mentioned this before (I don't remember the details - it's been too long, but I think it was a blitz tournament)...

Kasparov played in a tournament in the last decade where he opened each match as White with something solid but simple - e4, developed his knights, fianchetto'd the white Bishop, and Castled. Something like this...

Why? Because he did not want to spend months (re)learning openings and he had confidence in his middle / end game. If I recall correctly, he was successful.

Re : "as black I turtle and wait for an error"

As Black, you can always play a hyper modern opening like the Pirc / King's Indian / Grunfeld and let White have the center while you (try and) pick it apart - "wait for an error".

I hate hyper modern openings because, all to often, I get squeezed into God's little acre - @Harbour Dog referred to it as a "cramped" position while I prefer an open board. Also, the c8 Bishop is always a pain in the ass to develop.

At the end of the day, play whatever makes you comfortable.

 

[Ben Grimm]

... and White has options: Ng5, f4 (take Black's e5 pawn and open up the f file), Qf3, etc ... It's a LOT of pressure and a LOT of calculating for your opponent while his clock is ticking... quickly! You'll be surprised how many players panic and tuck their King on f8 or g8 - and now his h8 rook is useless. Even if you are playing with longer time controls, if you keep the position complicated, you'll get compensation for your Bishop. Again, while studying openings is fun, it really is a waste of time.

I had a friend who played street chess style and he only played 2 White openings. That and something similar to the Benoni where he'd try to drive a pawn down the d-file and your throat.

... Why? Because he did not want to spend months (re)learning openings and he had confidence in his middle / end game. If I recall correctly, he was successful. Re: "as black I turtle and wait for an error" As Black, you can always play a hyper modern opening like the Pirc / King's Indian / Grunfeld and let White have the center while you (try and) pick it apart - "wait for an error". I hate hyper modern openings because, all too often, I get squeezed into God's little acre - @Harbour Dog referred to it as a "cramped" position while I prefer an open board. Also, the c8 Bishop is always a pain in the ass to develop. At the end of the day, play whatever makes you comfortable.

Agreed with all that. I just make 2 solid book moves so my center is not screwed and then improvise.

 

[Bacon Artemi Bravo]

Congrats! What time control?

There's no better feeling than hitting a new high; even if it's by a single point!



There something extra satisfying about defending a cramped space successfully for most of the game, and then jumping on an error.

I remember years ago, I spent a couple months only playing the Reti opening with White, and I read about some Grandmaster who's name I've forgotten; who used to play it frequently.

There was a quote from him saying something along the lines of him not being at the level of the other GMs he played, but he just played very simply and defensively, and then counterattacked when the chance came.

He obviously deserved his rating, but the sentiment always stuck with me. He felt like he was playing an easier game than everybody else, just because he was so rarely overextending.

I feel like playing a defensive/counter attacking style can be almost more difficult then an attacking style. Similar to fighting(I watch a lot of MMA). There are good fighters who are all out aggressive. They dictate the pace of the match, and often opponents crumple and make mistakes under pressure. But the greats, they ALL play a counter attacking style - John Jones, Israel Adasanya to name a couple. The opponent doesn’t matter, they read and react and counter. They don’t dictate pace, because they use their opponents pace against them. Their technique is flawless and it confounds the aggressive attacker because it begins to feel like the counter attacker can read their mind. The key is the technique, the IQ and the precision. Chess feels similar. As a newer player (a year or so), when I get cramped in my own end I usually get forced into mistakes and lose. Just not good enough yet to be that counter attacker.