YOUR� :
DYE
A STRUCTURED APPROACH TO MOVE SELECTION IN CHESS
PEROSTMAN
EVERYMAN CHESS Gloucester Publishers pie www.everymanchess.com
First publi shed in 2011 by Gloucester Publishers pie (formerly Everyman Publishers pk), North burgh House, 10 Northburgh Street, London EC1V OAT Copyright© 2011 Per Ostman The right of Per Ostman to be identified as the author of this work has been as serted in accordance with the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication m ay be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, electrostatic, magnetic tape, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of the publisher. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN: 978 1 85 744 660 9 Distributed in North America by The Globe Pequot Press, P.O Box 480, 246 Goose Lane, Guilford, CT 06437-0480. All other sales enquiries should be directed to Everyman Chess, Northburgh House, 10 Northburgh Street, London EC1 V OAT tel: 020 7253 7887 fax: 020 7490 3708 email: [emailprotected]; website: www.everymanchess.com Everyman is the registered trade mark of Random House Inc. and is used in this work under licence from Random House Inc.
To my wife.for constantly showing me how wondeiful life can be.
Everyman Chess Series Chief advisor: Byron Jacobs Commissioning editor: John Emms Assistant editor: Richard Palliser Typeset and edited by First Rank Publishing, Brighton. Cover design by Horatio Monteverde. Printed and bound in Great Britain by Clays, Bungay, Suffolk.
Contents
Foreword
7
Preface
9
Introduction
13
Part 1: Process
16
Update Created Th reats Resulting Drawbacks Other Changes
18
Select Move Scan Candidate Moves Move Selection
22
18 19 20
22 23 24
Verify Reply Sca n Candidate Replies Reply Eva luation
26
Check Resulti ng Drawbacks Other Cha nges Overlooked Replies
30
Execute Move Clock Notate
26 27 27
30 31 32 33 33 33 34
Prepare Prophylaxis Objectives Plan
35
Full Example Prepare Update Select Verify Check Execute
38
Part 2: Potentia l Candidate Moves
43
Known Moves Forcing Moves Moves Meeting Threats Princi pled and Thematic Moves Pawn Breaks Moves as Pa rt of a Plan Prophylactic Moves Moves Creating Tactical Patterns Moves Aimed at I m bala nces
43
Part 3: Knowledge
52
Opening Development Boa rd Control The First Move Advantage Specifics
54
Endgame Pawns Pieces Turn Phases
72
Imbalances Nature King
36 36 37
38 39 40 41 42 42
44 47 47 48 49 50 50 51
55 63 66 68
73 78 91 95 103 103 106
Pieces Pawns Board Time Combinations Defin ition Threats Simple Threats Multiple Threats Com binations of Threats Specifics Attack Area Weakness Power Time Breakthrough Typical Attacks
1 08 113 117 121 124 124 125 1 25 130 1 35 140 141 141 143 145 146 1 51 156
Part 4: Skills
1 57
Calculation Theory Visu a lization Termination Pruning Order
159
Evaluation Dynamic Value Static Value Expectation U ncertainty Planning Analysis Synthesis Form u lation Verification Realization
1 60 1 63 1 64 1 68 1 70 177 1 77 1 77 1 78 1 79 182 1 83 1 84 1 84 1 85 186
Creativity
1 88
Time Distribution When Time is Running Out The Big Think Indecisiveness
190
Part 5: Preparation
198
Physical Rest Exercise Food and Drink
200
Mental Goal Visua lization Attitude
202
Training Process Knowledge Skills Opponent Opening Style Strengths and Wea knesses Rating Psychology Failure Calculation Planning Time Attitude Knowledge Conclusion Recommended Resources
190 192 193 196
200 200 201
202 202 204 205 205 209 211 211 211 212 212 213 214 214 215 215 216 216 218 220
Foreword
by Grandmaster Zong-Yuan Zhao Initially I was somewhat surprised when I was asked to write a foreword to the book you are now holding in your hands, but this quickly turned into admiration when I realized at how concisely and accurately the author, Per Ostman, has man aged to pinpoint many of the important features of good decision-making which is constantly required in practical play. As the author notes, he was deeply influenced by the classic forefathers in this chess genre, namely Think like a Grandmaster and Play like a Grandmaster by the eminent Russian grandmaster and teacher Alexander Kotov. However, he believes (and I think very rightly) that the idea of developing an analysis tree is not univer sally applicable. Indeed, like many others before me, I actually believe that not many grandmasters would think in this "classical manner" described by Kotov. Also, Kotov's books do not really describe how one might attempt to find and compile the list of candidate moves in the first place. Your Best Move is here to provide both a conceptual and theoretical framework for this candidate move compilation process, complete with well illustrated examples from chess practice. Indeed, as the author points out, the real key is to find " ...the move most likely to give you the desired result against a certain opponent in a cer tain context". Equally importantly, I believe this book has a wide appeal and pro vides strong examples which are useful for students ranged anywhere from 1400 up to 2000 in Elo rating. In Australia, this means that it would be incredibly useful for most of my students. Furthermore, I believe the scarcity of books in this decision making genre means that this book will become a classic in its own rig ht, and will hopefully encourage other authors to consider developing this genre further!
7
Your Be st Move
Lastly, I think the author does a good job of noting the importance of some basic points about chess (and, in fact, almost all other competitive activities I can think of). This includes the fact that when facing a stronger opponent (especially a titled player), less experienced players often lose hope and forget the basic principle that the game of chess is only decided by the quality of the moves made on the board, and not on reputation. This may seem like an obvious point, but it is one I only fully understood after becoming a grandmaster myself, as I then realized just how fallible grandmasters can be! For all those players aspiring to improve from club level to 2000 and beyond, you are now holding the right book in your hands! Zong-Yuan Zhao, Sydney, November 2010 long-Yuan Zhao is a grandmaster, the 2010Australian Champion andAustralia's number one ranked player. He coaches many ofAustralia's most talented junior players, including Per Ostman's son, Erik.
8
Preface
When we first learn chess, we are primarily concerned with simple traps, tactics and exploiting our opponent's mistakes. Hopefully we also do our best not to make any obvious mistakes ourselves. The move we choose to make is often the very first move that appears in our minds and rarely do we take any time to look for other moves. As we get stronger, we accumulate more and more experience and knowledge, which ultimately make us subconsciously choose better and better moves. Some players just continue playing like this and sooner or later find themselves stagnat ing. It is only natural that some form of conscious selection, some form of process to follow, would help us make more informed and better choices. Ever since I first got seriously interested in chess and played my first tournaments, I have been keenly interested in how such a process would look, obviously to im prove my own results. Surely, many of the world's strongest players must have documented such an approach? I started to look, consuming any information I could get hold of at the time, including all the published books of Alexander Kotov. I especially remember the two books Think like a Grandmaster and Play like a both of which led me to some insights, and still today contain a fair bit of important information. I remember trying to adopt his way of calculating the variation tree and starting to evaluate positions according to the elements described by him. Grandmaster,
And I did indeed improve somewhat, but something was not right. I realized that evaluating positions to try to magically find the opponent's weakness and to ex ploit it by a plan was not enough, and more often than not actually wasted too
9
Y our Be s t Move
much time. I also realized calculating variations is n ot really possible if you don't have a good way of knowing what moves to look for, which was not described by Kotov. Nowadays the number of quality chess books i s so much greater, and since the best way of structuring the move selection process is still at the core of my chess interest, I think I h ave consumed most chess books on the subject - those pub lished in a consumable language for me, that is. Some books, like the classic work Psychology in Chess by Nikolai Krogius, studies the psychology of chess, but the actual way of thinking is usually not described. Other books, like the early Thought and Choice in Chess by Adriaan de Groot, Jacob Aagaard's Inside the Chess Mind, Amatzia Avni's The Grandmasters Mind, and Dan Heisman's The Improving Chess Thinker, offer actual studies on how players at dif ferent levels think. This i s extremely interesting reading and in particular offers insights into what actually separates the strongest players from the rest. Interest ingly, it seems that many strong players still calculate almost subconsciously, sometimes actually missing moves that could h ave been spotted quite easily had they just looked for them. One author describing his preferred way of reaching a conclusion i s Jeremy Sil man. His work about imbalances, described in How to Reassess Your Chess, is one of the most pedagogical and logical books on the subject of move selection. In it, he also describes several other processes from authors I had not h eard of before. In short, Silman proposes that we should look at the imbalances at h and and then implement plans for strengthening our own imbalances while at the same time weakening our opponent's. I still regard his work as the best when it comes to h andling the i mportant area of imbalances. One area Silman could have described in more depth is the transformation of im balances into others, and how to identify and handle those critical moments when this is most likely to occur. Another author, lossif Dorfman, has tried to describe this in his work The Critical Moment. He does so in very few words and is a bit too simplistic for my taste; but his point is very valid and in a way he complements Silman's work, even if their writing and style are miles apart. Further complementing these two authors, by describing the art of forming and verifying plans out of positional elements, or imbalances, are Robert Bellin and Pietro Ponzetto in their work Test Your Positional Chess. Together, these three books are the main source of inspiration for me when it comes to positional play
10
Prefac e
and how to select moves using strategic reasoning. This is not to say there are not better or better-known books on the subject. Still, when I look at my own games, I realize that regardless of my increasing play ing strength, almost all of them are decided in some way by tactics. Fair to say, many of the tactics would not h ave come about h ad the winning player not had the positional advantage, but it is a clear reminder that tactics is king. The same seems to be true for grandmasters and even world champions, who sometimes mysteriously miss even one-movers. An author completely and utterly convinced about this fact is Michael de la Maza. In his work Rapid Chess Improvement, he describes a training program for increas ing your tactical ability, as well as a simplified thinking process. In the same spirit, Forcing Chess Moves by Charles Hertan preaches the importance of always looking at the most forcing moves. Obviously, tactics h as to play a central part in any effi cient move selection process. It would be gravely ignorant of me not to mention Andrew Soltis' work How to which describes so many cues and tips on how to think, that it is almost peculiar that he did not try to bring it all together in a process. I would also like to mention the continuous work of Dan Heisman and Jonathan Rowson. Choose a Chess Move,
I truly stand on the shoulders of these and many other authors and trainers when I present to you my findings. From them I h ave distilled what I believe is an effec tive and logical way of thinking, and hopefully also added my own logic and ideas. Eager to share and test my theories and conclusions, I have used them in m any different forms in my training of young chess students, and the results have been encouraging indeed. After years of searching and thinking, I realize my interest in refining my findings is decreasing, which for me indicates I am close to the point where I cannot add much more. It is time for me to share it with the chess community and let the next runner take over the torch. Per Ostman Sydney November 2010
11
Introduction
There is a simple truth about chess, which forms the foundation of what I will try to achieve in this book. Since each player alternates in m aking moves, and since you are not allowed to m ake more than one move each tum, the conclusion we all already know is that you only have to decide on one m ove at a time. Of course, to be able to decide on that move, we usually h ave to look several moves ahead, but some players alm ost forget the reason they are l ooking ahead. Prag matically, you only look ahead in order to decide on which next move is the best one to make. Many players think they have to find what they would call the "best" move, but the question is: I s there one move that is better than the others in every position? When thinking about it, you realize that even the concept of "best" is not clear! We can all agree that if there is one and only one move leading to a forced check mate, it should certainly be considered as "best". But what if two of the moves lead to checkmate? You might argue that the quickest one is the best because if nothing else, it saves you a tiny bit of effort. But if they are both checkmates in the same number of moves, is there still a best one? The same question, but on a much more profound level, is the question about which first move is the best. Experience suggests it is probably 1 e4 or 1 d4, and we think it should at least be a move controlling the centre. But chess is a finite discrete m athematical problem and there is a solution. The problem is we don't know what the solution is, and even if we did, there would be no way for us to always choose one of the moves l eading to the solution. The point is, say we knew that by best play White would win. If that was the case, there would most probably be much more than one way to get there, and since
13
Your Best M o ve the end result is the same, are all those moves ofequal value, or which one should be considered the "best"? When trying to answer this, we have to remember that chess is a sport, with two humans trying to outsmart each other. Wh at we should strive for is optimizing the probability of winning, which means looking not for the objectively "best" move, but for the move with the highest probability of delivering the desired re sult. This is an important point. because two moves that can both be considered "best" m ight not have the same probability of success, mainly because we are humans, with all sorts of subjective attributes. We possess different knowledge in different aspects of the game, we thrive in different kinds of positions and we have differ ent amounts of visualization power and intuition. This means that in the same position, an attacking player's "best" move can easily be different from the positional player's. Sometimes there is only one objectively "best" move and sometimes there are more, but even the objectively "best" move can be a worse choice than another move because of the nature of the hum an mind. There are plenty of examples where grandmasters choose an easily calculated good move instead of a possibly best move leading to extremely complicated posi tions, simply because they cannot see all the variations to their end, implying a bigger risk. As a result, in this text. the "best" move means the move most likely to give you the desired result against a certain opponent in a certain context. This book is about finding that "best" move. To find your best move, you need a structured way to filter the possible moves and to logically and efficiently select one of them as being the best. You need a step by-step process by which to think. For such a structured thinking process to work well, you need skills for executing the different steps, and you obviously need the knowledge to build upon. These three building blocks form the basis of what you n eed to m aster to be able to find your best m ove, and together they form the content of this book.
14
Introduc tion
In formal situations, I have called the thinking process The Oakhill Thinking Steps, since it took its final form in Oakhill outside of Sydney in Australia. But for simplic ity, I have started to refer to it as just Yobemo when talking to my students, obvi ously using the first two letters in each word of "Your Best Move". The content is intentionally mainly textual, with diagrams and variations present only to demonstrate the concepts in the text. This by no way diminishes the value of heavy analysis and lengthy variations in chess, but I think it would serve little purpose in our context. For the same reason, while nearly all of the examples are taken from real games, often involving my students, you will only find the most famous examples attrib uted with player names. To be honest, most books on the subject of chess rely heavily on elaborate exam ples and analysis, and the reader no doubt will select one of these books to train and develop analytical skills. A note on move numbering in the examples: for very well-known opening positions, early in the game, I've used the adual move numbers; in all other cases I've started
at "move 1 " rather than using the game's actual move number.
15
Finding the elusive "best" move during normal play means you have to find the best move from maybe 40 possible candidate moves, and you only have a few minutes to do so. It stands to reason that this task either calls for great intuitive ability to quickly and subconsciously choose a move, or demands a disciplined and efficient process, or most probably both. I will propose to you a way of thinking - a thinking process which will guide you in your search for the best move, taking into account all important parts of prag matic chess. In its simplest and shortest form, it works like this:
16
Process
If we start at the moment your opponent makes his m ove, the most n atural thing to do is to update your understanding of the position. When you have done this, you start looking for the move you want to m ake. Calcu lating and evaluating several candidate moves, you select one move as your main candidate. The selected move then has to be scrutinized, so you verify that your opponent does n ot h ave any replies which would make your choice inferior to other moves. If you find such a reply, you select a n ew m ai n candidate. Before you actually m ake your move, it is good practice to stop for a second to check that you are n ot making any obvious mistakes an d to look at h ow, on a basic level, the move will change the position. Only then are you ready to execute th e move on the board an d start your opponent's clock. During your opponent's time, you seize the opportunity to prepare for your next move by looking at aspects not concerning an immediate move. You ask yourself what your opponent would like to do and how you could stop his intentions, and you look for objectives around which you can form a plan for the coming moves. If you fe el the need, you continue this preparation into your own time. Then it is time to again update the position according to the move your opponent has executed. You continue this way, move after move, never deviating from the process. Only the details withi n each step and th e relative importance of the steps change. If you can find the discipline to do this, I will guarantee you will be astonished by how much you will find during your search. But be prepared - it might sometimes feel like a mundane task. Chess is not for lazy people, n or for the players thinking the game will pl ay itself. You are as strong as the moves you make. Not stronger, not weaker. If you play grandmaster m oves, you are as strong as a grandmaster; and if you play rookie moves, you are as weak as a rookie. Your rating is only m easuring how strong you were in the past. Never forget it.
17
Y our Be s t Move
Update The first step in the process is Update, with the following sub-steps:
When your opponent has made a move, the position h as changed. This means it's time to update your understanding of the position. In doing so, you will get cues about potential candidate moves.
Created Threats First you look at the moved piece. What does the piece threaten and where can it move to next? You also have to look for other threats created from other pieces. Ask yourself if the threat has to be met or if you have an equal or stronger threat, m aking this unnecessary. Example 1 (W) Black's last move was 1 Bc8-b7. The moved bishop is now threaten i ng the white rook. ...
White ca n meet this th reat by moving the rook. But the th reat doesn't need to be met, since Wh ite has the stronger th reat 2 Nf6+, which wins a piece after 2 ... Kf8 3 Bxb7 Bxf6 4 Rxe8+ Kxe8 5 exf6.
18
Process
Resulting Drawbacks After you h ave l ooked at the threats, it is time to l ook at the resulting drawbacks. You establish if the new position of the m oved piece can be exploited; for exam ple, if the piece can be attacked.
Example 2 {W) I n this classic ope n i n g position, Black has just pl ayed 2 ...Qd8xd s . Wh ite ca n exploit the queen's position a n d de velop a piece by 3 Nc3.
Because every move creates weaknesses, you should then look at what the piece previously protected. It might not h ave protected another piece, but at least one square h as one less defender. Establish if the created weakness is important and if it can be exploited.
Example 3 {B) W h ite has just played 1 d4-d 5 a n d n o longer attacks t h e cs-sq u a re. Black ca n n ow fol l ow up with 1. . c4 a n d 2 .. Ncs. .
.
You should also look for drawbacks for other pieces, like those which are now blocked by the m oved piece.
19
Y our Be s t Move
Example 4 (B) White has j ust played 1 Rf1-e1?, but this removes one of the squares the queen could move to. After 1...Bg4 Wh ite is forced to put his rook i nto the firing line by 2 Re2, a llowing Black to win material.
