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Why am I still so bad at chess?

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ActuallySleepy
Also I’m curious what openings, theory and end games you know. We can work past this but we need to know what you already know or perhaps it would be best to start from scratch.

Private message me if you want to play some games at longer time controls.
kindaspongey
HSCCNickS wrote:
pawnstorm17 wrote:
... The old adage goes like "An idiot is someone who expects to have a different result by doing the same thing over and over." ~ anonymous

This is a reformed quote of Einstein's "Psychopathy is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results"

http://www.news.hypercrit.net/2012/11/13/einstein-on-misattribution-i-probably-didnt-say-that/

kindaspongey
riegelrob wrote:

See Hortillosa's "Improve Your Chess at Any Age"

https://web.archive.org/web/20140708105119/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/review726.pdf

kindaspongey

"... I know that a large percentage of my readers almost exclusively play on the internet - after all, you are reading this on the internet, right!? But there is a strong case for at least augmenting internet play with some OTB play, whether in a club or, better yet, a tournament. Tournament play gives you the kind of concentrated, slow chess that often helps improve your game, especially if you are inexperienced at slow play. I would guess that players who have never played OTB usually gain 50-100 points of playing strength just from competing in their first long weekend tournament, assuming they play five or more rounds of very slow chess. ... Sure, an occasional weekend event takes a lot more of your time, but the benefits are comparatively greater if improvement is your ultimate goal. Don't have two day? Try a one-day quad (a round-robin among four similarly rated players). How often should you play? ... A minimum of 8 OTB tournaments and about 100 slow games a year is a reasonable foundation for ongoing improvement. ... Can't make 100? Then try for 60. If you only play three or fewer tournaments a year and do not play slow chess regularly at a club (or on-line, where G/90 and slower play is relatively rare), then do not be surprised that you are not really improving. ..." - NM Dan Heisman (2002)

https://web.archive.org/web/20140627052239/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/heisman16.pdf

kindaspongey

"... Just because a book contains lots of information that you don't know, it doesn't necessarily mean that it will be extremely helpful in making you better at this point in your chess development. ..." - NM Dan Heisman (2001)

https://web.archive.org/web/20140626180930/http://www.chesscafe.com/text/heisman06.pdf

Doirse

You're approximately the same chess.com rating as my 7 y/o son, and looking at your recent games you seem to be making the same fundamental mistake -- missing basic captures.   That means putting a piece on an unsafe square, or leaving a piece on a square after it has been attacked ("en prise").  You'll be extremely squishy until you fix that!

And training tactics will not help you fix that.  I helped my daughter through this period and can give you some tips (she made it into the top 100 list! happy.png ). 

  • First, just accept it takes time to learn to see all your captures all the time, automatically.  But you will get there.  
  • Try to see the piece AND all the squares it can move to at the same time.  You can practice this in your own imagination without a board...do this for the next several months when you have free time to kill.  My son likes to imagine his line pieces move like the healing ray that the sunflower shoots in Plants vs Zombies:
    null
  • He imagines a knight is like HUGE daddy long legs (eight legs, ya know, for eight squares).  The king is a chubby sumo wrestler.  Do whatever works for you so that you can see the piece AND the squares together!   

  • Make it a goal of your next 100 games to see all captures on the board after your opponent makes a move, and before you make the move you want to play (a blunder check). 

  • You can specifically train this kind of vision:
  • (1) Play Fritz trainers (one to click all captures, another to click all undefended pieces, and a third to click all pieces that can give check)...there are probably similar ones online for free
  • (2) play give away chess (you can play give away chess by yourself),
  • (3) do chess mazes (google it...Bruce Albertson, plus many others),
  • (4) buy ChessOK's Peshka trainer called "Easy Ways of Taking Pieces and Pawn".  It has tens of thousands of  basic captures.  I recommend after each capture you pause and state out loud all of the piece relationships of the move, for example:  
After the obvious Bxd5, you would say "capture, gives check, attacks the rook, saves my bishop, and defends my pawn."  The goal is to see how each simple move of a piece relates to the other pieces (both yours and your opponent's)

  • (5) do Stoyko (not Stokyo) exercises.  Check out my blog for how to do those, under 'Practice Good Calculation' in the TOC.   

Once you stop giving away material, you'll be much tougher to beat, and tactics will be MUCH more important.

kindaspongey

"... Overall, I would advise most players to stick to a fairly limited range of openings, and not to worry about learning too much by heart. ..." - FM Steve Giddins (2008)

"... I feel that the main reasons to buy an opening book are to give a good overview of the opening, and to explain general plans and ideas. ..." - GM John Nunn (2006)

"... If the book contains illustrative games, it is worth playing these over first ..." - GM John Nunn (2006)

"... the average player only needs to know a limited amount about the openings he plays. Providing he understands the main aims of the opening, a few typical plans and a handful of basic variations, that is enough. ..." - FM Steve Giddins (2008)

torrubirubi
If you are really serious about improving here are some things which can help you.

1. Stop playing blitz.
2. Play Daily Games. Two games, one as black and one as white. These games you should play very seriously.
3. In Daily Games you are allowed to use a demo board for own analysis. Use it. Write down the possible moves you can do in a given position, and write down possible answers by your opponent. Go through here moves and try to find the best move you can find. If you do this properly, you will sometimes spend 2 or 3 hours to find a good move in a complex position. These analyses are part of the game, and you will improve a lot by doing such calculations.
4. Post your games with your thoughts to get help from stronger players. This help is something like free chess lessons.
5. Do tactics in Chessable, and improve your opening and endgame there.
Lorgen

6 months??? You're crying over 6 months? I've sucked at this game for decades. Come back later, you're not ripe yet!

