Chess Match Thread
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LogGrad98
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Time will tell I guess.
1. Nf3 e6
2. g3 Nc6
3. Bg2 Be7
4. d4 f5
5. b3 Nf6
6. Bb2 0-0
7. c4 b6
8. d5 exd5
9. cxd5 Nb4
10. a3 Na6
11. Nd4 Bb7
12. Nxf5 Nc5
13. 0-0 d6
14. b4
Jonah
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Anybody have some favorite books they feel really helped improve their game? I'd like to make a real effort to sharpen my skills and would appreciate recommendations, anything you have found particularly interesting and that really made a difference in your game. My favorite was Fischer's 60 Memorable Games, very deeply and accurately annotated, yet entertaining throughout. I read it enough times as a kid that it fell apart. I'm thinking about ordering a new edition but would like suggestions on some of your favorites.
Great question, I can make a few more suggestions later but for now I will say one thing: All the beginners and intermediates HAVE TO read "Chess Fundamentals" by Capablanca.
Fishsticks
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Has there ever been a ****tier thread?
Wow, I missed this post, I wish I had a close one who is a FIDE master, that would be wonderful. Those guys plays on such a comprehensive and deep level. I've played tens of games against 2000-2200 players in tournaments and many more in my chess club(we had a few 2400+ some 2000+ players in the club). Except one lucky draw against a 2080 or so guy who was probably sick the game day, I never could compete with those guys. My level probably was about to improve to the range of 1800s just before I had to quit at 1650 thanks to consecutive losses against those stronger players.
Anyway, what do you think about my assessments below about the ratings. I just can't think that a casual player can play over 2000 unless he started playing chess very early and played regularly or he is once pro/semi-pro but now casual player.
If you don't like it people, just shut up!
Btw E.J., I just recently read your crying thread of "I'm getting dumber and dumber each day". Why don't you start playing some chess man, instead of interfering with our porn taste?
Seriously man, chess would help you to some degree with your concerns.
LogGrad98
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Idk. It was a pretty good thread until you showed up.
Fishsticks
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Nothing better than chess on a message board. Glad i could be a part of it in some way.
1300 is a player who no longer makes stupid blunders, like aimlessly exchanging a rook for a bishop, and who recognizes some immediate opportunities to pin/skewer/whatever. At 1700, you're a solid tournament level player. Still a casual hobbyist at that point, but one who seriously played a lot of chess. 2000 is a top tournament player at anything up to state level tournaments. 2200 is a serious non-casual player with Master aspirations. 2400 is competing to be an IM. So I would say your rating are pretty close to what I've seen.
People do say that it isn't possible for casuals to hit 2000. They also say that if you haven't started playing chess in your childhood, then you probably will never hit 2000. I think both of those statements are generally true, but not inherently so. What I mean is, if you haven't played for long, or if you only play occasionally with a friend, then it will be difficult to become a good chess player. But it is all about time and effort. I have an acquaintance who developed an interest in chess a year ago, and he's already playing in tournaments at around 1700 level. The guy became obsessed, obviously. He would read chess books, spent hours each day playing people online and off, bought computer programs to help him practice tactical situations and long term strategies, etc. I heard of even more impressive results. I remember reading a book by some chess GM (forgot which), and he coached a kid who increased his rating by more than 1000 in about 18 months. So it is possible, but realistically speaking, if you're not that into it, you won't be great at it.
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Jonah
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Thanks for the Capablanca suggestion. After a quick search I found "Chess Fundamentals" can be downloaded for free or just a few dollars depending on the edition. I played through a few chapters this morning that cover middle-game theory in a very clear and precise way. I can already tell it's going to be a useful book.
On a side note, it's been interesting to hear about people's opportunities against better players. My favorite chess experience came in the late-90s when I was fortunate enough to play some skittles and blitz games and take a few lessons from Utah's first and, at the time, only GM. Sitting across the board and kibitzing with a world-class player (he once beat Karpov when Karpov was at his best and the world champion) was mind-boggling, the depth and ease players of that caliber see into the game is amazing.