A special way of dealing with threats is to look at what drawbacks the execution of a threat would create. This is a very effective way of meeting a threat, because the opponent is likely to execute the threat if you let him. If you have seen deeper into the position and actually realize how to exploit the resulting position, you are one move ahead of your opponent. Example 5 (W} Black has just played 1...Bg7-e5, to be able to continue with 2 ... e3 3 Bxe3 Nxe3 4 Rxd8 Rxd8 5 Rxe3 Bf4, pinning the rook (6 Kbl allows 6 ... Rd1 mate). If White ca n find a move refuting Black's plan without preventing it, chances are Black will fa ll on h is own sword. Indeed, if White plays 2 c3, then 2 ... e3 3 Bxe3 Nxe3 4 Rxd8 Rxd8 5 Rxe3 Bf4 no longer works, because of 6 Kbl Bxe3 7 Qf6+ Qg7 8 Qxd8+ Qg8 9 Qxg8 mate.
Other Changes You should also note other changes resulting from the move, like how it affects imbalances. Have new imbalances been created? Have the values of existing im balances changed?
20
Pro cess
Example 6 (W) Black has j ust played 1 Rc8xc3, captur ing a knight to c reate several i mbal a nces. The two obvious i m bala nces a re material (Black will have a knight against White's rook) and a destr oyed ...
white pawn chain in front of the exposed white king.
21
Your Be s t Move
Select The step following Update i n the process is Select, with the following sub-steps:
Now that you have updated your understanding of the position, it's time to select the "best" move. Even in the rare cases where you don't have a clue of what move you want to make, the process is simply to pinpoint the move you think is your "best" move, given the available options. The purpose of the Select step is to extract a move as the one you think is the "best" for you. Verifying its value is the purpose of the next step, Verify.
Move Scan Very few, if any, players l ook at all possible moves, but a full move scan can be done in a matter of seconds, taking into account scans from the previous move selections and the understanding created when updating the position. If you have a good understanding of what a candidate looks like, and immediately recognize the different candidate types, the move scan is much faster than look ing for the candidate moves type by type (candidate types are described l ater). During the scan, most moves are immediately dismissed, either because they are obviously bad or because they are quiet and don't seem to add any value. Be wary of the premature dismissal of combinational moves, which will only show their true value several moves ahead. 22
Process
Example 7 (W) Moves l i ke Qxb3, Ra1, Nxc4, Ne4, Bd3 and Bxc4 look easy to dismiss a s candi dates because of material loss. other moves l i ke a4, g4, h3, Qe1, Re1 a nd Kh 1 look either less good or plain pointless. But wa it - let's not dismiss 1 Bxc4 j ust yet. After 1...dxc4 2 Nxc4 the black queen is th reatened, as is Nd6+.
Ca ndidate Moves After completing the scan, a few moves are left. In some positions there could be as many as 6-10 moves left. All these are potential candidates, but you will most probably not have to look at them all. Just see them as a shortlist from which you will select the candidate moves to evaluate, one at a time. Example 8 (W) Bxc4, Nxb3, Qc2, g3, h4, Ngs, Nh4 a nd Ne1 looks l i ke a shortlist of possible ca ndidates.
Note that it is not uncommon for a candidate to rise to the top of the list in the middle of your evaluation of another candidate. It might even be a candidate you have already dismissed. The reason a candidate may rise like this is because you suddenly realize it makes something else possible, something you discover during the analysis.
23
Y our Be s t M o v e
Example 9 (W) Wh ite has identified f7 as a weakness, so candidates might be Rfl, Qf2 a nd h4. A q uick look at Rfl shows that the black knight and queen a re stil l very potent. After 1 Rfl there's the devastati ng 1...Qe4+ 2 Kf2 N h 3 mate. 1 h4 im mediately gets rid of this possi ble threat and should rise to the top of the ca ndidate l ist.
Move Selection Move Selection is all about selecting the move with the highest value. The moves should be looked at in the order of decreasing potential. Since the potential value of a forcing move is very high, any forcing moves in the short list should be looked at first.
I will use the term "potential value" to denote the value you think a move might h ave, before you have analysed it in any depth. "Maximum" and "minimum" val ues instead form the range of uncertainty you are left with after analysis. So first you pick the move with the highest potential value and try to look at it deeply enough to get a sense of its value, or rather the maximum and minimum values you think it has. To get a good sense of the value, sometimes you have to look several moves ahead and take several opponent replies into account. However, sometimes the position and the move are quiet, and the evaluation rather depends on weighing the posi tional pros and cons against each other. When you have a sense of the value of the first candidate move, ask yourself if there is another candidate that could possibly have a higher value than the mini mum value of the move you h ave just considered. Now it becomes evident why you should look at the potentially most valuable move first, because it might be very easy to dismiss most if not all of the remaining candidates! If you don't think there is a potentially more valuable candidate, the selection process is finished; otherwise, you evaluate the next move with the highest potential value.
24
Process
Example 10 (W) Forcing moves almost a lways have the h ighest potential va l ues, so Bxc4 a n d Nxb3 should b e looked a t fi rst Since Bxc4 seems to have more potential than just an exchange of pieces, it is a natu ral first ca ndidate. After 1 Bxc4 Nxd2 2 Nxd2 dxc4 3 Nxc4 Qc6 4 Nd6+ Kd8 5 Nxf7+ Kc7 6 Nxh8, White has a rook and th ree pawns fo r a bishop, and a stran ded kn ight o n h8. Even if eve nt ually the k n ight cou ld be captured, the m i n i m u m va l u e fo r this va riation is a materia l win of one pawn. N o other ca n didates have a potentia l va l u e greater than one pawn, so n o more ca ndidates need t o b e eva luated. You continue in this way until there are no candidates l eft with a potential value of at l east the minimum value of the "best" move you h ave considered so far. If two m oves look about equal, you either look a bit closer at them to be able to es tabl ish which one is better, or if you think looking deeper wouldn't help, or if you are short of time, you could select either of them. The reason being that if they have about the same value, it might n ot even m atter which one you choose!
Example 11 (B) ... Nxg4 a n d ... Ne8 a re the two m a i n ca ndidates, o n e having t o b e ca lculated a n d the other positional. No other moves have the same pote ntia l . 1. . Nxg4 2 fxg4 Qh4+ 3 Kfl Qh3+ 4 Kf2 Qxc3 wins at least a pawn. .
1 .. Ne8 fo l lowed by ... NC7, ... Ne6 a n d ... N d 4 pl aces a giant k night i n t h e centre a n d cou ld very we l l be worth a l m ost as much. .
25
Your Best M o ve
Verify The step following Select in the process i s Verify, with the following sub-steps:
When you h ave selected what you think is your best move, it is time to verify its value. During selection, your focus is to find what your possibilities are and to try to figure out which move you want to make, whereas during verification your fo cus should be on your opponent's possibilities and whether there are any oppo n ent replies lowering the value of your selected move so much that it should no longer be considered the "best". This i s also the time to check that you have correctly visualized the key variations, since any visualization error could severely alter the value of the selected move.
Reply Scan In the same way you scan your own possible moves, you should find all feasible candidates for your opponent. Wh at you are looking for are the moves that could potentially lessen the value of your selected move, so be especially alert to all forc ing replies. This reply scan should ideally be performed not only for the first reply but for re plies deeper into the variations. Of course it is not practical to do a full scan on every level, but it is vital to try to find refuting moves not just on the first level.
26
Process
Example 12 (W) 1 Nd6 Rxcs 2 Nxfs looks prom i s i ng for Wh ite beca use of the pin along the e file. B ut looking further, you w i l l find that the pin is n ot a bsol ute: 2 ... RxfS 3 Rxfs exfs 4 Rxe7 Rdl+ wins fo r Black a n d so the conclusion is that 2 Nxfs is not pos sible. 1 Nd6 m ight sti l l be the strongest ca ndidate, though.
Candidate Replies After completing the scan, the candidate replies should be the ones which may potentially lessen the perceived value of your selected move. Be wary of the pre mature dismissal of moves which only show their true value several moves ahead.
Example 13 (B) Looki n g at 1...Bxg4, the cand idate re pl ies a re 2 hxg4 a n d 2 Nxg4. 2 Nxg4 seems to lose a pawn beca use of 2 .. Nxe4, b ut not dism issing 2 N xg4 too swiftly will reveal 3 Qd3, wi n ning a kn ight. .
This mea ns that the va l u e of 1 ... Bxg4 d ecrea ses, beca use it does not fo rce open the h-fi le.
Reply Evaluation When considering your opponent's possible replies, this time it is not about evaluatin g them to select the "best" reply, but rather to evaluate them to see whether they potentially l essen the value you think your selected move has. You are n ot really comparing the value of the candidate replies with each other, but rather their effect on the value of your selected move. If you find a reply which you think lessens that value, you should again ask yourself whether there is any other candidate move that should n ow be considered the "best". 27
Your Bes t Move
Example
14 (W}
White liked the look of 1 Nxe6 Rxc3 2 Nxf4, but then found the reply 2 ... Rxf3 3 gxf3 Qc1+, followed by 4 ... Qxf4. Despite this fol low-up combination from Black, White sti l l eval uated the resulting position as winning for him, a n d no other ca ndidate move rose to the top of the list as a result of finding Black's reply. If your selected move still seems to be the best, you continue with the verification. If not, don't dismiss your selected move right away, but instead try to find moves for yourself deeper into the variation - moves that again raise the value of the selected move above the other candidates. Example
15 (B)
Black is contemplating 1 .. .f6, since he believes the im mediate 1 ... Rxb4 2 Nge4 Nxe4 3 Nxe4 Bxds 4 Nd6 Re7 5 Rd 1 wins back one of the pawns with a good game for White (s ... Be6 6 Rxes). But while verifying 1 ...f6 2 Nge4 Nxe4 3 Nxe4 Bxds, Black finds the reply 4 Nd6, forking the two rooks. But look further! Movi ng the knight to d6 opens up the d iagonal to g2, so after 4... Rxc2 5 Nxe8 Rxg2+ 6 Kh1 Rg3+, the move 1 .. .f6 still comes u p on top. But if you cannot find any later improvements in the variation, you h ave to g o back t o the selection step and select another move. You then h ave to return t o ver ify that new move.
28
Process
Example 16 (W) W h ite i n iti a l ly be lieved i n 1 Bxd s Bxd s 2 Qxd s Qxd s 3 Nc7+, but then fou n d B lack's refutation, l. Nb4. S i nce he cou l dn't find a ny i m provement in th is va riation, the ca ndidate move had to be a ba n doned. ..
The verification process is completed when you h ave verified that there are no opponent replies, on any level in the variations, which lessen the value of the se lected move below the potential value of other candidates.
29
Your Bes t Move
Check The step following Verify in the process is Check, with the following sub-steps:
Resulting Drawbacks
Now that you have selected and verified your best move, it's almost time to exe cute it. But before you do, you should just check it for obvious blunders. You might not think that this should be necessary after all the work you did dur ing the verification process, but the mindset i s a bit different, and too many of us get a bit tired sometimes and fail to do a proper verification.
Resulting Drawbacks In the same way you did for your opponent's last move, you look at the resulting drawbacks of your own m ove. But this time you do it before it is executed. You first establish whether the intended movement of the piece can be exploited; for example, if the piece can be attacked on its new square. You should then look at what the piece protects. It might not protect another piece, but at least one square will have one less defender after the m ove. Establish whether or n ot the created weakness is important and whether it can be exploited.
30
Process
Example 17 (B) Black wants to play 1 a s a n d follow u p with 2 . a4. ...
..
B ut the move leaves the i m portant squ a re bs unprotected, and after 2 N bS Bxbs 3 Qxbs+ (or even better, 2 fs e s 3 Bxf6 Bxf6 4 N bS Bxbs 5 QxbS+), W hite has an edge.
You should also look for drawbacks for other pieces, such as those that will be blocked by the moved piece.
Example 18 (B) Black is contem pl ati ng 1 . . Re8, but the move leaves the black q ueen tra pped. White ca n take adva ntage of this fact by 2 Bxf7+, and Black can not captu re the bishop by 2 Kxf7 beca use of 3 NgS+ Kg8 4 Ne6 tra pping and wi n n i ng the q ueen. .
...
Other Changes Then continue to note other changes that will result from the move, such as h ow it will affect imbalances. Will new imbalances be created or will the value of existing ones change?
31
Your Bes t Move
Example 19
(W}
White favours 1 b4, which expa nds on the queenside and prepares 2 Bb2. The move also creates potentially weak pawns on c4 a nd a3, at least tempora r i ly, as wel l as a weak square on C3. Fur thermore, it strengthens the potential power of the black bishop on g7, at least until the d iagonal can be challenged safely by Bb2.
Overlooked Replies As a final check, you should ask yourself whether there are any opponent replies that you have overlooked, especially existing threats and forcing moves. Example
20 (B)
Deep Fritz
10-V.Kra m n i k, Bon n 2006
White, the computer progra m Deep Fritz, has j ust played 1 Nxf8, capturing a rook. No lesser player than Vladi m i r Kra m n i k m issed t h e threatened check mate on h7 and played 1 . Qe3??. .
.
A sim ple check ta king seconds wou ld have prevented this shocking outcome.
32
Process
Execute The step following Check in the process is Execute, with the following sub-steps:
This is where you actually execute your move and is the only physical step, unless you feel most comfortable notating your opponent's move as the first step during the Update.
Move Make the move you h ave selected on the board. Some players like to make a bit of a show when moving their piece, thinking this will make the move look stronger. I personally think you should make all moves the same way, not too fast and not too slow, just firmly moving the piece with confidence. This way you give the ap pearance of stability and of always knowing what you are doing.
Clock After making the move, start your opponent's clock. You should also be aware of how much time you h ave left and how you want to use it for the remaining moves. Recognize at what point you will need to start playing slightly faster. Keeping track of time and using it in an optimized manner is crucial. Way too many games, even at the highest level, are just plain lost because of time trouble.
33
Your Best Move
What is the use of selectin g the absolute best moves half of the game and then getting into time trouble and selecting a catastrophic move?
Example 21 {B) With both players l itera l ly having sec onds left on the clock, Black captu red wit h 1 ... Bxe4, a n d after 2 Qxe4 h e wou ld have bee n even more lost t h a n h e had been previously. Instead, Wh ite thought he cou l d force matters by 2 Bxf6?, but was swiftly checkmated: 2 ... Qxg4+ 3 Kf1 Qf3+ 4 Ke1 Qh 1+ 5 Kd2 Bf4+ 6 Kc3 Qc1+ 7 Rc2 Qxc2 m ate. Don't let your opponent's time affect you in any way. Do not play faster just be cause your opponent h as to or wants to!
Notate The n ext step is to write down your opponent's last move, if you haven't already done so, and your own move. Do not write down anything else.
34
Process
Prepare The step following Execute in the process is Prepare, with the following sub-steps:
Previous steps have been all about selecting and executing your best move. But what about planning? What about imbalances? What about objectives and all the other parts of chess? Well, ideally we use our own time to calculate the hard facts and the things we need to have full information to do, and then think about strategy during our op ponent's time. Since strategy is an important part of figuring out which move is actually your best, and since you cannot control the amount of time your opponent spends on his moves, this preparation step might sometimes have to be made during your own time. On the other hand, since strategic elements usually span several moves, you might not h ave to dive into the strategic details until your opponent actually gives you some time to do so on his clock. You need to have enough knowledge about your openings and the plans associ ated with them, as well as how to spot imbalances and how to h andle them, to be able to quickly and even intuitively recognize your opponent's feasible plans and your own objectives.
35
Your B e s t M o ve
Prophylaxis The first thing to do is to work out what your opponent wants to achieve. You need to figure out not only what he is trying to do, but also if there is actually a stronger plan he could switch to. Once you think you know your opponent's m ost dangerous plan, as well as the one he is actually aiming for, you should ask yourself whether there is anything you can do to ruin his plan or at least make it harder. The most efficient way of doing this is to find an easy way to spoil the plan at a late stage, so that your opponent spends several moves on it, only to find it spoiled by one single efficient stroke. Example 22 (W) In this typica l Benoni position, Black's main plan a nd chance fo r counterplay is to achieve the move . . bs. To do this, he typica l ly u ses the moves ... Na 6-c7 (as a l ready played), ...a6 and .. Rb8. .
.
White can make this plan m uch more difficult to achieve by 1 a4. Further more, if Black replies 1...a6 White can fol low u p with 2 a s so that Black will not get a strong pawn front after 3 . Rb8 4 Khl bs s axb6 ,
..
.
Objectives Next it is time for your own objectives. To find them, you need to recognize what imbalances are present and which ones are the most important. If you are attack ing the king, you look for the weakest point in the king's shelter. Once you have selected which imbalance or weakness to utilize, you should state your objective, be it occupying an open file, launching a pawn storm against the king or putting pressure on a weak pawn.
36
Process
Example
23 (B)
Black is just sta rting to d isenta ngle from a difficult situation. The two most i m portant imbalances a re the open d fi le a nd the d ifferent m i nor pieces. Black's objective is to chal lenge the d fi le a nd to ma noeuvre his knight to in fl uence the light squares from a safe location.
Plan Now that you know what you are aiming for, you should ask yourself what posi tion you would like to achieve and where to direct your pieces. When you know this, you have prepared yourself sufficiently for the plan to influence your move selection. Example
24
By safely placing the knight on d6 with ... N(c6}-e7-fS-d6, supported by the queen on e7, Black will manage to acti vate his knight. He will also chal lenge the d-file by bringing the rook from c8 to d8.
37
Your Best M o ve
Full Example let us for a few minutes pretend you are sitting at the board, facing a strong op ponent in an important tournament. How would you use the process I described to choose your best move? You have the Black pieces. You have just executed your l ast move, ... Nf6-e8, started your opponent's clock and notated your move, noting that you have almost four minutes per move until the first time control. This is what you see in front of you: Example 25 (W)
Prepare Your opponent does not immediately reply and gives you a few minutes on his clock. This i s the perfect time for preparing the coming move selection process by looking at strategic considerations. Since you should know the openings you play, and since in this example you have played the King's Indian with ... cs, you would already know that Black is trying to control the dark squares as well as expand on the queenside by getting in the thrust ...bs. White on the other hand is trying to control and expand in the centre, often by f4 and es, or to start attacking the black king. He will most probably also try to keep your queenside expansion under control by a4 and even as. Thinking prophylactically, you would want to prevent White from advancing pawns to as, es and hS. The f4/eS advance is the hardest to prevent, since ... gs is not a realistic option and ...f6 would shut in the bishop and create a weak square 38
Process
on e6. On the other hand, White does not have any minor pieces (bishops, knights) currently supporting this push, whereas Black would have two minor pieces con trolling es after ... Nd7. The a4-aS advance can be prevented by playing ...b6 when White plays a4, since as could then be met by ... bs. The h4-hS advance might be prevented by ... hs after White plays h4, but it is not immediately clear if that is the best defence. Your main objective, in tune with the opening and the imbalances at hand, should be to take control of the queen side by expanding the pawn front on that wing. The position you want to achieve is one where the b-pawn has advanced to bs, either sufficiently supported by its pieces, or even sacrificing itself for greater piece activ ity. You might visualize a knight on c7 and a bishop on d7, both protecting bS. Okay, your opponent makes a move and starts your clock. It is time to find your best move.
