Every chess player fails to convert a winning position once in a while. Sometimes it happens even in situations when any move seems to secure the whole point. What is the reason for this? Chess is a sport, so the following three aspects are impor...
Sometimes during a game we have to make a decision: to risk or not to risk? Let me explain. “Risking” means choosing a continuation which is not necessarily the strongest objectively, but may either make your position worse or, if the other player...
Playing in strong events is essential for a person’s improvement in chess. Also, one should have distinct goals and try to attain them. Thus, when I recently received an invitation to visit France and play in a GM-norm round robin, I heartily agre...
When preparing for a game (if we know the pairings), it is useful to compile a complete dossier on your opponent: what types of positions he likes and understands, which ones he doesn’t enjoy. What openings he employs. His playing style. Typical r...
People often ask me if they should play blitz, how helpful it is in terms of improving in chess. Experts’ views on this differ. Those who enjoy playing blitz often claim that it is very useful, and serves as an indicator of a chess player’s skills...
Two equally strong armies have gathered on opposite sides of the river. One commander evaluates the pluses and minuses of his and the enemy’s armies’ dispositions, comes up with a plan while taking into account possible counter-attacks, and choose...
The opening is a very important stage of the game. It often determines the course of events for the whole encounter. Underestimating (as well as overestimating) the opening’s role often leads to poor performances. To be successful, a strong ...
Alice sighed wearily. `I think you might do something better with the time,' she said, `than waste it in asking riddles that have no answers.' `If you knew Time as well as I do,' said the Hatter, `you wouldn't talk about wasting IT. It's HIM.' `...
By browsing Chess.com’s forums, I noticed that there are numerous threads dedicated to improving in chess, certain training practices, coaching and other issues of that sort. Let’s talk a bit about who and what can assist us in becoming a better p...
Psychology is an integral element of chess. To win a game (tournament, match) one needs to be strong not only in chess, but in the psychological sense as well. Every chess player can recall moments when he/she could not recover from a terrible los...
A chess match is an exciting struggle between two persons which, in most cases, allows one to find out which of them is the better player. The more games, the more justified the result (as long as no one dies from exhaustion). Therefore, it is n...
Now that we're done with the Pogonina vs Chess.com game, I would like to share with you some impressions and games from the last tournament I have been playing in, the Russian Club Cup in Dagomys. Chess.com has been providing nice updates on the e...
While everyone is following closely the exciting WC match between Anand and Topalov, I still have to pay my dues and share with you my analysis of the Pogonina vs Chess.com game. The first part of the article included a story about the game, some ...
Pogonina vs the World match took place from December 24, 2009 to March 28, 2010. During these three months a few thousand chess players from over 100 countries have been competing against top female grandmaster Natalia Pogonina. Among those who ha...
Some of you might be playing in the vote chess game against me at Chess.com. If so, then you probably know that the Opocensky variation of the Sicilian Najdorf goes the following way: 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cd 4.Nd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be2. This is a q...
There is nothing that disgusts a man like getting beaten at chess by a woman. Charles Dudley Warner Playing in mixed events is enjoyable since it allows one to learn more about chess and psychology, and to improve more rapidly. So why, one might...
One of the reasons behind the “nemeses and customers” theory is that each chess player has his own style. It reminds me of the “Rock, Paper, Scissors” game where there is no one dominant item. The main three chess characters are:• Positiona...
The transitivity law does not hold for chess. That is, if player A usually beats player B, and player B usually beats player C, it does not imply that player A usually beats player C. In fact, sometimes it’s quite the opposite. While playing agai...
The more experienced we are in chess, the more subtle our understanding of the game is, and the easier it is for us to tell which move is good without even calculating the variations. It’s a mixture of feelings, experience, knowledge of the key pr...
The most difficult thing in chess it is to win a winning position--Emmanuel Lasker, 2nd World Chess Champion All of us have faced a situation when we had a totally winning position and didn't win it for one reason or the other. This can be quite ...
Continuing last week's story about the '09 Russian Superfinal, I would like to share with you my game from round 3 against the experienced 2-time vice-World Champion IM Alisa Galliamova, who also happens to be the ex-wife of GM Vassilii Ivanchuk....
Men tend to look down on women’s chess, joke about their level and style of play, and also discuss the female players’ looks whenever they have a chance. Continuing my story about the Russian Superfinal-2009 (Part 1 can be found here...
{ed note: GM Vinay Bhat is on a lengthy tour of foreign tournaments, and will be replaced for two months by WGM Pogonina, who I believe requires no further introduction to the chess.com audience. She will continue with the column's theme of sharin...
Every day I get a lot of fan mail (thanks, guys!), and many of the messages are dedicated to the evergreen subject “how do I get better in chess?” I am trying to do my best to offer individual advice to everyone. However, there is a ve...