I've never played anyone better than my brothers John and Melvin, nor read a book on chess. It's also been several years since I played a human besides my daughters, who once in a while will tempt me to turn away from JazzFanz with a chess board all set up. It works better than Settlers of Catan.
However, I hope to learn from playing better players. Maybe I'll download that book myself.
LogGrad98
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In the 80's there was a series called the Fireside Chess Library, with books written by Pandolfini, I believe. I loved them. I started reading them early on (like at age 12 or so). My favorite were a couple of books about Bobby Fischer, including his 60 most memorable games. Those books probably did the most to transform my chess. Of course the first chess book I read was Chess Fundamentals by Capablanca, as we have already noted. It is fantastic and probably the single best book out there for gaining a solid understanding of the game, and a good foundation to build on.
Ok so I googled Fireside Chess Library and got this:
https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_...al-text&field-keywords=fireside chess library
Ok so I googled Fireside Chess Library and got this:
https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_...al-text&field-keywords=fireside chess library
LogGrad98
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So for my most memorable game. I was in Stuttgart on my mission and in the city park they had these huge chess boards, where the queen was like almost 3 feet tall and such. All these old dudes would gather to play and I was fresh off some decent performances in Utah amateur opens for the past couple of years, and my chess was pretty sharp if a bit erratic. I really preferred, and still do, hyper-modern games that generally look to control the middle from the wings, as it can lead to some great sweeping attacks across the board, and my strength back then was a decent analysis of the mid-game and pretty sharp knight play. Knights have always been my favorite pieces and I seem to see the board better with my knights than most people I have played against.
Anyway on these big chess boards, we would go to the park on P-day and my companion would write letters while I played chess and I loved it. Sometimes we would go there during the week and I would play and my companion would work the crowd with the BoM.
So this one old dude was a transplanted russian and he was always the guy to beat. He would sit there with several of his friends and watch games, and occasionally accept challenges, and I do not think I ever saw him lose. He obviously knew the game very well. He was truly fantastic and I could tell he was on a different plane than the other players, but I didn't get a chance to play him, just saw him playing on one of the boards. Usually he had moved on when my game was done, or we were just passing through while he was playing. Finally it worked out that I got to play him.
I was watching him play a game and we started to talk. In broken german he said he had been watching me and thought I showed promise and wanted to play a game. So I waited for his game to end, a game in which he systematically dismantled a guy I had already played several times who had given me fits. I didn't think I stood much of a chance at that point but I was excited to try.
He played white, and started with a basic king pawn opening. I played straight up to his king pawn, I think we had some kind of kings indian game going. He played somewhat conservative and very positional. Soon we were very intertwined and the game had worked it's way to almost like a game of jenga, one false move and it would all come down. I had a feeling the whole game that I was being punked and he would unleash some devastating attack I just couldn't see coming, but I did a good job of countering him positionally until I worked out a pretty combination on the queenside and had my knight poised nicely on the 4th rank, iirc. We still had not exchanged a piece, which was crazy as we were probably nearing 20 moves into the game. I remember he moved his queen, and I saw the opening and moved my other knight forward on the kingside and I knew I had a good setup. I had been able to pen in his bishops, both blocked by pawns at one point or another, and with my knights free to roam, more or less, no matter what he did within 2 moves I would be able to fork his queen and a rook, or both rooks. He made one more move and I made the setup move with my kingside knight and he spent a good 15 minutes studying the game and then resigned. It was really probably the best single game of chess I had ever played, and won without exchanging a piece.