Update Not surprisingly, White chose 1 f4. Example
26 {B)
White has just played 1 f4
Looking at the moved pawn, you conclude it now attacks your knight and could move to fs under more favourable conditions. It also prepares a future es. Since no realistic equal or stronger threat exists, it appears the knight on es has to be moved. But looking at the drawbacks of 1 f4, you also note that the pawn no longer pro tects the bishop on e3 and even blocks its diagonal, which makes 1 ... Bh6 possible. It also opens up the e1-h4 diagonal to the white king, although it looks problem atic to exploit this.
39
Your Best M o ve
Select Having updated your understanding of the position, it is time to select the move you think is the strongest. If it wasn't for White's existing threat, moves like 1...Nc7, 1... Bd7 and 1...b6 would be viable candidates according to your plan. But because of the threat, a first move scan immediately removes all candidates but 1...Nd7, 1 ... Bh6 and 1... Nxc4, even if the forcing moves 1 ... Nd3+, 1... Nf3+, 1 ... Ng4 and 1...bS each deserve a fraction of your time. Always look at all forcing moves, even if they are easily dismissed. Look at the move with the highest potential value first, no matter how low you believe its true value will prove to be. This means you should always look at the most forcing moves first. In the position before you, 1 ... Nxc4 is the most forcing of the candidates left after the first scan, and should be analysed first. It is possible you don't really believe it to have much of a value, and you might even have mistakenly removed it during the first scan, but until you have convinced yourself it is not the strongest candi date, it should be analysed, and analysed first. After 1... Nxc4 2 Bxc4 bs 3 Be2, it is evident that if nothing else, the move makes your plan of queenside expansion an immediate reality. But achieving one's plan is rarely worth a piece for a pawn. Let us look a bit further, 3 ...b4 4 Nbl Bxb2. Aha! The bishop is also set free and rules the dark squares! Of course, White can instead play 4 Na4 Bd7 s Nd2 Qas 6 b3 Bxal 7 Qxa1 Bxa4 8 bxa4 Qxa4 and you reach a position where you have a rook and two pawns for two minor pieces - an imbalanced material distribution. Now that you have looked deep enough into the abyss of 1 ... Nxc4 to gain an initial grasp of its value, it is time to ask yourself whether there is any other candidate with a potential value higher than your perceived minimum value of 1...Nxc4. Because of its tactical complexity, the value of 1 ... Nxc4 is probably not clear to you, but at a minimum it looks like it executes your plan, albeit in an unusual manner, and gives you a material imbalance to work with. Despite this, you will probably realize th at the potential highest value of both 1 ... Nd7 and 1 ... Bh6 are higher than the minimum value of 1 ... Nxc4, so you have to consider those moves too. The candidate with the highest potential value after 1...Nxc4 seems to be 1...Bh6, since it is more aggressive than the retreating 1...Nd7. Looking at 1...Bh6, you will soon notice that it has its drawbacks. One of them is the possibility of White pushing the g-pawn to g S; another, stronger plan is to 40
Process
simply protect the bishop on e3 by 2 Qd2, forcing the knight to either retreat to d7 anyway, or 2 ... Ng4 3 Bxg4 Bxg4 4 fs Bxe3 {4... Bg7 S h 3 BhS 6 g4 traps the bishop) s Qxe3 gxfs 6 Qh6 Ng7 7 h3 Bhs 8 exfs f6 9 o-o. Even if you play 9 ...b s here, I think you would prefer White's attack. At this point, 1 ... Bh6 does not seem stronger than 1 ... Nxc4. There remains the retreat 1 ... Nd7. Is it potentially stronger than 1 ... Nxc4? Quite possibly, even if it is a bit passive. White cannot continue with 2 es directly and will most probably opt for 2 a4. After your planned 2 ... b6 3 0-0 Nc7, it looks like it will be hard to get in your liberating ... bs, and your position is passive but quite possibly tenable. When comparing your possible value for 1 ... Nxc4 with the one for 1 ... Nd7, you might prefer 1 ... Nxc4. Don't forget that passivity in itself is dangerous and there is nothing guaranteeing you a draw just because you choose quiet moves. You select 1 .. Nxc4 as your preferred candidate. .
Verify Now it is time to confirm the merits of your chosen candidate and to verify that it is as strong as you think. To do this, you look for improvements for your opponent. What can White do after 1 ... Nxc4 that would lessen the value of the move? Well, it is obvious that White has to answer with 2 Bxc4, and after 2 ...bs, 3 Nxb s axbs 4 Be2 Bxb2 would only help Black. Instead, the bishop has t o retreat and it does not seem to matter where to. 3 Be2 is the natural choice. But after 3 ...b4 4 Na4 (4 Nbl allowing 4... Bxb2 cannot possibly be better) 4 ... Bd7, since Black will regain material, White might continue S Naxcs dxcs 6 Qc2 Ba4 7 Bxcs as 8 es, and Black's position looks as if it is ready to collapse. To make things even more obvious, White can still play S Nd2, because after s ... Qas 6 b3 Bxal 7 Qxal Bxa4, he continues 8 Nc4 and does not lose the a-pawn. The conclusion has to be that, despite looking promising, 1 . . Nxc4 does not stand the test of verification. It no longer looks stronger than 1 ... Nd7. .
Can you find an improvement to your variations making 1 ...Nxc4 strong again? Didn't think so. You have to return to your next best candidate 1 ... Nd7 and verify its value. Since the variations for 1... Nd7 are more strategic than tactical, the value of 1 ... Nd7 is much easier to verify. Not much needs to be added. You select 1 ... Nd7 as your best move.
41
Your Best M o ve
Check Before you actually make the move, you look at its drawbacks, other changes, and overlooked replies. The knight no longer attacks the important squares c4, d3 and g4, and it completely blocks the bishop on c8. It does, h owever, control es and frees the bishop on g7. Also, the move ... es suddenly becomes a viable candidate. No threats or other replies h ave been overlooked.
Execute At last it is time to make your chosen move, start the opponent's clock and notate both your moves. You notice you spent no less than eight minutes on the move, but it was a potentially critical moment in the game and you still have on average more than three minutes to spend on each remaining move before the time con trol. Now it is time to start looking at that plan you started to prepare the last time your opponent's time was ticking.
42
Pa rt Two
Pote nt i a l C a n d i d ate Moves
When performing the move scan during selection, it i s important to immediately, or with very little analysis, sort out which moves have the potential to become candidate moves. For this to be possible, you need to know by heart the different types of moves that are potentially interesting, and almost subconsciously identify them during the scan. If you have to stop to remember the different move types, or if you do one scan per type, the move scan will take too much of your precious time. Let's go through the different types of potential candidate moves. But remember, the following section describes possible candidate moves. Once you have identi fied these, you still have to do the selection and verification processes, the excep tion being known moves.
Known Moves A "known move" is a move you know is your "best" move in a given position. There are basically two different types of known moves: i
Moves in a known opening variation
i
Moves in a known theoretical endgame
43
Your Best M o ve
Example 27 {W) I n this well-known Sicil i a n position, White knows the strong sacrifice 1 NdS exds 2 exd s and executes it without delay.
Known moves should be executed immediately, since this saves time. For this to be valid advice, it is important to realize that the position at hand needs to exactly match the position you remember. It is quite common that the position is only almost the same, or even only resem bles a known position. In these cases, the move suggested by your knowledge should obviously still be a candidate, but should be verified an d checked like any other. Example 28 (B) White has j ust played 5 Qe2 i n stead of the norma l 5 Nf3. Given that Black pre viously played ... Nd7 to be a ble to follow up with ... Ngf6 without risking a bad pawn structure, the sta ndard move for Black would be s ... Ngf6. Here this would obviously be a fata l mistake, beca use of 6 Nd6 mate, a known open ing trap.
Forcing Moves If the position is not known enough for you to be able to immediately execute a known move, you should look at forcing moves before any other moves. A forcing move is a move limiting the opponent's possible replies. By their very limiting nature, they are usually easier to evaluate than other moves. They also usually lead to either quick victory or equally quick defeat and therefore should rise to the top of the candidate list. 44
Pote n ti a l C a n di d a t e Moves
Listed in order of decreasing force, the forcing moves are: i
Checks
i
Mating threats
i
Captures
i
Promotions
i
Threats to more valuable pieces
i
Threats to inadequately protected pieces
i
Quiet forcing moves
All of these are quite self-explanatory, except for the final one. A quiet forcing move is basically any non-violent move still having a limiting effect on the oppo nent's possible replies. These moves are often hard to find and normally do not immediately stand out to you during the scan. Example
29 (B)
After the q u iet looking 1 .. Kh7!, Black's th reats, i ncluding 2 .. Rc4, can no longer be met. .
.
There are two particular situations where you can easily miss a forced move if you don't make a habit of always looking for them: i
When the opponent is threatening something
i
When the opponent has made a capture
In both these situations, you are most probably programmed to react by meeting the threat or by recapturing the piece. The good news is"that so is your opponent, so if you do something else he might have overlooked it and it might have a deci-
45
Your Best M o ve sive effect on the game. If your opponent threatens something, always ask yourself whether you have to meet the threat or whether you have an equal or even stronger threat You may find that this m akes it possible for you to pursue your own plan instead of adapt ing to your opponent's. Example 30 (W) Black is threatening 1 ... Bxhl, but Wh ite has a stronger threat in 1 Bf6l . I f Black captures t h e rook, checkmate wil l fo l low with 1...Bxh1 2 Rxg7+ Kf8 (or 2 .. Kh8 3 Rg1 mate) 3 Rg8+ Kxg8 4 Qg S+ Kf8 S Qg7 mate. .
When your opponent makes a capture, don't immediately recapture, but l ook for a fo rcing "zwischenzug". Example 31 (B) Wh ite has just captured a pawn with 1 Bxhs, cou nting o n 1 ... gxh s 2 Kxfs with a decisive adva ntage. But Black has the zwischenzug 1 ... Ne6+!, which instead leaves Black with the winning position.
Needless to say, whenever you decide not to meet a threat or not to recapture, the price for miscalculating can be very high and easily lead to loss. Be careful and ac curate, but trust your calculations and don't fear ghosts!
46
Po t e n t i a l C a n d i d a t e Moves
Example
32 (W)
Black is th reatening 1 .. .fxgs, but White thinks he has an equally strong th reat in 1 b4, having seen 1 .. .fxgs 2 bxcs Bxcs 3 Rxe6 Bxf2+ (or 3 .. Rxf2 4 Ne4) 4 Kh1. .
But Black followed u p with 4... Bd4 a nd won back the piece, leaving White two pawns down with not enough compen sation.
Moves Meeting Threats Obviously, the moves that meet the identified opponent threats should be candi dates. Even when you have identified a forcing candidate, it might still be stronger to just meet the threat. Example
33 (B)
White is threatening the black bishop on g4. Black easily meets the threat by moving it or by capturing the knight. Black chose 1 ... Be6.
Principled a nd Thematic Moves Principled moves are moves suggested by general principles, like controlling an open file, placing a knight on a strong square, or even castling. These principles are distilled from collective grandmaster experience and so should definitely be taken into account.
47
Your Best M o ve
Example 34 (B) Black identifies the open fil e and natu ra lly chooses the principled 1 . Rc8. ..
Thematic moves are ones which, for some reason, you think you would normally play "in this kind of position". The position might be from an opening you know well, where you know which moves are "normal"; or you might recognize a strate gic or combinational pattern and know the typical associated moves; or you see the possibility of an attack and again know the moves to m ake it work. Example 3 5 (B) Black gets the opportun ity to execute one of the thematic moves in the Sici l ian by 7 d s . ...
Pawn Breaks Pawn moves which alter pawn formations create and change static imbalances, especially open files, half-open files and weak squares. These pawn moves should always be candidates. Remember, though, that all pawn moves are irreversible and should be carefully verified.
48
Poten tial Ca n di d a te M o ves
Example 3 6 (B) By 1 d s, Black is able to com plicate the play a nd li berate his pieces. W h ite chose to answer with 2 exd s (2 Nxds is stronger), and after 2 ... Nxfs 3 Rfl 3 Nd6, Black took over the i nitiative. ...
Moves as Part of a Plan Grandm asters will tell you that you always need a plan, and even that a bad plan is better than no plan at all. But remember that a plan can be very simple. It may be to exchange a bad bishop, or to secure and occupy a certain square, or to ad vance a passed pawn. In fact, even grandmaster plans are often quite short, con trary to popular belief. If you know your openings, endgames, combinational patterns and your imbal ances, many plans will be almost subconscious, but it is important to know by which moves you want to implement a plan. This candidate category often suggests the same moves as at least one of the oth ers. This is quite n atural, since plans should have a firm foundation in the posi tion's demands and therefore should be founded on imbalances, general princi ples or other factors. When you think about it, even combinations can be seen as plans with a very specific objective. Moves that are part of your plan can be identified during the move preparation {Prepare) and are of course candidate moves.
49
Your Bes t M ove
Example
37 (W)
White is pla n n i ng to prepare b4, but does not want to excha nge a bishop for a kn ight. He therefore plans the ma noeuvre N{g3}-f1-d2 i n preparation for b4. 1 Nfl is the ca ndidate part of the plan.
Prophylactic Moves One of the most important qualities of a strong player, if not the most important, is the ability to identify the opponent's possibilities, his plans and his desirable moves, and to prevent them or figure out when and how they should be met. These prophylactic moves are also identified during the move preparation {Pre pare). Example
38 (W)
A common type of prophylaxis is to d is rupt the opponent's attacking plans or tactical patterns by changing the loca tion of the king. White can avoid several potentia l dan gers along the c-file or the c1-h6 diago nal by moving the king: 1 Kbl.
Moves Creating Tactica l Patterns Any moves creating tactical patterns that you recognize should be considered. The most common moves in this category are those which create a linear contact between pieces. The pin is one example of this and the potential discovered attack is another. Even putting a rook or a bishop on the same file or diagonal as the op ponent's king or queen can potentially be very important later on.
50
Po ten tia l Can dida te M o ves Another quite common type of move is one which creates a fork pattern for a knight to work on, but many others are possible. It all depends on which tactical patterns you intuitively recognize. Example 39 (B) The black king will sti l l be in the centre for a couple of moves, and White is a l ready eyeing d8 with the bishop With 1 Rdl, a mating pattern along the d-fi le is created, in many vari ations i n d i rectly protecting the pawn on es. For exam ple, 1 . Nxes 2 Nbs Be7 3 Qd8+ Bxd8 4 Rd8 mate. .
..
Moves Aimed at I mbalances Moves which are aimed at imbalances are almost by definition also part of a plan, even if the plan itself might only be in your subconscious thinking. These moves can be listed as a separate type of candidate in the cases where you haven't taken the time to create a conscious plan. Example 40 (W) W hite has identified dS as a weak square fo r Black a n d can occupy it by 1 NdS.
51
Part ·Three
K.n owledge
Nothing is a s important i n chess a s knowledge. With enough knowledge, i n the form of recognizing patterns with associated plausible plans and viable moves, top players can play excellent games using literally no time. Of course, having both the skills and the time on the clock to build upon this knowledge adds up to even more, especially when governed by a pragmatic think ing process, but don't underestimate the pure power of knowing thousands and thousands of patterns. To use the suggested thinking process, you need to have enough conscious and subconscious knowledge for the candidate moves, variations and plans to almost suggest themselves. While studying the different kinds of knowledge needed, I have distilled five distinct areas of particular importance:
52
Kno wledge Obviously, you need knowledge around the opening, especially around the varia tions you select as part of your opening repertoire. It is also obvious you need ex tensive endgame knowledge, not only around theoretical endgames, but also when it comes to technical endgames. Many books and trainers will then tell you about tactical versus positional play. Since as you will see later on, I regard calculation and planning as skills rather than knowledge, it is the imbalances of the position and the combinations hidden in the variations which constitute the actual knowledge. It is important that you know thousands of easy and medium combinations to an extent where they become an integral part of your variations. It is equally impor tant you can immediately spot the imbalances of a position and know the basic treatment of them. The last area may not be so obvious, but the attack is such a central part of win ning chess games and has so many uniq�e attributes, that I think it should be sin gled out as an area in itself. Knowing how to create and sustain an attack and an initiative, and the typical means and patterns to do so, is such an integral part of modern chess that it simply cannot be overlooked. In this area I also include dynamism and the constant fight for the initiative, which might not necessarily constitute an attack on the king, but which shares most of its peculiarities. Some might argue that if attack is an area, so should defence. But even if much can be said about defence, I think that what is said for imbalances and planning, as well as for attack and mental preparation, constitutes most of what defen ce is all about. Remember, what I describe under attack is more the dynamism of mod ern chess. I cannot even start to try giving you all the knowledge you need to become a strong player, but I will describe all the different areas and try to explain what I perceive as most important for each of them. The rest is up to the reader.
53
Yo u r Best M o ve
O pening The opening i s where you mobilize your forces and shape the battlefield. Needless to say, if you get yourself into a weak position in the opening, you immediately h ave a disadvantage, and your middlegame and even your endgame will suffer. Way too many players treat the opening lightly and mechanically, bringing their pieces out without taking into account what the position asks for or how the op ponent's moves change the game through threats, opportunities and mistakes. The knowledge you need about the opening basically comes in two forms:
i
General opening knowledge, in most cases valid for all openings
i
Specific opening knowledge around the openings you choose to use
The basics of the general knowledge are what we all learn very early on, which is probably why we tend to treat it too mechanically. We learn to bring the minor pieces out, then castle and then bring our major pieces (queens, rooks) to open or potentially open files, all of this while keeping control of the centre. All this is still good advice, but we need to understand what we are doing. There is another danger in specific opening knowledge, where players memorize opening variations, usually without bothering to understand the ideas and typical mechanisms of the opening. This can even be m ore dangerous than not knowing any opening theory, since you might not have understood some of the moves you made, and have little knowl edge of what to do once the opponent makes an unanticipated move or when you run out of known moves. It is true that you should know opening variations, and I am a believer in execut ing them without wasting time, but you should already be aware of the ideas and the mechanisms of them, having prepared them at home. And once you have to choose the moves yourself, you should understand why you are playing a move and why you are playing the moves in a certain order. You should also constantly keep track of how the position changes and what threats and opportunities arise, so you can adjust your opening accordingly. 54
Kn o wledge
Example 41 {B) Wh ite j u st played 1 Nf3-d2. If Black hadn't looked fo r opport u n ities at this early stage i n the openi ng, the simple 1 . Nd3+ could easily have been over looked in favo u r of the sta ndard 1 .a s . ..
