Amateur chess is often a back-and-forth, muddy, and even stormy adventure where a position’s assessment changes from move to move. However, it doesn’t have to be that way. The “trick” is to learn as many basic patterns (...
Every chess player knows about the classic bishop sacrifice. And everyone wants to smash that light-squared bishop into h7, drag the screaming-in-terror enemy king from its pawn cover, and execute it as its army helplessly watches.In general, t...
My last two articles were about the best game prizes for Mikhail Tal (who won the most prizes — 15) and Rashid Nezhmetdinov, who came in tied for 3rd and 4th with Anatoly Karpov (10 prizes; Garry Kasparov came in second with 12). ...
After showing all of Tal’s 15 best game prizes in my previous article, it struck me that many Chess.com members might not have heard of Rashid Nezhmetdinov (born 1912, died 1974), who tied with Karpov for the third and fourth place...
Before you read this article, have some fun and try to guess who has won the most best game prizes (usually a brilliancy prize but sometimes a positional masterpiece). Did you pick a player? Okay, then let’s see if you’ve picked the ...
Chess players are always looking for new openings. But picking an opening isn’t easy since there are so many to choose. Sometimes the choice is made by using the openings of your favorite chess hero. And other times the opening choice is ...
This article is a bit different in that I’ve written about chess books and I’ve written about chess coaches, but I’ve never blended the two together. In doing so, I will show you how your chess teachers can turn your chess books ...
The Chess.com member Canyounotquit wrote: “I really want to know why and how I lost this particular game. I had a piece lead and still I lost badly. I’ve no idea where I went wrong.” JS: Everyone loses games. But, wh...
Se-Brain asked: I am currently boggled by positional sacrifices. First off, what are possible motifs for sacrifices, and second, how do you find out if your sac’s compensation is worth it or not? JS: I pretty much answered this in my ar...
The Chess.com member alaskan asked: “I would like to focus more on understanding rather than on lines, but almost all the opening books I can find focus on lines rather than on general ideas, so where to get this understanding from? ...
Over the years, I’ve looked at tons of games played by low-rated Chess.com members (games by low-rated players are often extremely instructive). In many instances I see undefended pieces on both sides. And, in many of those games, the defeat...
NinjaSocks123 asked: I’m currently reading How to Reassess Your Chess 4th edition and I’m currently on chapter four. You keep talking about weighing both sides’ imbalances (including material) to figure out if a sacrifice ...
I recently noticed an article that tried to clarify what a pattern is. I found it quite agonizing since the writer didn’t understand patterns but was trying hard to isolate exactly what it was (a noble try but quite futile). Unfortunate...
Asmara the Cat wrote: I have a problem and I hope you can help me. My problem is that I don’t know how to defeat bad players (well, I’m not so good, but players who play worse than me). In real life, I’ve earned a FIDE rating b...
No, I’m not talking about boring, rigid or out-of-touch people who are sometimes referred to as “squares.” I’m going to discuss squares on a chessboard and just how important a “key” square is. And so, now that ...
This week we’re going to look at the games of the Chess.com member Mockingbird2, who is majoring in chemical engineering but thinks he can become a chess master in another two years. At the moment he’s 1900 USCF, 2143 in Chess.com...
Most of us know that the legendary Emanuel Lasker was a philosopher and a world class mathematician — he earned his doctorate in math in 1902 and published a theorem which, even today, is critically important for the ins and outs of alg...
Dave asked for my opinion on a line in the Two Knight’s Defense. He wrote: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 Na5 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Be2 h6 9.Nf3 e4 10.Ne5 Bc5. Here there are a few moves to play. The move I’m look...
clement41 wrote: My question for you deals with the concept of “accountancy” of tempi; let me make myself clearer: in many instances one side has the opportunity to trade pieces (typically minors) with an imbalance; not only ca...
The Chess.com member QueensConquerer wants to know what I think about his game. JS: I’m going to be honest. This game is a total mess, with one blunder following another (from both sides). However, blunder-games are what I get from the vas...
Nerves MagicLian asked: “I am 11 years old (rated 1416) and get very nervous at tournaments. How can I get over it?” JS: Believe it or not, this is the first time anyone has asked this! I really enjoy new or rarely-asked questions!...
EscapePlan69 asked: “I get into time trouble in most of my games while my opponents always have plenty of time left. How can I improve my time management? My tournament games are one hour and 30 minutes plus 30 seconds per move.” J...
SkladakoV’s question is about this position. He asked: “What if White doesn’t take by 16.Bxa5? Doesn’t that leave the knight on a5 stuck on the side of the board?” Jeremy Silman: I think most people wou...
Sitting in a coffee shop in Tokyo that’s little known but adored by those who frequent it, I was staring at the most beautiful and delicious cappuccino on Earth. This was my second one, but before I downed my drink I thought of IM Jo...