He shook my hand and said he thoroughly enjoyed the game. I was surprised he resigned as were his friends and other onlookers, but I had seen at least 2 lines that could lead to mate at the time and I figured he had seen that too. But after the game he and a few other players were talking about the game and the position, and he was explaining about 4 lines I had that would lead to mate, after taking one of his rooks, and that the best case scenario for him was to be down a full rook with his bishops pinned down and an off balance queen side. I hadn't seen everything he was pointing out, but he did point out the couple of lines I had seen. Really eye opening. He told his friends that I had developed a position that took the initiative through superior knight play on the wings, and he knew the game was lost no matter what he did due to loss of the initiative and material imbalance.
Later I spoke to someone about the guy and asked his name because I hadn't before and he told me. It wasn't anyone I recognized but the guy I spoke to told me he had been a training partner with Boris Spassky and had played in Russian championship tournaments in his younger days (he was probably in his late 60's or early 70's when I played him). I need to dig out my mission journal and look up his name.
Anyway, that was pretty cool. Probably for me my most memorable game.
Anyway on these big chess boards, we would go to the park on P-day and my companion would write letters while I played chess and I loved it. Sometimes we would go there during the week and I would play and my companion would work the crowd with the BoM.
So this one old dude was a transplanted russian and he was always the guy to beat. He would sit there with several of his friends and watch games, and occasionally accept challenges, and I do not think I ever saw him lose. He obviously knew the game very well. He was truly fantastic and I could tell he was on a different plane than the other players, but I didn't get a chance to play him, just saw him playing on one of the boards. Usually he had moved on when my game was done, or we were just passing through while he was playing. Finally it worked out that I got to play him.
I was watching him play a game and we started to talk. In broken german he said he had been watching me and thought I showed promise and wanted to play a game. So I waited for his game to end, a game in which he systematically dismantled a guy I had already played several times who had given me fits. I didn't think I stood much of a chance at that point but I was excited to try.
He played white, and started with a basic king pawn opening. I played straight up to his king pawn, I think we had some kind of kings indian game going. He played somewhat conservative and very positional. Soon we were very intertwined and the game had worked it's way to almost like a game of jenga, one false move and it would all come down. I had a feeling the whole game that I was being punked and he would unleash some devastating attack I just couldn't see coming, but I did a good job of countering him positionally until I worked out a pretty combination on the queenside and had my knight poised nicely on the 4th rank, iirc. We still had not exchanged a piece, which was crazy as we were probably nearing 20 moves into the game. I remember he moved his queen, and I saw the opening and moved my other knight forward on the kingside and I knew I had a good setup. I had been able to pen in his bishops, both blocked by pawns at one point or another, and with my knights free to roam, more or less, no matter what he did within 2 moves I would be able to fork his queen and a rook, or both rooks. He made one more move and I made the setup move with my kingside knight and he spent a good 15 minutes studying the game and then resigned. It was really probably the best single game of chess I had ever played, and won without exchanging a piece.
He shook my hand and said he thoroughly enjoyed the game. I was surprised he resigned as were his friends and other onlookers, but I had seen at least 2 lines that could lead to mate at the time and I figured he had seen that too. But after the game he and a few other players were talking about the game and the position, and he was explaining about 4 lines I had that would lead to mate, after taking one of his rooks, and that the best case scenario for him was to be down a full rook with his bishops pinned down and an off balance queen side. I hadn't seen everything he was pointing out, but he did point out the couple of lines I had seen. Really eye opening. He told his friends that I had developed a position that took the initiative through superior knight play on the wings, and he knew the game was lost no matter what he did due to loss of the initiative and material imbalance.
Later I spoke to someone about the guy and asked his name because I hadn't before and he told me. It wasn't anyone I recognized but the guy I spoke to told me he had been a training partner with Boris Spassky and had played in Russian championship tournaments in his younger days (he was probably in his late 60's or early 70's when I played him). I need to dig out my mission journal and look up his name.
Anyway, that was pretty cool. Probably for me my most memorable game.
So on a good day, at my best, maybe 1600, for all I could prove. Erratic might be a better label?