..
Development W e develop our pieces to make their power felt on the board. Until you have established that power, you risk being overpowered by your opponent. Mobilization
When bringing a piece out, your aim is to mobilize its power. If you develop a piece on a square where it cannot show its power, it is not really mobilized. The move could still be a perfectly viable one; for example, to get the piece out of the way of other pieces, or to put it on a temporary square on the journey to a better one. It also means that sometimes a piece does not need to be moved to be mobilized. The most common example of this is a bishop or a rook exerting perfect power from its original square. Example 42 {B) The black bishop on c8 i s bearing down on the white king position. It is a vita l piece i n the attack, without being moved from its original square.
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Your Bes t Move
To get a feeling of how much mobilization is left and who h as an advantage in development, count the number of pieces still not showing their power and add the number of moves to get the king into a safe position. The player with the low est number has the advantage in development and the difference between the two players' m obilizations gives you a hint of how big the advantage is. Example 43 (W) I n this position, it will take White t hree moves to develop h i s bishops and bring his king i nto safety. Since Black has on ly one bishop to mobilize, one m ight think Black is a head i n mobilization. But it will take at least two moves for Black to mobilize h is bisho p, possi bly more, so White can even be seen as being a head. Since time is so important, and since we want to m obilize faster than our oppo nent, any mobilizing moves which simultaneously make threats that have to be met will slow down your opponent, unless he can meet the threats by mobilizing moves. Example 44 (W) After 1 e4 es, the move 2 Nf3 mobilizes the white knight a nd at the sa me time th reatens to capture the black pawn. Black ca n reply with 2 . . Nc6, simu lta ne ously mobi lizing a piece and protecting the pawn. .
For similar reasons, it is also obvious that you should avoid moving the same piece twice during the mobilization, unless you h ave a good reason for doing so. One reason could be that you gain something else by moving the piece twice. If
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you do this, you are basically trading time for something else, like m aterial, space or structure. This concept is discussed later on, when we talk about imbalances. You will have to carefully weigh what you g ain with what you lose. A perfectly good reason for moving a piece twice is if, by doing so, you slow down the opponent's mobilization or pose him challenges he will have to solve. This way, a single move from you can cost the opponent several moves to meet It is obvi ously the difference in mobilization between you and your opponent that is the important factor, not how far your mobilization has progressed.
Example 45 (W) By moving the k n ight twice with 1 N gS ! , W h ite poses enough problems fo r Black to ea sily m a ke u p for the d isco ntinu ed d evelopment. S ince 1 .. Be6 loses a pawn, Black has to d efe nd by 1 . d s, but then 2 Qh s g6 3 Qf3 fs 4 exd s is adva ntageous for W h ite. .
..
As a general rule, you should avoid forcing through the exchange of pieces during mobilization. When you exchange one of your pieces, m ost often you have already spent at least one m ove, possibly even m ore, to mobilize it Furthermore, even if both exchanged pieces have m ade the same number of mobilizing moves, your opponent's recapture often mobilizes anoth er piece, helping it to advance to a more active square.
Example 46 (W) If W h ite were to exchange by 4 Bxc6 Nxc6, he would remove two wel l devel oped pieces from the boa rd, one from each side, but he would a lso help Black to bring h is other knight into a better position, thereby mobilizing it
57
Yo u r Best M o ve That said, mobilization is not everything, and by exchanging you can also create other imbalances that you desire. In most openings you will fin d a few early ex changes of pawns and often a set of minor pieces to create imbalances to build on. Example 47 (B) In the Ni mzo-lndian, Black readily hands over the bishop pai r to White by ...BxC3. In return, he often creates doubled pawns for White a nd a wea k pawn (or sq uare) on c4.
Ideal Squares
To mobilize your pieces to exert as much power as possible, you need to figure out on which squares to put them. For every piece, you should ask yourself on which square it contributes the most to your total power. When doing so, it is important not only to look at the piece by itself, but how well it collaborates with the other pieces, and how consistent its power would be with the overall plan of the opening. Example 48 (W) In the Sicilian Sveshnikov, Black leaves a wea k square at dS, which i s a n idea l place for a white knight. The idea l square for W hite's dark squared bishop is to support the control of dS by pinning and threatening the black knight from gs.
You will find that for some pieces, depending on the position at hand, the i deal square is easy to find. Yet for other pieces, there seems to be more than one square from where the piece could show its power. You will also realize that the best square will depend on what the opponent does and how the position evolves. 58
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Move Order
Since the ideal square for a piece will sometimes depend on what your opponent does, you should try to postpone moving it until you know more. Move the pieces with the obvious best squares first. This is one of the main reasons why we usually move at least one knight before we move a bishop. Another reason is that the knight possesses almost no power on its original square. Generally, the best squares for the knights are those that control the centre the most. which for White are f3 and c3. The bishops, on the other hand, h ave several squares from which they exert almost the same power, but on different diagonals.
Example 49 (W) After 1 e4 es, it is natural to follow u p with 2 Nf3, not o n ly because i t threat ens the black pawn, but a lso beca use it is obvious where the kn ight belongs. The wh ite bishop, on the other ha nd, ca n move to c4, bs or even e2 depend i n g on what Black chooses to do.
We all know we should bring out the minor pieces bef ore the m aj or ones, because the m aj or pieces are worth more and can easily get harassed by the minor pieces. Once the minor pieces are m obilized, it becomes easier to recognize where we can safely put the rest, especially the queen. The rooks are, of course, also h arder to develop e arly because of the need for them to move along the crowded first rank. Sometimes it seems to m atter little what move order we choose, but more often than not, it does. If we h ave two ways of reaching the same position, using differ ent move orders, we should ask ourselves in what way the two move orders differ when it comes to the opponent's options. If one of the move orders gives the opponent no extra option, it is the principled and usually the correct way to go, because otherwise you risk underestimating or miscalculating the alternative path. This is especially true if the extra option opens up possibilities of counterplay.
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Yo u r Best M o ve
Example 50 (W) White i s pla n n i ng the moves Qd2, o-o-o a nd g4. By playing 8 Qd2 first, White would give Black the choice of 8 ... Nbd7 9 g4 Nb6, intending 10 gs Nfd7. 8 g4 on the other hand, does not give Black that opportunity, since after 8 ... N bd7 9 gs, the black knight cannot flee to the a l ready occupied d7. On the other hand, if the extra option is clearly inferior, especially if you already know it is but your opponent might not, giving this option to the opponent could make him go astray or at least spend time investigating it. It depends on the posi tion and on how comfortable you are with the variations, but if in doubt, choose the principled way. Example 51 (B) Black is pla n n i ng the two moves: ... d 6 a n d . . o-o. .
W h ite i s threatening S es, so the most com mon reply from Black is to play 4... d6 first, fo l lowed by s ... 0-0. B ut transposing the moves by first play i ng 4...o-o is perfectly viable, as S es Ne8, followed by ...d6 and sometimes ... cs, attacking the white centre, is known to be good for Black Often the two different move orders both give the opponent extra options. What is important is that you get to understand the difference between them and choose the one giving the opponent the fewest opportunities. Castling
Beginners often don't bother to castle, since they feel it is a passive move and they 60
Kn o wledg e rather want to attack with the few pieces they have mobilized. Once they start facing stronger players, they learn the hard way how insecure the uncastled king is, especially since we advance our centre pawns e arly on and even start opening central files. That is why we learn the importance of castling, and that we should castle as e arly as possible. A castled king is tucked away in the comer and theref ore h arder to get to, and we can keep the pawns in front of it untouche d, creating a fortress. Castling is also a swift way to get one of the rooks into play and is therefore also an active move, something beginners often fail to realize. Still, there are drawbacks with castl ing. One of the greatest drawbacks is the one of commitment. Castl ing is irrevocable, as the king is practically committed to staying on the side where it h as castled. Because of this, you should carefully evaluate the positional effects of castling beforehand. If your opponent has control over the side you are about to castle into, you might want to consider castling on the other side, or postpone castling until you h ave been able to secure the area.
Example 52 (W) Wh ite has postponed castling to see which side will combine safety and at tack. At this point he ca n choose to cas tle ki ngside or to sta rt an attack by 1 g4 a n d later castle q ueenside.
Sometimes it i s even safest not to castle at all. This is usually when the centre is either closed, or when you h ave a firm control of the centre an d castling on either flank would be dangerous.
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Your Bes t Move
Example
53 (W)
I n the Sicili a n Najdorf, Black often finds it relatively safer to keep the king in the centre, behi nd his two centra l pawns, instead of risking a swift defeat by cas tling i nto a kingside attack.
If your opponent has yet to castle, or if you choose to castle on the opposite side from your opponent, there is also the possibility of fierce pawn storms on both flanks. In this case, the player with the quickest pawn storm is often the winner, so before castling into something like that, or giving your opponent that choice, you should have a pretty good idea of what your chances will be. Example
54 (W)
Wh ite to move can, and often does, cas tle queenside in this King's I ndia n Sam isch position. Both sides have l i ned u p for a pawn storm on the enemy king, White's as sau lt starting with g4 (having a l ready played h4), and Black's with ... bs.
A further reason for not castling is ifthe endgame is not far away. Sometimes we make major exchanges early on and realize that the king doesn't need protection anymore, and is even a power to include in the game.
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Example 5 5 {W) In the Berl in Defence, Black a llows Wh ite to destroy his right to castle, since the exchange of queens lessens the need to protect the king.
In other words, early castling is in more cases than not a very useful thing to do. Get ready to castle as soon as possible, but then castle because you want to and when you want to, not just because you can. And you should be aware of the po tential consequences before committing your king. Example 56 (W) I n this Gri.i nfeld line, White cou ld have castled but chose not to, simply to keep the kingside rook on the h-file a nd to start a n attack by 1 h4.
Board Control Developing your pieces is important, but to be able to place your pieces on their ideal squares, these squares need to be controlled by you. You need to care about board control. Even though pieces control squares, board control is most often about the pawns. This is quite natural, since the value of the pawn is less than the value of the pieces. This means that if a pawn threatens a square, no enemy piece can occupy the square without being captured by the pawn. But making pawn moves to control the board does mean you are not mobilizing pieces, so you will have to balance development with board control. 63
Y our Best Move
Centre Controlling the centre is essential; don't let anyone tell you otherwise. All pieces except for the rooks exert their greatest power in the centre. You just have to count the number of squares they can move to when in the centre, and compare this to the number of squares they can move to on the edge or in the comer, to convince yourself about this fact. The rooks are the exception, which partially explains why they seem to be just as happy exerting their power from the first rank, safely away from being hassled by the other pieces in the centre. But the centre is also important because from there the pieces can quickly reach all corners of the board, whether they are needed for attack or defence. This is why in the early days grandmasters thought they had to "possess" the cen tre and place their pawns and pieces on central squares. We then discovered that simply controlling the centre is just as good. Example 57 (W) I n the Nimzo-lndian, Black i n itially con trols the centre without occu pying it, first by ... Nf6 and then by pinning the wh ite knight with ... B b4.
We can even initially give the whole centre to our opponent, but we better start attacking it very quickly, because if we cannot break it apart and regain control of it, we will suffer in the end.
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K n o wledge Example 58 (W) I n the G ri.i nfeld, Black a llows Wh ite to build u p a n impressive pawn centre, wh ich he starts breaking up and attack i ng by ... cs, ... Nc6, ... Qas and ... Bg4 {pin n ing and attacking a knight o n f3).
So develop your pawns and your pieces with centre control in mind, either by oc cupying it, by controlling it from a distance, OT by planning how to break it up. Space
The more squares you control, the greater board control you have and the greater space your pieces will have to use for their placement and movements. We will return to the concept of space when we talk about imbalances l ater on, but it is important to realize that most space is staked out already in the opening. If you ever feel uncertain which move to play when in the opening, maybe because your minor pieces are already mobilized or it is still uncertain as to what squares they are heading, seriously consider grabbing more space. If you cannot do it in the centre, grab space on the flanks. Example 59 (W) By 1 b4, W hite grabs space on the q ueenside. The expansion can continue with cs a nd a4.
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Your Bes t Move
Structure The pawns are the foundation on which the pieces stand. They are the backbone of the game and have even poetically been called "the soul of chess". So why then can't we build the structure first, before mobilizing the pieces? After all, before the foundation is laid, it is not evident where the pieces belong . Well, in modern chess there is a paradox in m any opening systems, where one player chooses to build the structure instead of mobilizing pieces. It is a fine line to walk, but if you get away with forming the foundation first, once you catch up in development, you usually gain the upper hand. If your opponent builds the structure instead of mobilizing pieces, try to find ways to break it down and break through before he catches up in development, even at the cost of material. If you break through, you will often fin d your lead in devel opment proves overwhelming. Example 60 (B) In this treatment of the Sicilian Najdorf Black has only one p iece developed. In stead he has built a structure i n the centre a n d on the queenside. If given ti me, he will neutra l ize White's advan tage i n development.
,
It is not s urprising that White fre q uently sacrifices to break up this struc ture and make h i s s uperior development felt. After 1 ... N8d7, 2 Nxb s ax bs 3 Nxb s i s a very popular choice.
The First Move Advantage White does have a small advantage from the start; h e has the right to make the first move. This means he will create the first threats, and Black will h ave to start meeting them. To keep and grow this small advantage, White will h ave to keep the initiative, otherwise he will give Black time to start m aking his own threats and the advantage will evaporate. Traditionally, this was exactly what Black aimed for: first neutralizing White's ad vantage and equalizing, then starting to build an advantage of his own. This is the nature of most "open" openings.
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Example
61 (B)
I n the Ruy Lopez, White first establishes control of the centre by 1 e4. If B lack wants to i mmediately challenge this, 1 ...es i s natural. B ut, as we have a l ready seen, since White is first to move, he makes the fi rst th reat by 2 Nf3. After Black's de fensive move 2 ... Nc6, White contin ues by threateni ng the defending knight by 3 BbS. This way White establishes a slight but often contin u i ng edge, known as the "Spa n i sh torture". However, since the advantage of the first move is such a small one, there is an other way for Black to m eet it. From the very first moves, Black can create an im balanced position, where the imbalances will soon be much more important than the first-move advantage. The path to imbalance can be expanding on different flanks, like in the Sicilian; hitting the white centre with pawns, like in the French or Caro-Kann ; or by trying to break it up later, like in the Alekhine. As stated earlier, it can also take the form of building a structure instead of developing, as seen in many opening variations. Example 62
(W)
I n the Sici l i a n, Black i m mediately estab l ishes an i mbalanced position after 1 e4 cs, expanding on the queenside a nd leaving the kingside a nd often i n itially the centre to White. Thi s often leads to another i m balance (after d 2-d4), with a half-open c-file for Black a nd a half-open d-file for White. Both plans to fight for the advantage are perfectly viable. The classical way, to first equalize, is more passive but also less risky. On the other hand, not taking risks 67
Your Bes t Move
does not mean you won't lose. Not taking risks often also means less chance of winning.
Specifics Specifics are about knowing your own openings. You should create an opening repertoire, so you know what you want to play against every possible opening from your opponent, or at least against all common openings. Which openings and opening variations you should play, you have to decide for yourself. You should of course choose openings that are not obviously unsound. I recommend that you choose openings regarded as sound at master and grand master level, but not necessarily at top grandmaster level. Most important though, is that the openings you choose, and the opening reper toire you build, suit your playing style, inspire your creativity, fuel your enthusi asm and bring results. Do not just play what the world champion plays; play something you like and enjoy! That is the only way to get results. And when one opening lets you down too much or too often, either find out why you are failing in it, or switch to another. An interesting question is whether you should always play the same narrow set of openings, or learn and play many different ones. This is not at all easy to answer. If you always play the same opening, maybe using a couple of different variations, you will definitely get to play it more often and will have more time to study it, which means you will know it better and become stronger when playing that spe cific opening. On the other hand, if you play several different openings, you get a broader un derstanding of chess openings as a whole, and it becomes almost impossible for any opponent to prepare his opening in advance against you. But you will risk playing inferior moves quite early on. If you are an aggressive and calculating player, and don't mind or even enjoy go ing through and learning many opening variations, I would recommend playing a narrow set of openings, learning them deeply and perhaps using a variety of variations within them. Most of your opponents will not know hundreds of varia tions, but because they know the current main lines, they will think they know the theory. Of course that won't be the case and this is when your built-up knowledge will give you the upper hand. On the other hand, if you are a positional player, or if you have a hard time re membering variations or just don't like it, choose to play many openings but steer
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away from the most popular and theoretical variations. Otherwise it is likely you will get run over by some grandmaster analysis instead of your actual opponent. Example 63 (W) Black has j ust castled, reaching a posi tion White has a n a lysed extensively when preparing his ope n i ng repertoire. After 1 es dxeS 2 fxeS NdS 3 Bxe7 Nxe7 4 Bxh7+ Kxh7 S Nxe6 fxe6 6 Qh3+ Kg8 (or 6 ... Kg6 7 Qxe6+) 7 Qxe6+ Rf7 8 Rxd7 Qc6 9 Rxe7, Black is lost.
Once you know which openings and which variations you want to play, you also need to estimate how common they are, or will be, in your games. You should ob viously spend more time on openings that you play often.