NeilBerm

I joined in 2012 and was around 1000 or less in rapid when I first started. All you need to do is develop your pieces and castle. Also know the most basic one or two move tactics (the ones with names) like pins and forks and the most basic checkmates. I didn’t do many tactics exercises or anything else, I just tried to be deliberate in my moves and not make any obvious blunders. All that other information you have learned is unnecessary and a waste of time when you are that low rated.

SmyslovFan

I often wonder why I am still so bad at chess and my highest USCF rating was just under 2200. 

 

I bet even Carlsen sometimes wonders how he can miss so much in his games. Compared to the computers, we're all fish.

thedragon77

I am also really bad.

baddison25
Doirse wrote:

You're approximately the same chess.com rating as my 7 y/o son, and looking at your recent games you seem to be making the same fundamental mistake -- missing basic captures.   That means putting a piece on an unsafe square, or leaving a piece on a square after it has been attacked ("en prise").  You'll be extremely squishy until you fix that!

And training tactics will not help you fix that.  I helped my daughter through this period and can give you some tips (she made it into the top 100 list!  ). 

  • First, just accept it takes time to learn to see all your captures all the time, automatically.  But you will get there.  
  • Try to see the piece AND all the squares it can move to at the same time.  You can practice this in your own imagination without a board...do this for the next several months when you have free time to kill.  My son likes to imagine his line pieces move like the healing ray that the sunflower shoots in Plants vs Zombies:
  • He imagines a knight is like HUGE daddy long legs (eight legs, ya know, for eight squares).  The king is a chubby sumo wrestler.  Do whatever works for you so that you can see the piece AND the squares together!   

  • Make it a goal of your next 100 games to see all captures on the board after your opponent makes a move, and before you make the move you want to play (a blunder check). 

  • You can specifically train this kind of vision:
  • (1) Play Fritz trainers (one to click all captures, another to click all undefended pieces, and a third to click all pieces that can give check)...there are probably similar ones online for free
  • (2) play give away chess (you can play give away chess by yourself),
  • (3) do chess mazes (google it...Bruce Albertson, plus many others),
  • (4) buy ChessOK's Peshka trainer called "Easy Ways of Taking Pieces and Pawn".  It has tens of thousands of  basic captures.  I recommend after each capture you pause and state out loud all of the piece relationships of the move, for example:  
After the obvious Bxd5, you would say "capture, gives check, attacks the rook, saves my bishop, and defends my pawn."  The goal is to see how each simple move of a piece relates to the other pieces (both yours and your opponent's)

  • (5) do Stoyko (not Stokyo) exercises.  Check out my blog for how to do those, under 'Practice Good Calculation' in the TOC.   

Once you stop giving away material, you'll be much tougher to beat, and tactics will be MUCH more important.

Thanks alot for all this! This was very very helpful!

baddison25
torrubirubi wrote:
If you are really serious about improving here are some things which can help you.

1. Stop playing blitz.
2. Play Daily Games. Two games, one as black and one as white. These games you should play very seriously.
3. In Daily Games you are allowed to use a demo board for own analysis. Use it. Write down the possible moves you can do in a given position, and write down possible answers by your opponent. Go through here moves and try to find the best move you can find. If you do this properly, you will sometimes spend 2 or 3 hours to find a good move in a complex position. These analyses are part of the game, and you will improve a lot by doing such calculations.
4. Post your games with your thoughts to get help from stronger players. This help is something like free chess lessons.
5. Do tactics in Chessable, and improve your opening and endgame there.

Thank you very much! I am starting to write down all the positions and its helped alot

thedragon77

I am 915 so suck it up

torrubirubi

 Glad I could help you. 

If you want check Chessable, a helpful website. Cool is that you can ask IMs and GMs about moves in a book that seems enigmatic to you.  And Chessable is done in a way that you don't want to miss a single day of training, so you keep improving constantly, if you want or not.

Lyudmil_Tsvetkov

I think you are doing quite good.

2200-2700 players missed 1/3 of available mates in 2 and 3 moves, not to mention deeper combinations.

Chess is a complex game.

So, you are doing very well.

If, however, after playing for 10 daily hours 10 years in a row you are still under 2400, there might indeed be some problem.

SmyslovFan
Lyudmil_Tsvetkov wrote:

...If, however, after playing for 10 daily hours 10 years in a row you are still under 2400, there might indeed be some problem.

And now we get to the crux of the issue. Lyudmil's highest FIDE rating is under 2200. 

NateSolon

As others have said... patience! It takes lots of time!

Imo most of the suggestions in this thread are way too advanced. For the first while your games will be decided by one thing and one thing only: hanging pieces. So until you can avoid giving away pieces, and take those that are available, nothing else matters. The main way you learn to see those hanging pieces is playing an enormous amount.

I was struck by how many openings and books you said you've learned. Frankly, at this point most books and openings are way over your head. So... study less and play more! Or, if you enjoy studying, carry on, but know that the path to improvement will be through playing.

abcx123

I'm playing 30 years and still ....

But i have fun and that's the key i think.