Common Plans It is vital to know the overall ideas and plans for your chosen openings. This knowledge is what will guide your detailed plans, and even your specific move choices, when your variations run out. You h ave to know how the pieces are mobilized, in what order, and why they are mobilized in that way. You also have to know what the opening objectives are and how you normally achieve them. Example 64 (B) It m ay not be im mediately obvious, but a com mon plan for Black in this King's I ndian position is to expand on the q ueenside by pre pa ring ... bs. Note the tremendous potential power the bishop o n g7 has on that wing. Frequent moves in executing this plan a re ...a6, ... Rb8, ... Nes, ...cs a n d ...bs. For exam ple, 1...a6 2 Rel Rb8 3 Be3 Nes 4 b 3 cs S Nde2 bS.
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Your Bes t Move
Of course, you could try to figure all this out over the board, but not only would you waste time, there is also a significant risk you would not select the same ob jectives or choose the same plan as grandmasters would have. Some of you might argue that this is what chess is all about, and that you would rather find the answer your own way. But scientists don't run out of ideas or get bored just because they actually build on their ancestors' findings. On the con trary, standing on their ancestors' shoulders is how they push the boundaries. The same is true for chess. Chess is rich enough for you to easily use up all your time at the board anyway, and to enjoy your findings just as much. All openings have a clear agenda. Some create an immediate imbalance on oppo site flanks, some fight for the centre, and yet others give up the centre to later break it apart. Some launch pawn storms, some expand flank territory, some aim to enhance tiny advantages, and some build up pressure on open files.
Common Tactics Club players seem to just love opening traps. And yes, opening traps are part of the tactics you need to know about your openings. Some openings breathe tactics, and some couldn't even be justified if it wasn't for certain tactical specifics. Tactics is and will always be king. When studying your opening variations or ana lysing previously played games, keep your eyes open for tactical shots because chances are you will see them again in the same opening, maybe in a slightly dif ferent form. Example
65 (B)
In the King's Indian, if Black ca n get i n 1 ... g4 before t h e knight o n f6 is forced to retreat to e8 (to defend c7 from i nva sion), the move ... hs is not necessary, since 2 fxg4 leaves the pawn on e4 un protected.
Variations By now you should recognize that you have to know some opening theory in order to be successful, but how much, and how deep?
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Kno wled g e
Well, some openings are highly tactical and the number of possible variations can be mon strous. In this kind of opening, you need to know a considerable amount of theory and many variations to even start playing it Just remember that this is true for everyone who plays it, so the important thing is for you to just know the opening better than your opponent. For openings like this, you should know all the m ajor variation paths for your op ponent, and more often than not, you should know them deeply enough to see the worst smoke clear, which could be 10-1 5 or even 20 moves deep. Some variations are so forced they run right into the endgame. But that is the scary side of things. In quiet openings, and in rarely played open ings, you don't have to know more than 5-10 moves deep and you don't h ave to know as many variations, since the main lines give you enough guidance for you to find your way using the common plans. Of course, variations you play often, and variations you think or even know you will face in the next game, will be much m ore important to know and to rehearse than others. It is also a good idea to expand your variations every time you actu ally play them. For example, if your opponent deviates from your known variation, include the deviating move into your opening repertoire and see to it that you know how to best meet it next time. It is true that chess is not about learning opening variations by heart. As a m atter of fact, this is exactly what m any young players do wrong . But having a solid rep ertoire and knowing all the important variations by heart is a strong opening foundation to stand on. It saves time and you build a knowledge base of ideas and tactics that you will be able to use in many different situations. Most importantly, once you h ave established your repertoire in your backbone, it is easy for you to evolve it, change it and add to it.
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Your Bes t Move
Endgame The endgame i s said to begin when there i s a small number of pieces left on the board. In practical play, this definition is usually a good enough. But something is lost in thi s description, because whereas the opening h as many if not most char acteristics in common with the middlegame, the endgame is fundamentally dif ferent. The sooner you realize this, the sooner you can start treating it properly. But why does the number of pieces left on the board have such a profound effect? What changes the characteristics so fundamentally that you cannot apply the same rules, techniques and plans? Aren't the individual characteristics of the re maining pieces the same as in the middlegame? The answer is that the characteristics of each piece are of course the same it i s still confined t o the same rules of how t o move but the context h as changed, the context of interaction with other pieces. The most important context change - the one responsible for the fundamental difference - is that the king no longer needs to be protected, simply because there are too few enemy pieces to checkmate it or even perform any serious harass ment. The effect of this is twofold: t
The king can, and should, take part in the game as any other piece, in stead of being hidden away and protected.
t
To win you have to checkmate, and since checkmate is no longer possi ble, more material has to be created.
The consequence of the first one is that the king is usually repositioned from the comer of the board to the centre, and the consequence of the second one is that a pawn has to be promoted to a queen. It follows that the single overall objective of the endgame, except for the following checkmate, is to promote a pawn. Another effect of the small number of pieces is that the number of viable moves and plans diminishes drastically, which means that utmost precision is needed. One single wrong move, failing on the tiniest finesse, will mean the difference be72
Kno wledge tween success and failure, especially for the defending side. Instinct and intuition have no place in the endgame. Planning, calculation and technique are every thing. Because of the importance of pawns and the decreasing power of pieces, static considerations take precedence over dynamics, and static pawn weaknesses you would h ardly even consider in the middlegame suddenly become decisive. Don't make any mistake about this, static weaknesses will bring you down in the end game. It seems that the only thing still applicable from the middlegame is that tactics, albeit not as prevalent, is still king. This is easy to forget in the endgame, where planning and technique are so important.
Pawns In the endgame, the pawns are your heroes and suddenly they make all the differ ence. Because of their importance, the player with the m aterial advantage usually avoids pawn exchanges but welcomes piece exchanges. We will talk more about pawns and statics when we discuss imbalances later on, so here we will concentrate on what is specific to endgames.
Passed To achieve the objective of promoting a pawn, the pawn first has to become "passed", meaning it cannot be challenged or blocked by any other pawns. Once enemy pieces are the only thing standing between the pawn and its promotion, it is up to your own pieces to prove they can support the pawn all the way. An important fact to remember is that in pure pawn endgames, where there are only pawns and kings left, an extra pawn almost always wins. The extra pawn of ten gives you the possibility to force your opponent out of the way.
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Example 66 (W) White wins easily by fi rst creating a passed pawn, then advancing it as fa r as possi ble, and then when the black king is occu pied with the passed pawn, start ca pturi ng the rem a i n i ng black pawns. For exa m ple, 1 fs gxfs (or 1 ... gs 2 hxgs hxgs 3 Ke4 Ke7 4 Kes Kf7 s f6 Kf8 6 Kfs) 2 gxfs h s (or 2 ... Ke7 3 Kes h s 4 f6+ Kf7 s Kfs Kf8 6 Kg6 Kg8 7 Kxhs) 3 f6 Ke6 4 Kcs Kxf6 s Kbs Kfs 6 Kxas Kg4 7 Kxb4 Kxh4 8 as Kg3 9 a6 h4 10 a7 h3 11 a8Q, etc. When aiming to safely create a passed pawn, beware of situations where a single enemy pawn can prevent two of your pawns from moving. A rule which helps to avoid this is to advance the pawn which h as no enemy pawn opposite it before advancing other pawns. Example 67 (W) If White Plays 1 b4?, Black d raws by 1 .. bs! 2 c4+ (otherwise Black even wins, e.g. 2 Kd2 Ke4 3 c4 bxc4 4 bs Kd s s b6 Kc6 6 Kc3 Kxb6 7 Kxc4 Kc6, etc) 2 ... bxc4+ 3 Kc3 es 4 fxeS KxeS S Kxc4 Kd6, si nce Wh ite can not force the b pawn to promotion, nor ca ptu re the g pawn without a llowing Black's f-pawn to promote. .
I nstead Wh ite wins by 1 c4+!, first ad va ncing the pawn which has no oppo site enemy pawn: 1 ... Kcs 2 Kc3 Kd6 3 Kd4 b6 4 b4 Kc6 s cs bxcs+ 6 bxcs Kc7 7 Kes Kd7 (7 ... Kc6 8 Kxe6 Kxcs 9 Kf6) 8 c6+ Kxc6 9 Kxe6, etc.
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A passed pawn can often quite easily be caught by the enemy king. However, in these cases it may still be just as decisive as a decoy, forcing the king to abandon its other pawns. Once these pawns fall, the game is usually won. This is why the "outside passed pawn" usually wins in pawn endgames with mutual passed pawns. Example
68 (W)
Even though the n u m ber of pawns (four each) a nd passed pawns (one each) are equal, White is winning because at the time Black captu res White's passed pawn, the white king, having captu red Black's passed pawn, will be closer to the rest of the pawns and will captu re them before the black king can come to the rescue. For exam ple, 1 Kc4 Kb6 2 as+ Kxa s 3 Kxcs Ka4 4 Kd6 a nd Wh ite wins. Another commonly used technique, often forgotten by weaker players, is to use the pawn as a decoy for enemy pawns. By temporarily or even permanently sacri ficing a pawn, you might create a passed pawn, or you might create serious static weaknesses in the enemy camp, like isolated or doubled pawns, which will prove more important than the extra pawn. Example
69 (B)
Black is a pawn down, but with 1 ... h4 2 gxh4 White's kingside pawn structure is shattered and 2 .. Rh8 gives Black counter-cha nces. .
A special case of this is the pawn breakthrough, creating an unstoppable passed pawn by using the other pawns as decoys. 75
Your Bes t Move
Example 70 (B) White probably thinks he is wi n n i ng by virtue of his outside passed pawn, but the black pawn mass i s poisonous. In stead Black wins by 1 .gs 2 as Kbs 3 a 6 Kxa6 4 Kc4 h S s KdS h4 6 Kxes g4 7 fxg4 fxg4 8 hxg4 h 3 . ..
Of cou rse, if White chooses not t o ad vance with his king, the black king will return to win in the normal way with his extra pawn. Even when a pawn seems to be firmly stopped by enemy pawns or pieces, the fur ther it i s advanced, the shorter its distance to the queening square, the m ore de coys, sacrifices and tactics can be used to pull it over the finish line. If you can get a pawn safely advanced to the sixth or even seventh rank, it will become a serious nuisance to your opponent, and chances are you can find a way through. But be ware of pushing a pawn if it just becomes a weakness, unable to get support from your other forces. Example 71 (W) The w hite pawn i s close enough to its p romotion square for White to win by 1 Rd7+! Rxd7 2 Nxd7 Kxd7 3 a 7.
One last word of warning about overestimating a passed pawn: Remember that a pawn majority can usually create a passed pawn, and in some positions the pawn majority can promote a pawn just as quickly as an already created passed pawn. For example, an isolated passed pawn, safely blocked by the enemy king, could be much weaker than a moving pawn majority on the other flank.
76
Knowledge
Example
72 (B)
Even though Black has a passed pawn, it is easily blocked by the enemy ki ng. White's pawn majority on the q ueen side is much more dyna mic.
Weak To help create our winning passed pawns, we can exploit our opponent's weak nesses, either by directly threatening and winning the pawns with pieces, or by splitting them for subsequent capture. In the endgame you look for exploitable, permanent pawn weaknesses. The deci sive weaknesses take the form of: i
Isolated pawns
i
Doubled pawns
i
Backward pawns
i
Inflexible pawn chains
i
Weak squares and colour complexes
i
Open files
Of course dynamic weaknesses can sometimes be decisive since tactics is always king, but the static weaknesses created by the pawn chains dominate the end game. As usual, always strike against the opponent's weakest point. Also, remember that a weakness is not really a weakness unless it can be exploited. On the other hand, a potential static weakness in the endgame can easily become real and exploitable later on. Since weaknesses are so decisive, and since pawn moves cannot be reversed, it is obvious that every pawn move should be very carefully considered. This is even 77
Yo ur Best M o ve more important in places where you already have weaknesses. As a rule, try not to make p awn moves where you are weak. If your opponent dominates a flank, try to keep the pawn chain intact. Moving a pawn usually creates weak squares for the enemy pieces, or "hooks" for the enemy pawns to latch onto. Example 73 (B) Keeping h is ki ngside pawn chain un touched, Black has at least enough for a d raw a n d can even play for a win, such as with 1 ... Kcs 2 hs bs 3 Kd 3 as 4 e4 b4 S es Kd s. However, a ny pawn move on the king side wou ld m a ke Black's task more d iffi cult or even hopeless. For exa mple: a) 1...g6? 2 Kes bS 3 Kf6 as 4 Kxf7 b4 s e4 a4 6 e s b3 7 axb3 axb3 8 e6 b2 9 e7 blQ 10 e8Q+, etc. b) 1 .. .f6? 2 KfS and now: bl) 2 ... Kd6 3 e4 bS 4 h S Ke7 S es b4 6 Ke4 as 7 exf6+ Kxf6 (or 7 ... exf6 8 Kd S) 8 Kds a4 9 Kc4 b3 10 axb3 axb3 (if 10 ... a3 11 Kc3) 11 Kxb3. b2) 2 ... bS 3 h S ! as 4 h6 gxh 6 S Kxf6 b4 6 KeS! a4 (or 6 ... Kcs 7 fs) 7 Kd4.
Pieces The role of the pieces in the endgame is to support the promotion of a pawn. They can do this by actively supporting a passed pawn, by controlling and cutting off enemy pieces, by liquidating enemy pawns, or even by sacrificing themselves to push the pawn the last few squares. Since the number of pieces is small, the power of the remaining ones is crucial. This is because their relative power (compared to the total piece power) is much higher than in the middlegame. If one of your pieces is immobilized in a single piece endgame, you h ave only the power of the king left to help the pawns.
78
Knowledge
Example
74 (W)
Black is a victim of a positional bind ef fectively i m prisoning two whole pieces, neither of which is able to exert any power.
To increase power as quickly as possible, it also makes sense to try activating the strongest piece first. In the middlegame, not only was the king in danger of being harassed, but the queen and rooks also had to be cautiously mobilized. In the end game this is no longer true, and so the piece with the greatest power should be brought into battle first. We all know that the queen is more powerful than the rook, which is more power ful than a minor piece, which is more powerful than the pawn. Since in the end game the king basically has the same role and attributes as the other pieces, we need to know its power in comparison to them. A useful value to use for the king's power is four pawns, placing it between the rook and the minor pieces. So as a general rule, activate queens before rooks, rooks before kings, kings before minor pieces, and minor pieces before pawns. Example
75 (W)
I n this position, a natural order of acti vating the pieces would be rook first, then king, then knight and finally pawns. White chose 1 Rel followed by 2 Kgl.
King In the endgame, the king is transformed from a delicate target which needs pro tection into a powerful fighting piece. It is therefore no surprise that players 79
Yo u r Best M o ve quickly start moving the king from its comer shelter closer to the centre as soon as the position transforms into an endgame, or when this transition becomes immi nent. Example 76 {W} Z.La n ka-G.Kasparov, Riga 1977 W hite could have exchanged queens by 1 Qxbs cxbs, and fo l lowed u p with 2 Ke2 Rfc8 3 Kd3, activating his king.
Of course, the king is more vulnerable than the other pieces in that it always has to escape check, but it is a useful habit to start thinking of it in terms of a piece. Because of its ability to cover all adjacent squares, the king is probably the most formidable piece to both p rotect and attack pawns. Of course, the queen possesses even more power, but she is usually not around in the endgame. A very useful point to remember is that the shortest distance for the king between two squares is not necessarily the straight line. As we all know but easily forget, it takes the king exactly the same number of moves to go to the opposite comer as it takes to run down the file. Many pawn endgames are won because of this very fact. Example 77 {W} Moravec, 1940 After 1 Kc2 Kf3, White chooses 2 Kd3 ! instead of 2 Kc3 a n d wins after 2 ... Kf4 3 Kd4 Kfs 4 KdS Kf6 5 Kd 6 Kf7 6 b4 Ke8 7 Kc7 b S 8 Kc6 Kd8 9 KxbS Kc7 10 Ka6.
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Kn o wledg e
Example 78 (W) Reti, 1921 White holds the d raw by 1 Kg7! h4 (l ...Kb6 2 Kf6 h4 3 Kes h 3 4 Kd6 h2 5 C7 h lQ 6 c8Q i s also a draw) 2 Kf6! Kb6 (if 2 ... h3 then 3 Ke7 h2 4 c7 hlQ 5 c8Q+, or 3 ... Kb6 4 Kd7 h2 5 c7 h lQ 6 c8Q} 3 KeS!, creating the double threat of promoting his own pawn and catching the oppo nent's. The black pawn is lost after 3 ... Kxc6 4 Kf4, whi le 3 ... h3 4 Kd6 h2 5 c7 Kb7 6 Kd7 hlQ 7 c8Q+ is a lso a d raw. In p awn endgames, usually the king should be rushed to the centre and advanced as far as is feasibly possible before the p awns start moving. In endgames with major pieces, the king n aturally still suffers with some of its flaws from the middlegame. It can be effectively cut off from all action by a rook, so always try to bring your king to the active area. If your opponent has a p assed pawn or a p awn majority, it is crucial you get your king in front of the pawns. If, on the other hand, you have a passed pawn in a rook endgame, start by cutting the enemy king off, as far as possible from the action. Example 79 (W) By 1 Rfl, White effectively cuts off the black king from the action. There is l ittle Black can do to stop the promotion of the pawn, and even if there was, 1 Rfl would stil l easily be the best candidate .
In queen endgames it is even worse. The stronger side needs to avoid the possibil ity of perpetual checks and therefore is often forced to hide the king even in the absence of mating threats.
81
Your Bes t Move
Queen The queen is the most powerful piece and its mobility increases even further in the endgame, where it is an unparalleled forker, able to create two or even more threats simultaneously all over the board. This fact makes the queen most powerful when the enemy forces are scattered and uncoordinated. If one of the uncoordinated pieces is an unsheltered king, the queen's power often becomes unbearable. Example 80 (W) Black's forces a re uncoordinated a nd h is king lacks sufficient shelter. After 1 Qd4+ Kf7 (or 1...eS 2 Qb6) 2 Qf2+ Kg6 3 Qb6, B lack is a l ready lost.
Since the king makes such a good forking target, and because the weaker side can use it to bring about perpetual check, a safe shelter for the king is an extremely valuable asset in a queen endgame. That said, in m any cases the king will have to come out of its shelter to help his queen in the battle. The outcome is then usually dependent on whether or not the king can escape the imminent cannonade of checks. As a defender you should try to patiently and precisely deliver checks until reach ing a draw. Be aware that it is way too easy to give the wrong check and then find yourself with no way of continuing the harassment. Patience and endurance are paramount in queen endings. The importance of bringing the queen to as active and centralized a square as possible cannot be overstressed. If the queen is made a powerhouse, dominating the centre over its counterpart, you immediately gain the upper hand.
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Kn o wledge
Example 81 (B) F.Marshall-G.Ma r6czy, Ostend 1905 The black q ueen dominates the board from its central position, threatening pawns on both flanks. After 1...Qdl+ 2 Qel Qd 3+ 3 Kgl Qc2 4 Qal a s, the white q ueen had lost a l l its power a n d Black went on to win.
When it comes to passed pawns, the queen possesses a unique qua1ity no other piece has. With only the pawn and two queens on the board, the queen can force the pawn to promotion. This has important implications. Suddenly a far advanced passed pawn becomes almost unstoppable, which in tum means that the number of pawns, or even the number of passed pawns on each side, is of little importance as long as you have or can create a far advanced passed pawn. Example 82 (W) After 1 bS, there is n o way for Black to stop the promotion of the pawn. The white queen safely guides it a l l the way. For exam ple, 1 . es 2 b6 e4 3 b7 Qb8 4 Qc8. ..
But the queen's power is not unambiguously increased in the endgame. Because when attacking a certain single square every piece is equally strong, the queen can easily find h erself overwhelmed by two pieces cooperating in the same attack This occurrence is not as usual i n the middlegame, since there the number of pieces is much l arger and other pieces can usually help the queen.
83
Your Bes t Move
Example 83 (B) F.Dus Chotimirsky-E.Znosko Borovsky, St Petersburg 1905 The w hite q ueen i s unable to protect its pawns from the black rooks. I n the game, the rooks eventua l ly gobbled u p a l l the w hite pawns except the e-pawn.
So is the mobility of the queen stronger than its drawback as a single piece when it comes to battling against l ess powerful pieces? The answer is that it depends on how well the less powerful pieces are coordinated and how well they protect each other and their pawns. With mutual protection, there is little the queen can do. But with scattered pawns and pieces, and an exposed king to work on, the queen can often destroy the enemy before its forces have coordinated. As a rule, a queen is inferior to two rooks and often only holds its own against a rook and a minor piece, especially a bishop.
Rooks Rook endgames are by far the most common type of endgames. This i s because rooks tend to be developed after the other pieces, and often exert their power from the back rank and on half-open files. As a result. rooks are exchanged rela tively late. The only common exception is when the two players fight for the con trol of an open file, when rook exchanges become almost inevitable. It is almost like the rook was invented for the endgame, because it is a formidable pawn eliminator. A pawn on the same file as a rook cannot escape its power by moving forward, and when attacked from the side on a rank, the pawns are ridicu l ously vulnerable to the rook.
84
Kn o wledg e
Example 8 4 (W) The white rook shows its power over the black pawns, threatening a l l pawns along the seventh ran k as well as the e pawn. ·
But beware of passive rooks. You only have to take a single glance at a rook bound to passively defending a vulnerable pawn, especially if the pawn h as barely ad vanced, to realize how huge a difference activity means for a rook. Always try to place your rook behind a passed pawn, regardless if it is your pawn or your oppo nent's. Example 85 (W) The two black rooks are both more ac tive than their counterparts. They effec tively attack the blocked white pawns and at the same time potentially threaten to escort the e-pawn to pro motion.
So in rook endgames, above all, activate your rook, even if it costs you material. Make your rook dominate the central files and lift it to also show its power along the ranks, attacking pawns from the side. A rook controlling the seventh rank is often decisive, because it cuts off the enemy king on the back rank and at the same time attacks all pawns still left on their original squares. Using your rook, try to cut off the enemy king from the action by controlling the right files. The further away from the action the king is cut off, the bigger the ad vantage. This becomes absolutely decisive when you are trying to push a passed pawn.
85
Your Bes t Move
Example 86 (W) White should play 1 Rel!, to cut off the black king, and only then advance with the king a nd pawn to victory. I nstead, 1 KbS Ke7 2 c6? (it's stil l not too late for 2 Rdll) 2 ... Kd8 wou ld a llow Black to d raw.
Most rook endgames are drawn if the defending king can get in front of the passed pawn, simply because there is no way of pushing the pawn through with out leaving either the pawn unprotected or exposing the king to endless checks from the rook. This fact m akes rook endgames one of the most drawish of all end g ames, surpassed only by endgames with bishops of opposite colours. But you can actually use thi s fact to your advantage, pushing on and still trying to win a seemingly dead drawn position. Many players think that this kind of drawish endgame will draw itself, and start playin g less accurately - and defi nitely l ess enthusiastically. They might not even know (or remember) the correct way of achieving the draw they know is there. Many theoretically drawn positions have been won by the player with the strongest will and the longest patience. Play chess g ames to the end, and make the opponent prove it i s a draw. Example 8 7 (W) Even here, with a far advanced pawn, Wh ite cannot win if Black is careful n ot to fall for 1 Kf3 Kf7? 2 Rh8! Rxa7 3 Rh7+. Instead let the rook do all the work by 1 .. Ra4, or a ny move a long the a-file. It does not m atter if the white king gets down to support the pawn, because it will be checked u nt i l it has to return towards the black rook - a typical d raw i n g pattern in rook endgames, e.g. 1 Kf3 Ra2 2 Ke4 Ral 3 Kds Ra2 4 Kc6 Ra l 5 Kb6 Rbl+ 6 Kcs Rel+ 7 Kb4 Ral, etc. .
86
K n o wledge
Example 88
(B)
J.Piket-G.Kaspa rov, I nternet 2000 Even Ga rry Kasparov coul d have done with more k n owledge a bout h a n d l i n g rook e ndga mes. He played 1 . .. Rel, a nd lost after 2 Rc7 Re2 3 Re7 Ra2 4 fs gxfS 5 e6 h4 6 Rxf7+ Kg8 7 Kf6. Black needs to prevent the white ma noeuvre Re7, fs and e6, which he ca n do along the sth and 6th ra n k: 1. . . Ra3 2 Rc7 Ra6 3 Re7 Ras 4 fS gxfs s. e6 f4+ 6 Kxf4 Kf6 7 Rxf7+ Kxe6 8 Rf8 Ra 2 with a theo retica l d raw. Rook endgames with more than one rook on each side are far less technical and usually become m ore tactical. This means that if you think you h ave a clearly win ning advantage in the rook endgame, you should consider exchanging one pair of rooks. This way, you limit the opponent's chances of counterpl ay. On the other h an d, be very aware of the possibility that the exchange enters you into a drawish endgame. It all depends on the details of the position. Always look out for possibilities for you or your opponent to exchange rooks, and always be sure of the outcome of the resulting pawn endgame before you accept an ex change. Minor Pieces
Few endgames are as special as those with a bishop opposing a knight. The two pieces move so differently and h ave such different qualities that it is h ard to be lieve their power in general terms i s about the same. Endgames (and middlegames for that matter) with different minor pieces are where the stronger player can really make his extra strength count. I n a middle game, the stronger player can shape the position to suit the piece he h as. Before entering the endgame he knows whether it will be favourable for the bishop or for the knight. And in the endgame h e knows what h as to be done to fully utilize the power of his piece. The most obvious difference between the bishop and the knight is the long range
87
Your Bes t Move
of the bishop. Generally this makes the bishop stronger in situations where there are pawns on both sides, simply because the bishop can control both wings at the same time. This advantage becomes even more accentuated when the position is asymmetrical, especially involving passed pawns. Example
89 (B)
The white bishop is i n its element, with sta ble pawn chains and pawns on both wings. It can su pport pawn rollers l i ke g4, fS a nd b4, a4, and it can attack pawns on both wings. Black ca n do little but de fend.
The next fact that one usually realizes is that, whereas the bishop cannot attack any enemy pawns placed on squares of the opposite colour, the knight does not have that problem. This means unsupported pawns can be very hard to defend against a knight. Now combine this last fact with the knight's formidable quality as a forker, and you will find that the knight thrives in positions with crooked and vulnerable pawns, using tactics in the form of forks and threatened forks. Because of its short range, the knight is in need of strongholds, strategic squares where it is defended by its own pawns and where it cannot be driven away by en emy pawns. Ideally, the stronghold is of the opposite colour to the bishop and with vulnerable enemy pawns in reach. Example 90 (W)
A.G risch u k-T.Radja bov, Dubai 2002 The white knight not only has strong holds on cs and d6, but two wea k pawns a re a lso i n its reach. White continued 1 e4 dxe4 2 Nxe4+ Khs (if 2 ... KfS 3 Nd6+) 3 Kf4 Kh4 4 NgS Bd7 5 d S exd s 6 e6 and eventually won.
88
Kn o wledge The bishop, on the other hand, wants its pawns in compact, controllable but flexi ble formations, where the pawn chain can be rolled forward and where pawn breaks can be made in planned fashion. They like stability, whereas knights prefer chaos. Example 91 P.Ben ko-B.Parma, Belgrade 1964 W hite rolled the pawn chain forward by 1 f4 h6 2 Bc4 Kf6 3 g4 Ke7 4 Kes f6+ s Ke4 Kf8 6 h S, and won 20 moves later by virtue of zugzwang: 6 ...gs 7 fxgs fxgs 8 Kfs Kg7 9 Kes Ne8 10 Be6 Nf6 11 b4 Ne8 1 2 bs Nf6 1 3 a4 Ne8 14 Bfs Nf6 15 Ke6 Ne8 16 Be4 Nf6 17 Bf3 Ng8 18 Kd 6 Kf6 19 Kc6 Ke7 20 Kb7 Kd6 2 1 Kxa7 Kcs 22 Ka6 Nf6 23 Bc6 Nxg4 24 as bxas 2 5 b6 Nes 26 Be8 1-0. Because of their similar moving patterns, bishops and rooks work well together. Many players believe a queen works better with a knight than with a bishop. This might have some truth in it, but is it because the knight brings to the queen the only moving pattern she doesn't have, or is it because they both prefer chaos to order? Finally, the bishop pair is a fo rmidable power in the endgame and efficiently con trols all the squares. If you have the bishop pair, you should try to keep it. If your opponent has the bishop pair, you should normally try to exchange one of the bishops for any of your minor pieces as soon as possible. I have already said that endgames with bishops of opposite colours are the most drawish. It is simply too easy to create fortresses, where the bishops control one colour each and m ake it impossible to advance any pawns without losing them.
89
Your Bes t Move
Example 92 (W) White's th ree extra pawns do not help him. The opposite-coloured bishops to tal ly dominate squares of thei r own col our, so White cannot advance h i s pawns.
S o if you want to win, try to avoid these endgames, especially in the absence of other pieces. S till, some of these endgames can be won, and your opponent can play badly, so again, m ake him prove it is a draw. A special fact about endgames with only one minor piece each is that a minor piece i s not enough to deliver checkmate. This m eans extra options for both de fenders and attackers. As the defender, always look for ways to sacrifice your minor piece for two or even one pawn, if this leaves the opponent without enough material to win. A special situation of this is where the opponent is left not only with a bishop against your lone king, but even an extra pawn on the edge, but this pawn's promotion square i s of the opposite colour to the bishop. If your king can make it into the corner, the position cannot be won. Example 93 (W) W hite can not win, because there i s no way to force the black king away from the dark square in the corner.
As the attacker, always look for ways to sacrifice your minor piece to create un stoppable pawns, either too far away for the opponent's king to reach, or guided through with your own king's protection. It is not uncommon for an attacker, es90
Kn o wledge pecially in an otherwise drawn position, to sacrifice his minor piece for pawns, leaving the opponent with only his minor piece left. That way the opponent can never win, and you are left with all the chances. Example 94 (W) Even though this is a d rawn endga me, White risks nothing by sacrificing his bishop for two pawns with 1 Bxh s gxhs 2 Kxhs. White is the on ly player with a ny winning chan ces.
Turn Time is important in all phases of a game, but in the endgame the small number of pieces and the resulting small number of possible moves create some peculiari ties. Suddenly, just the fact of being the next to move can either lose you the game or save a draw. The two most prominent examples are stalemate and zugzwang. Stalemate
Since the number of possible moves decrease drastically in the endgame, a player can find himself in a position where it is his tum to move, but there are no legal moves to make. This is of course called stalemate and the game is drawn. Very few players fall into the trap of walking into a stalemate position. Stalemate is usually either a product of a theoretically drawn position, or the end of a com bination, where the attacker is forced to put his opponent or even himself in a stalemate position. Stalemate combinations can sometimes be hard to see because of their special properties. For example, even though putting a piece en prise is part of many or dinary combinations, it is usually because the capture of the piece would create drawbacks the attacker can use in order to end up on top. But in a stalemate com bination, the capture in itself can quite frequently be the end of the combination.
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You r Bes t Move
Example
95 (B)
By 1 ... Nf2+ 2 Nxf2 Qf3+ 3 Kg1 (3 Qxf3 is stalemate) 3 ... Qg2+ 4 Kxg2 stalemate, Black can save the game.
This is not how we are used to thinking and it is important we have stalemate combinations in mind, both when attacking and when defending. As usual, the key is to always examine all forcing moves and follow them to the end.
Zugzwang Sometimes whatever move you make will worsen your position, but since moving is compulsory, you have to contribute to your own downfall. This is zugzwang. It rarely happens in the other phases of the game, because the larger number of moves usually means there is at least one that doesn't deteriorate your position. You most probably already know a lot of theoretical endgames where zugzwang is the deciding factor, but be aware of zugzwang possibilities at all times during end game play. We are all so used to finding good active moves in the middlegame and should of course make use of this ability in the endgame too, but if that is all we look for, we will miss the often decisive moves putting the opponent in zugzwang. Example 9 6 (W)
After 1 h4 it is evident that Black would rather not move, because every reply makes his position worse. After 1 ... Kf7 there fol lows 2 Rdd6 (wh ich does not work with the king on e7), a nd after 1 ... Rf8 there follows 2 c4 bxc4 3 Bxc4 with conti n u i ng pressu re. White missed this and played 1 Rdd6, wh ich was a nswered with 1 .. Bc6. .
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Kn o wl e d g e
The most common zugzwang theme, and probably the most important one, oc curs in positions with kings and only one pawn l eft on the board, where puttin g the enemy king in zugzwang is the only way t o escort the pawn all the way to promotion. This is called the rule of opposition. Example 97
(W)
W h ite ta kes the opposition by 1 Kd S ! . B lack, w h o would rather not m a ke a ny move, is i n zugzwa ng. After 1 . . Ke7 2 Kc6 Kd8 3 Kd6 Kc8 4 Ke7 Kc7 5 dS Kc8 6 d 6, the pawn promotes. White wins i n similar fashion after 1 . Kd8 2 Kd6 Kc8 3 Ke7 or 1 . Kc7 2 Ke6. .
..
..
Pawn endgames are quite n aturally abundant in zugzwang situations, because once the kings reach as far as they can and end up blockin g each other's p ath, any king move yields ground to the opponent and often loses. This is where extra pawn moves can m ake all the difference, passing the tum back and forth until one pl ayer runs out of pawn moves and h as to give way with the king. Remember this - it is paramount in pawn endgames. As a consequence, it is often a good idea to not use the double step of a pawn, but instead "gain" an extra pawn move by moving it one step at a time. Example 98
(W)
W h ite is wi n n i ng by virtue of a spare pawn move. 1 h4? wou ld o n ly be a d raw, but by moving the pawn to h4 i n two sepa rate steps, t h e black k i n g i s forced t o yield. 1 h 3 ! hS 2 h4 b6 3 b3 Kg6 4 Kes a nd the fi rst pawn fa l ls.
Another pawn endgame concept called "related squares" also m akes use of zugzwang. A related square is the square the defending king h as to occupy when the attacking king is on another particular square, in order for the defender to be
93
Your Bes t Move
able to block the attacking king's penetration into the position. For example, if the defending king h as to be on e7 when the attacking king is on dS, then e7 and dS are related squares. If the attacker finds a way to force the opponent's king to occupy a non-related square, for example by using a spare square which has no related square, the game is usually won by virtue of zugzwang. Example 99 (W}
To hold a d raw, the black king needs to move to c7 when the wh ite king moves to cs, a nd to d8 when White moves to d6. This means c7 a nd cs are related squa res, as are d8 a nd d6. From d S Wh ite can reach both cs and d6 a nd the only similar square for Black is c8, so dS and c8 are also related. Wh ite also has two sq uares from wh ich to reach both cs and ds, namely c4 a nd d4. Black has d8 and b8 from which to reach c8 and c7, but crucially they a re not adjacent. When Wh ite passes through d4 and c4, Black conseq uently runs out of related squares a nd loses. For exa m ple, 1 KdS Kc8 2 Kd4 Kd8 (or 2 . . Kb8 3 Kc4 Kc8 4 KdS) 3 Kc4 Kc8 4 Kd s Kc7 (or 4... Kd8 S Kd6 Kc8 6 c7 Kb7 7 Kd7) s Kcs Kc8 6 Kb6 Kb8 7 Kxa6 Kc7 8 Kbs, etc. .
It stands to reason that after pure pawn endgames, minor piece endgames are the next most common for zugzwang possibilities. This is because the minor pieces have more limited mobility than rooks and queens. One might think that the knight is much worse than the bishop in this respect, but the fact that the bishop can only ever move to squares on the same colour actually makes it a quite common victim, especially in same-coloured bishop endgames when its diagonals are blocked by pawns. As expected, knights usually find them selves in zugzwang in the corners and at the edge of the board.
94
K n owledge
Domination
A concept closely related to zugzwang is domination. Thi s is where one or more pieces completely dom inate an enemy piece by controlling its mobil ity. Usually this is achieved by controlling the squares the enemy piece can legally move to, practically immobilizing the piece, or at least forcing it to m ove into a bad posi tion. Dom ination is also rarely seen in the other phases of the g ame, alth ough occa sionally it occurs in attacking middlegame positions, where the defending pieces are severely limited in their movement and tied down to defence. Complete domination ultimately leads to zugzwang, since the enemy pieces h ave nowhere to move, but even positions where only one piece is dominated while the rest can move freely can be very h ard to save. Dom ination basically follows the same laws as zugzwang, so it most often occurs between pieces with limited mobility. The most common example is a bishop dominating a knight on the edge by controlling the four squares it can move to, or sometimes a knight doing the exact same thing to a bishop. Example 100 (W)
1.Cheparinov-F.Ca ruana, Novi Sad 2009 White was play i ng for a win, but afte r 1 a 8Q Bxa8 2 Nxa8 B a s ! the k night is domi nated by the bishop a n d cannot move anywhere. Wh ite event ually lost.
Chess is not only about making your own pieces stronger, but also about m aking your opponent's pieces less powerful. If this is con stantly in your thoughts, domi nation will come natural to you.
Phases Moving into and playing through an endgame usually involves four different phases:
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Your Bes t Move
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Each of these phases has to be treated differently from the others.
Transitional Entering into an endgame should be a deliberate action. You enter it because you think it will offer you a greater chance of reaching your objective - be it winning or drawing - than staying in the middlegame. Far too many players enter into the endgame because they for some reason think the overall drawing chances are greater in an endgame than in a middlegame, or mistakenly avoid entering into a won endgame because they don't want to lose their middlegame initiative. You should be comfortable enough to play both mid dlegame and endgame, and choose the one you think offers you the best chances. To be able to assess this, you need to evaluate your chances in the endgame and compare them to your chances in a continued middlegame. Ask yourself if your advantages can more easily be exploited in an endgame, or if your disadvantages can more easily be defended. First of all, you need to look at the resulting position through endgame eyes, knowing that static considerations increase drastically in importance in the end game. Instead of looking at the dynamics in your attack, you need to look at pawn weaknesses, king positions and material.
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Example 101 (W)
Y.Sei rawan-U.Andersson, Skel leftea 1989 After 1 Ba6 Bxa6 2 Qxd7 Qb7, White chose to enter into the endgame by 3 Qxb7 Bxb7, eva l uating his endga me chances to be better.
If you h ave a material advantage enough to give you good winning chances in the endgame, entering into the endgame is the most straightforward way to m ake use of the extra m aterial. Remember, with fewer pieces on the board, the percent age of extra material increases and therefore usually also the chances of using it decisively. On the other hand, beware of entering into an endgame just because you h ave an extra pawn. In pawn endgames it is almost always enough, and in minor piece endgames it often i s, but in rook and queen endgames it is far from decisive. Do not move from a promising attack to an uncertain and possibly drawn endgame. Since the king suddenly improves as an attacking piece, king placement is also an important consideration. Can you swiftly bring your king to a good position, or will your opponent beat you to it? As we already know, pawn weaknesses become very important. Weaknesses you could safely forget about in the middlegame can suddenly become decisive. Closely evaluate them before entering into the endgame. If at all possible, also ask yourself what endgame you should opt for. What end game would best prove your advantage and is it possible to reach this endgame? Always be aware of what piece exchanges would benefit which player - try to make the exchanges that are good for you and avoid the ones that are bad.
Technical The technical phase is the longest and most time consuming phase. Despite this fact, this is the phase most players know least about. The technical phase is all about preparing for the coming confrontation. It is the phase where strategy and static considerations come into play. Each player is try-
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Your Bes t Move
ing to either create and nurture small static advantages, or neutralize the oppo nent's. The first thing you need to do is to evaluate the position and identify the imbal ances, especially the differences in material and the permanent exploitable pawn weaknesses. When doing this, be aware of the difference between actual and po tential pawn weaknesses (we will talk m ore about imbalances later on). Then you need to imagine the position you would like to achieve to maximize your advantage again st your opponent's weaknesses. When you do this, you should not be focusing too much on whether it is possible or which moves will take you there. Just imagine the position you would like to reach. After you decide on which position you want to achieve, the last step is to figure out how to reach this position and calculate the needed variations. Don't think of isolated m oves. Every m ove should be part of the plan to reach the desired posi tion. (Both planning and calculation are described later on when we talk about skills.) Example 102 (B) Black has a n outside passed pawn a nd imagi nes a position with no rooks and with the wh ite knight tied to the de fence of the p romotion square bi. I n this situation the black king could in vade the kingside, since the white king needs to p rotect d S a n d sooner o r later needs to capt u re the black pawn, lest it is helped by its ki ng. After 1... Rxe2 2 Nxe2 b3 3 Nc3 b2 4 Nbl Kf7 5 Kf2 Kg6 6 Ke3 (or 6 Kf3 KfS 7 g3 Kes) K h s 7 g3 Kg4 8 Kd4 Kxg3 9 KC3 (9 KeS N bS) Kxh 4 10 Kxb2 hs, Black wins. The positional nature of the technical phase makes time less important. The ad vice is rather not to hurry. Show great patience, gradually m aking your position stronger and stronger, while at the same time preventing the opponent's coun terplay. In technical endgames it i s not uncommon for the defending player to have very
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few, if any, advantages of his own to build upon. As we will reflect upon again when talking about attack, in this kind of position, there is no hurry to get con frontational. Instead, first smother your opponent's initiatives, and then build up your position to the point where it cannot become any stronger. Then and only then are you ready to move into the confrontational phase. You will often find that exploiting one weakness is not enough, simply because your opponent h as the means to defend it. But h aving resources tied up in de fence usually makes the rest of the position fragile. If you open up a second front, exploiting other existing weaknesses, or creating new ones, you will find the de fences collapse. To open up this second front, or even to get your advantage to show in the first place, you should open up lines. Look for pawn breaks and other means of doing so. Open lines most often benefit the player with the advantage and are effective means to start exploiting weaknesses. Example
103 (W}
M.Adams-S.Tiviakov, Groningen 1997 White a l ready controls the c- and d files. To brea k through, White created fu rther wea knesses on the light squares around the black king by 1 h s ! gxh s (if 1 ... gs 2 Bh3) 2 N h4. He won after 2 ... Rh7 3 Bh3 Ne7 4 Be6+ Kh8 5 Rc7 fs 6 Rdd7 BgS 7 Ng6+. As a defender, you should look for ways to neutralize your opponent's advantages as well as ways to exploit his weaknesses to get counterplay. When imagining end positions, you will h ave to figure out your opponent's plans and possibilities, and imagine what your ideal defensive position looks like. This defensive position usu ally just concentrates on defending the weaknesses, if possible, while sustaining some form of activity. Sometimes it is even possible to build an impenetrable fortress. The concept of fortresses is not uncommon in endgames. In fact, many theoretical endgames de pend heavily on it, especially endgames with opposite-coloured bishops. A fortress is usually only possible with very few pieces on the board, but can sometimes be the last and only defence against an overwhelming material disadvantage.
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Your Bes t Move
Example 104 (W) A com mon fortress that White can not brea k down. The white q ueen can not force the black king away from the pawn and the black rook is safely cut ting the white king off from the action.
If you realize your advantage is not decisive, don't despair. Advantages don't have to be decisive for you to build upon them. In fact, you don't even have to h ave the advantage to build on the imbalances in the position. Just build up your position and play the game to its conclusion, and you will be surprised how many games you will win in the technical endgame.
Confrontational The confrontational phase starts when tactics and time suddenly becomes para mount. Don't worry about the definition; you will most certainly realize when this h appens. The confrontation m ay begin in the form of a pawn break, or when a pawn is ag gressively pushed forward, or when one player goes down the path of no return, starting a mutual pawn elimination and/or pawn race. Suddenly, every move becomes crucial and the only way to succeed is to calculate - and calculate very thoroughly. Strategy and m anoeuvring have lost all value. Example 105 (W) When White chooses 1 Kd6, h e sta rts a p romotion race, continuing l ...a s 2 Ke7 b4 3 Kxf7 a4 4 Kg7 b3 5 axb3 a3 {or s ... axb3 6 f7 b2 7 f8Q blQ 8 Qb8+, win n ing) 6 f7 a2 7 f8Q alQ+ 8 Qf6+ Qxf6+ 9 Kxf6 and White wins.
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Knowledge
Because of the tactical nature of this phase, general knowledge will not help you. Don't fool yourself into thinking you don't have to calculate variations to the end. Having changed their mindset when moving from the middlegame to the techni cal phase, many players have a hard time changing it back when necessary.
Theoretical The final phase, not always reached, is the theoretical phase, which starts when a theoretically known endgame appears. Of course, if the player does not recognize it, or doesn't remember the solution, he would in effect still be in one of the earlier phases. It is crucial to know the most common theoretical endgames, not only to recognize what to do when they actually arise, but maybe more importantly to use thi s knowledge i n your plans and calculations i n the earlier endgame phases. For ex ample, despite having a material advantage, a certain plan or exchange might not be suitable because it would lead to a theoretically drawn position. Example 106 {W) If White goes for the black rook by 1 Kg7 Kxe6 2 Kxh8? (2 NgS Ke7 3 Nh3, fol lowed by Nf4 and Ng6 stil l wins) 2 ... Kf7 !, a known d rawn endgame is reached. Instead White ca n win easily by 1 NgS followed by 2 Nf7.
But be warned. Some players mistakenly think of endgames as consisting of only the theoretical endgames. They constantly lose games in the technical phase and hardly ever reach the theoretical endgames. And even when reaching a theoretical endgame, they think it is enough to "know" that it is a theoretical draw, without knowing how to prove it over the board. Of course, if you don't know how to draw the position, you will risk losing it.
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Your B e s t Move
Example 107 (B) V.Kram n ik-V.Topa lov, Las Vegas 1999 I n this theoretical ly d rawn position, no less than Topalov erred with 1 . . Rg7?, enabling White to force an exchange of rooks by 2 Re8+ Kh7 3 Re7, winn i ng. .
Even though this was a clea r oversight, Topalov wou ld not have played ... Rg7 if he knew the way to the d raw by hea rt. You should make a list of all theoretical endgames you have to or want to know by heart, taking the time to understand them and the mechanisms involved. You will also h ave to rehearse them from time to time. Here are some endgames every chess player needs to know: i
Checkmating with a queen
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Checkmating with a rook
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Winning and drawing when only one pawn is left
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Winning a pawn endgame when a pawn up
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Winning and drawing with a queen against a pawn
There are m any, many others you need to know to become a strong player: i
Advanced concepts in pawn endgames
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Rook against pawn
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Other simple rook endgames
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Bishops of opposite colours
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Queen endgames
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Bishop endgames
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Knight endgames
Rook and pawn against rook
I would love to go through all the most important ones, but this is not a book on endgame play. Please refer to recommended reading later on. 1 02
Knowledge
I m b a l a n ce s If we put aside the possibility of winning on time, there is really only one way to win in chess: delivering checkmate. If your opponent resigns, it is in all reasonable cases because he thinks you will ultimately checkmate him. So why do we care about other factors like material, pawn formations, open files and so on? Because those factors affect our ability to deliver checkmate. There are basically two ways of delivering checkmate. Either you attack the oppo nent's king directly, usually in the middlegame, or you continue on into the end game and by pushing a pawn to queen, create the power needed to checkmate the king on an emptier board. In both cases you overpower your opponent, either locally around the king or globally, and that is why you can deliver checkmate. This is why beginners quickly learn the approximate value of the pieces and this is why the player grabbing most material will eventually win in rookie games. The fact that having power makes it even easier to create more power (i.e. if you al ready have more pieces than your opponent it is easier to win even more pieces) only helps to prove the point.
Nature So chess is basically a game of imbalances, where the ultim ate imbalance is checkmate. Other imbalances, such as m aterial or positional ones, are significant because they can be nurtured, grown and eventually converted to more important imbalances and finally to checkmate. But thinking too much about imbalances might waste your precious time, and if treated improperly can even make you choose an inferior move. This is because we tend to forget that attack, initiative and substantial material gain most often make the smaller imbalances we often concentrate on, like pawn formations or different minor pieces, insignificant. Another way of saying this, and what to remember when thinking about imbal ances, is that tactics will always trump strategy. It does not matter if you have a fantastic plan based on present imbalances if you displace your pieces or forget a mating threat.
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You r Best M o ve
Example 108 (W) White intends to bring his king into play via the d a rk sq uares by l Kf4?, not checking even the most o bvious fo rced moves. Black simply answered
l
. Qb8 mate.
. .
On the other hand, when both players avoid the tactical pitfalls, the player using the imbalances to his advantage will wrest the initiative and slowly build up a winning position. Imbalances come in two different flavours:
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Static
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Dynamic
A static imbalance is an imbalance that is either eternal or at least h ard to change, like a destroyed king shelter, a backward pawn or a material imbal ance. Static im balances are either connected to material or pawn formations. A dyn amic imbalance will change, or at least can be changed, during the game. A dynamic imbalance is all about the pieces and their power. For example, an open file is not really an imbalance, since both players h ave the same open file, but con trol over the open file is a dynamic imbalance that can be challenged. Likewise, a poorly defended king with an intact pawn shelter is most probably also a dynamic imbalance, at least if pieces are able to sooner or later join in his defence. In other words, there are dynamic imbalances if one player can say "if only I had time to make this or that move". Needless to say, both a lead in development and having the initiative are dyn amic imbalances. Imbalances can be created and converted into other imbalances, like when you give up a bishop pair to inflict doubled isol ated pawns on your opponent, or when you give up material to regain some initiative. Since imbalances are so important, and since static imbalances are hard to get rid of, the logical conclusion is that if you find yourself in a position where the oppo nent possesses the important static imbalances, you h ave to either find a way to 1 04
Knowledge
change this or start playing for dynamic imbalances. Example 109 {B) White has a sound extra pawn, a passed one, a nd no real wea knesses. Therefore Black has to play for dyn a m ic compen sation. He tried 1 ...Qd S, hoping for 2 Nxa6 QfS+ 3 Qc2 {if 3 Ka1 Rxc3 or 3 Kc1 Bxc3 4 bxc3 Rxc3+ 5 Kb2 Qes 6 Kb1 Rxe3) Qxf3 with some counterplay. But White played the stronger 2 Rd1 QfS+ 3 Ne4 Ng3 4 Qg2 Nxe4 5 fxe4 and Black had to conti nue his q uest for dy n a m ic play. It is important to realize when imbalances are about to be created or changed. When you or your opponent threatens to capture or exchange a piece or to push a pawn or make a pawn break, you should take some extra time to evaluate how the imbalances are about to change. You will usually only have a few critical moments like this in your game, and many players realize too late what has h appened, so late they have to spend time on sav ing the position instead of avoiding it. Example 110 V.Ana nd-G.Kaspa rov, New York 1995 White can sta rt pressuring the black e pawn along the e-file, or even build up a n attack by QgS and g2-g4. Black needs to cha nge the imbala nces. By 1 ... es, he secu red the e-pawn and grabbed space, making an attack harder to achieve. White chose to open u p in front of his uncastled king by 2 dxe6 dS 3 Be2 {if 3 Bxd s Rfd8) 3 ...c4 and lost q u ickly after 4 c3 Rce8 5 bxc4 Rxe6 6 Kf1 Rfe8 7 Bd3 dxc4 8 Bxc4 Ne4. 105
Yo u r Best M o ve Since your time is precious and since it is vital you spend time on tactics, selection and verification (in other words, calculating variations ) , most handling of imbal ances is, and should ideally be, subconscious. We know we should occupy open files and avoid doubled pawns, we know what the king shelter should look like, and we know when we are behind in development. We al so know how to treat these imbalances. But to even begin handling imbalances in that way, you h ave to build up your knowledge about them to a level where you immediately recognize them, imme diately know how to h andle them, an d of course know how to avoid them. You should develop a sense of when they are about to change and that is when you should spend time on them. Im balances can be divided into five natural categories:
t
King
t
Pieces
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Pawns
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Board
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Time
The Time category is obviously all about dynamic imbalances and the Pawn cate gory is about static imbalances, but the other categories can be both static and dyn amic, depending on the n ature of the imbalance.
King Imbalan ces regarding the king are usually the most crucial and are often the di rect reason for decisive results. This imbalance is most often worth exchanging another imbalance for. I rreparable Pawn Shelter
Having an irreparable pawn shelter around the king is the m ost dangerous static imbalance you can have in the middl egame, especially if the queens are still on the board. Also, since it is static, it won't go away, unless you can transfer the king to the opposite wing or manage to enter into the endgame.
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Example 111 (B) The d iagonals towards the black king a re wide open. Black has s ufficient con trol over the situation, but he wil l al ways have to look out for his king.
To take advantage of this imbalance, you should avoid exch anging the queens, and you should take the time to build up the pressure until you see you can re lease it decisively. As with all imbalances, you should not be in a hurry to convert it as long as your moves increase your pressure faster than the opponent's decrease it. Sometimes you even find yourself in a position where the opponent can only sit and wait, going back and forth with his pieces. In that case you should build up your pressure to the absolute maximum before releasing it.
Opposite-Side Castling When you and your opponent castle on opposite sides, you can regard it as a static imbalance, even if it is possible to transfer your king to the other side. But contrary to other static imbalances, it is imperative that you quickly try to use this imbalance in your favour, since your opponent will most probably start an attack on your king, using a pawn storm if piece pressure is not enough. The player who gets to the opponent's king first usually wins. To take advantage of this imbalance, you usually have to launch a pawn storm. The pawns are used to break up the king's shelter and convert this imbalance to the previous one. Since time is so crucial, and since the final objective is check mate, material considerations are usually less important, especially when it comes to the pawns thrown at the opponent's king.
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Example 112
(W)
Both sides have lau nched a fierce pawn storm. Wh ite is p l a n n i n g to open up the h-file and bring in the q ueen to brea k th rough. But after 1 hxg6 hxg6 2 Qh 2 cxb3 3 Qh7+ Kf8, it is evid ent that White n eeds more tha n that. Instea d, Black's attack brea ks through a long the a- and c fi les. -
Poor Piece Shelter
Poor piece shelter is a dynamicimbalance, unless the opponent's pieces are for ever cut off from the king, which is rare. This means that tim e to exploit this can be short. Nevertheless, you cannot start an attack with too few pieces and it is of ten worth the extra time to bring in the reserves if they are close by. To get through the pawn shelter, it is often necessary to sacrifice a piece, which means you cannot really l aunch any reasonable attack unless it involves at least three of your pieces: one to be sacrificed, one to deliver checkmate, and one to protect the checkmatin g piece. More on attacking the king later.
Pieces Imbalances regarding pieces are about difference in m aterial. Even if pieces are the essence of a lead in development and usually of initiative, those imbalances are described as part of Time. Material
The value of m aterial is directly proportional to its p ower, present or future. But m aterial as such is a static imbalance, and the player with more m aterial will of ten, as an effect, h ave the greater power in the long run. This means that the player with less m aterial must have a more i mportant imbal ance working in his favour, like a destroyed pawn shelter in front of the enemy king, or has to work actively to gain and keep dyn amic imbalances, like the initia tive or a king attack, to be able to steer off the impending power of the opponent's extra material. 1 08
Kn o w l e dg e
Example 113 (B) Wh ite's development a nd in itiative is vastly superior, but if Black ca n wrest the in itiative, his th ree extra pawns will soon decide the game.
If you have the extra material, you should as always make use of it. If you hide your extra material in a corner, you will effectively play without it until it is acti vated. Of course sometimes when the material difference is small (most usually a pawn), less crucial imbalances, like a stronghold for a knight in the centre, can provide more than enough compensation. Example 114 (B) Black has a weakened pawn shelter and needs to play for activity. With 1 ...e4 2 fxe4 2 Bd4+ 3 Khl f4 Black got more than enough compensation for the pawn, and subsequently also sacrificed the f-pawn.
As a general rule, the player with more material gains by piece exchanges, but should avoid pawn exchanges. The obvious example of this is that you should not trade queens and enter an endgame if you are a pawn down, unless you are under heavy attack. The player with enough extra material to be decisive in the long run should usu ally consolidate his position, since this makes dynamic play more difficult for the opponent.
1 09
Yo u r Best M o ve Different Minor Pieces
A bishop against a knight is one of the most common imbalances. It is also an im balance that will usually work out well for the player who knows best how to treat the position to make his piece stronger than the opponent's. The most important thing for knights is to h ave good strongholds - squares in the centre or one or two rows into enemy territory from where they cannot be pushed away by pawns. With a good stronghold, a knight can easily be more valuable than a bishop. This means that if you have the bishop, you should try to deprive the opponent's knight of any good squares near the centre. Knights also thrive in closed positions, where their ability to jump over other pieces and to reach both square colours increases their power. You often hear that bishops like open positions, and as a rule they are more pow erful in open positions because of their reach. But they thrive even more in stable positions, where they can be used to slowly increase the pressure, often in combi nation with pawn advances. Knights can actually be quite formidable attackers in open, unstable positions, if they are brought into enemy territory. Example 115 (B) Here the black knights work together i n a n u nstable position, not allowing White to mobil ize and h a rmonize his position for the two bishops. Play could contin ue 1 ... Nc4 2 Rd1 Nxb2 3 Rxd s Nxa4 4 Ra s Nac3 s Rxa7 o-o, with a n edge fo r B lack.
As we already know, in the endgame the bishop's reach makes it more powerful than the knight if there are pawns on both wings, whereas the knight is often stronger with all the pawns on one wing. If your opponent has the bishop pair, his two bishops complement each other, so as a rule try to exchange one of them. Different minor pieces can also mean different bishops, either of opposite colour or with different pawn formations. You always hear that bishops of opposite col ours usually end the game in a draw, but this is only true in endgames, and even then it all depends on the position (then again, all the rules mentioned here de pend on the details of the position). 110
Kn o wledg e I n the middlegame, the opposite is closer to the truth. The player with the initia tive often has a crucial advantage if there are opposite-coloured bishops, simply because he effectively has an extra piece on the colour complex the opponent's bishop can never reach. In these situations, try to develop play on the colour com plex of your bishop. Example 116 (W) Even i n a position with this few pieces, the opposite-coloured bishops prove a crucial advantage for the attacki ng black forces. W hite has no good way of both protecting f2 a nd freei ng his ga me.
A bishop with the same colour complex as its central pawns is called "bad", simply because its path is blocked by its own pawns. There are three ways to treat this: 1
Exchange the bishop
1
Move the central pawns, even at the cost of m aterial
1
Bring the bishop in front of the pawn chain
Example 117 {B) G.Sta h l be rg-R.Wade, Marianske Lazne 1956 White's bishop is "bad", but its position in front of the pawn chain mea ns it can stil l make its power felt.
But be aware that a "bad" bishop sometimes performs an effective task by protecting "good" pawns. Having the bad bishop does n ot necessarily mean having an inactive one. It is the inactive bishop you have to do something about. 111
Yo u r Best M o ve Exchange
Another common imbalance is a rook for a minor piece, the so-called "exchange". Since trading a rook for a minor piece (an exch ange sacrifice) loses material, it can have a very surprising effect and can easily catch your opponent off guard. A rook needs open files to show its power. Without open files it is often worth less than a minor piece. Obviously, if you have the rook, you should open files for it. Even then, a strong bishop ruling long diagonals can easily be worth a rook, espe cially when bearing down on the enemy king. A knight with a central stronghold deep into enemy territory can also easily be as strong as a rook. Example 118 (W) A.Selezniev-A.Ale khine, Triberg 1921 In this classic exa mple, Black has just sacrificed the excha nge by ... R b8-b4; Bd 2xb4, ...cxb4. B ut Black's position is better. His da rk sq uared bishop is now u nopposed, the w hite rooks have no open l i nes, a nd c s is ready to host the black knight. If your opponent has managed to open a file for his rook, make sure you protect the rook's entry squares into your camp. This way the rook might find itself shoot ing into thin air, unable to exert any power. Gaining from a Queen Exchange
It is commonly known that you should not exchange queens unless you like the resulting endgame. Nevertheless, many players don't reflect upon who would gain from a trade of queens unless they are actually faced with the direct choice, and even then some players don't stop to reflect on how it will alter their chances. You should always have a sense of who would gain from an exchange of queens. Most often, this is the player with more material or the sounder pawn structure. And you should only offer or accept an exchange if you have first evaluated the re sulting position without queens as more advantageous to you than the alternative. Too many players trade queens either to play fo r a draw or to try to save them selves from a complicated position, only to find that the resulting position favours the opponent. 112
Knowledge
Example 119
(B)
W h ite has just about ma naged to bring B lack's attack to a h a lt with 1 Qg1-h2, but B l ack wou l d do best to hold on to the q ueen by 1... Qh4. I n stead, he excha nged queens, but after 1 ...Qxh2+ 2 Kxh2 Rhcs 3 Nb3 Rd s 4 Rd2 Rcd8 5 Red1 g6 6 Be2 Rxd 2 7 Rxd 2 Rxd 2 8 Nxd2 he rea l i zed that the q ueen side pawn majority wa s a strong i m ba l a nce fo r White.
Pawns Pawn imbalances are static, since pawns can never go back to where they were. As such, these imbalances are often decisive in the endgame. But they are also very · important in the middlegame, since the pawns form the foundation and the l and scape of the pieces, an d since pushing them can make them vulnerable to further attack. As a rule, try not to move pawns where you are weak, since they can become excel lent "hooks" for the opponent's pawns to use to break up the position. Example
120 (W)
I n this S ici l i a n Najdorf, Wh ite is weak o n t h e q ueenside a n d Black is weak o n the k lngside. Both players have chosen n ot to create a ny hooks by playi ng a3 or ... h6 respectively. If Wh ite pl ays a3 it could be attacked by ... b4, while if Black plays ... h6 White would attack it by g4-g5.
It is important to realize that imbalances are not worth much if you cannot take advantage of them. So a pawn weakness is really not a weakness unless you can exploit its drawbacks.
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Your Bes t Move
Doubled Pawns Doubled pawns are usually considered to be weak. Thi s is primarily because they are infiexible standing on the same file. The front pawn is most often h arder than usual to protect, and the square it occu pies is often a weak square. This means that even when the pawn is exchanged, it m ay leave an excellent outpost for the opponent's pieces, something m any players forget. Example 121 {B) G.Kasparov-A.Karpov, World Cha mpion ship, Seville 1987 Black vol untarily exchanges the doubled white pawn by 1...dS, but after 2 cxd s Qxds 3 e3 Nas 4 f3 Nd6 s e4 Qcs 6 Be3 Ndc4, h e instead has a stronghold on the square where the pawn once stood.
But doubled pawns do have some advantages which shouldn't be forgotten. If they are centre pawns, they help to control more centre squares. Also, an indirect effect of doubled pawns is that you gain an extra open file for your major pieces. Example 122 {B) Revisiting the position i n Exam ple 11, we can see that Black's doubled pawns on the c-file ca n not be effectively at tacked, and they control vital squares i n t h e centre.
Isolated Pawns H aving an isolated pawn is in itself not a good imbalance, but they often bring indirect advantages in shape of other imbalances. In the openings in which they most usually appear, the isolated pawn is often a
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Kn o wledge
pushed central pawn which can give you a lot of space in the centre. If you have a pawn like this, use it to activate your pieces, either as a foundation for them or for opening up the position by pushing it forward and potentially even sacrificing it. An isolated pawn also has an open or h alf-open file on each side of it, unless it is a rim pawn. Try to use these files to your advantage. Example 123
(W}
Wh ite has a n isol a n i o n d4. Depending on how the game develops, He can push it to d S or use it to su pport a kn ight on es. He a lso has both the c-fi le and the e fi le to work on with h i s major pieces.
If your opponent has the isolated pawn, first make sure it will not move forward. Since the square in front of it is weak, placing a piece on that square effectively blocks the pawn. Then start buildin g up pressure against it. It is often effective to exchange minor pieces, as generally the weakness of the pawn is accentuated after every ex change, and to pile up major pieces on th e pawn's file. Example 124 (W)
Wh ite has control over the i m porta r:it d4-sq uare a n d is building up pressure against the black isolani. He wil l con tinue with Ne3 and, if necessa ry, tra n s fer rooks to the d-fi le.
Backward Pawns
Backward pawns are often hard to exploit unless they are on half-open files. Many times the square in front of the pawn is a much greater weakness. Also, be aware that they often give excellent support to pawns in front of them on adjacent files. 115
Your Bes t Move
If a backward pawn is able to advance, it will cease to be backward. But if this ad vance can be prevented, it suffers from many of the same weaknesses as the iso lated pawn. It is sometimes pushed to get rid of the weakness, even if it means sacrificing it to open lines. Example 125 (B) A.Alekhine-Cisar, Czechoslovakia 1925 White has established a so called Ma roczy bind, where the backward pawn on d6 cannot advan ce on the half-open d-file because of the two white pawns on c4 and e4. The d6-pawn is consid ered to be "backwa rd " whether the e pawn i s on e6 or es; in the latter case, the d S-squ a re would be very weak.
Passed Pawns The imbalance of a passed pawn can be created from another imbalance not fur ther mentioned here, the pawn majority. A passed pawn is usually a big advantage in the endgame, especially when pro tected by another pawn. I n the endgame, you should do everything possible to push it to promotion. Likewise, in the middlegame you should try to push the pawn forward, of course carefully watching that you don't lose it, at least not without very good compensa tion. A passed pawn that is able to m ove forward easily creates panic and disorder in the enemy camp. In other words, it is imperative for the player fighting against the passed pawn to block it. This means the square directly in front of the passed pawn is the most important square to control for both players. If firmly blocked, a passed pawn can even become a weakness, blocking important lines. The most efficient blockading piece is the knight, which can often exert the same power as it would otherwise. In this scenario the pawn should not even be feared.
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Kn o wled g e Example 126 (B) The black kn ight is the true domi nator of the board, not only blocking White's passed d-pawn, but at the same time controlling a l l the im portant light squares in the position.
Queens, and usually rooks, are pretty poor defenders, as they can be chased away. For this reason, if you have the passed pawn, you should try to exchange the po tentially blocking minor pieces. It is usually also a good idea to keep the queens on the board, since this makes the opponent's king an unlikely blocker.
Board Board imbalances are imbalances concerning squares or files, including rows and diagonals. They are structural and are directly linked with the pawn chains. Weak Squares
A weak square is a square that cannot be protected by a pawn. For the opponent, it is obviously considered a strong square. The strongest variant of this is a square in front of an isolated pawn or a backward pawn, since then it cannot be attacked down that file. If you have a strong square, especially one in the centre or in enemy territory, it is usually an excellent home for your minor pieces, especially the knights, who are almost dependent on them to be really effective. Ideally, the square should be pro tected by one of your pawns, to fix the imbalance, and by another piece, ready to take the occupying piece's place should it be exchanged. If you have to recapture with a pawn, the square is no longer considered weak. But be wary of locking a knight for too long just to protect another knight. The knights are much stronger if they cover different squares. This is an important detail to remember for the player dealing with a weak square in his position. You should often not exchange a knight protected by another knight. If instead you avoid the exchange, one of the opponent's knights will be stale.
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Yo u r B e s t M ove
Example 127 (B) After 1...Ne8, White's knights, by the very fact that they protect each other, step on each other's toes.
If your opponent has a weak square you want to exploit, it can be a good idea to exchange the opponent's bishop of the same colour as that square. Colour Complexes
A whole complex of weak squares of the same colour i s usually a huge disadvan tage, since the opponent's pieces can move on these squares unchallenged. But it is worse than that, because from these weak squares the opponent can easily at tack the squares of the opposite colour, leading to a total breakdown of the de fences. This is a dangerous imbalance in the hands of an attacker. When your opponent has a weak colour complex, if possible exchange the bishop of that colour, since it is the strongest defender of the weakness. Then control the squares in the weak colour complex and start placing your pieces on them, exert ing pressure on the opposite colour. Example 128 (B) Y.Nikolaevsky-E.Gel ler, Tbi l is i 1966 With 1 Nc2 2 Bf4 Nxa l 3 Bxes Nb3 4 Qdl Bxes, Black excha nged White's d ark-squared bishop a n d took control over the dark colou r complex. His rook and bishop a re as strong as White's queen. ...
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K n o w ledge
Open and Ha lf-Open Files
Open files are not an imbalance, since both players can use them. But control of open files is a dynamic imbalance, an often decisive imbalance. Rooks need open files to show their power, so you n eed to open fil es for them. But be careful not to find yourself just opening files for your opponent. You should either be able to control an open file or at least challenge your opponent for it, often leading to m ajor exchanges. But even when controlled, an open file can be almost worthless, if all penetration squares are firmly controlled by enemy pieces, or if it can be efficiently blocked by a minor piece. On the other hand, if a rook is able to penetrate to either of the last two ranks, it can easily be decisive. Example 129
(W)
Wh ite completely controls the open a file, but it is sti l l of l ittle u se to h i m since the entry squares at a7 and a8 a re con tro l l ed by the black knights.
H alf-open files are a bit different, since there's no risk that th e opponent will con trol yours. On the other hand, if you h ave one, he often h as another, and they are proper static imbalances. If you h ave a h alf-open file, you should put pressure on the enemy pieces or pawns at the other end. This will ultimately decide how useful the file will be to you. Example 130
(W)
A typical set-up in the Sicilian. Black has moved his rook to the ha lf-open c-fi l e a n d a dva nced a pawn t o b s , ready at a ny time to force the kn ight on c3 to m ove and potentially expose the white pawn on c2. Another com mo n strategy is to sacrifice the exchange by ... Rxc3.
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Your B e s t Move
Space Pieces need squares to move to, and they need space. This means that the player with more space has more potential mobility for his pieces and therefore greater control and freedom of choice. Space is about controlling squares, most usually with your pawns. By pushing pawns you expand your territory and your space. That is assuming your opponent cannot break through your shield, because that would mean he could start controlling your territory behind the pawns. Since pawns can only control squares in front of them and can only move forward, the squares behind them are potentially very weak. Example 131 (W) White has a big, far-advanced pawn centre and plenty of space, but Black is fighting for the squares left beh i nd the pawns. After 1 Nd4 Bg6 2 a3 cs 3 Nxe6 fxe6 4 axb4 cxb4 5 Na4 o-o the chances a re a bout equal.
So if you have more space, especially if you have pushed your pawns far or are thinking of pushing them, you must restrict your opponent's possibilities to break through and undermine your position. This means you should avoid opening files you cannot control, and should block the ones leading into your position. You should also control the squares in front of potential pawn breaks. Space is a static imbalance and you should not be in a hurry to utilize it. Manoeu vre your pieces according to a plan and slowly strangle your opponent. The player with less space usually has far fewer possibilities to develop his play. Since less space means less manoeuvrability, attacking two or more points in the opponent's camp simultaneously can be very effective, and switching between different plans can easily decide the game. Many players will tell you to exchange pieces if you have less space than your op ponent, since fewer pieces don't need as much space to do their job efficiently. This is definitely true if you don't think there is any way to change this state. But remember, your main task if you have less space is to break up the opponent's
120
Kn o wledg e shield and prove h e has overextended the position. S o when you make that pawn break, possibly even by a pawn sacrifice, and open those files, all your pieces can spring to life like a coiled spring. This is your chance to win, and if your intention is to win, you might very well avoid exchanges. Example 132 {B) M.Vu kic-M.Suba, Vinkovci 1977 Black has been in a bind fo r a long time, but was just waiting for the right mo ment for h is pieces to spring to l ife via pawn brea ks. After 1 ... bs 2 cxbs axbs 3 Bf3 Ne7 Black wrested the initiative a nd gai ned the adva ntage following 4 Nd4 b4 5 Na4 Nf6 6 es dxes 7 fxes Bxf3 8 Nxf3 Nfd S .
Time The Time imbalance could easily comprise all non-static imbalances since i t i s all about piece power and piece activity, but it makes sense to group open files with half-open files, and all imbalances exposing the king into one category. The nature of imbalances depending on time is that they will evaporate sooner or later if you don't either convert them or keep refilling them. They are the essence of dynamic play, where players create highly charged but dynamically balanced positions, altering the different balances between the pieces until they can tip the scales to their advantage. Mobilization
As you know by now, mobilization is about the placement and the power of your pieces. If you have the upper hand in mobilization, it means your pieces occupy better positions and exert greater power, individually or by harmoniously working together. The simplest example of this is when you get a lead in development, since this most often means more of your pieces have reached good positions than your op ponent's, and that they are ready to battle an enemy force still in disarray.
121
Your B e s t Move
Example 133 (B) White has a substantial development lead, having a l ready developed three m inor pieces. In two more moves, he will be fu lly developed.
As all opening books will tell you, if you have a lead in development, it is impor tant to strike before the opponent can catch up, especially if his king is still not safe. Mobilization can also be uneven later on in the game, especially in the form of local imbalances where you have better mobilization in one area of the board, whether it is in the centre or on one of the wings. As mentioned previously, if you are better mobilized locally and can bring even more power to this area, it's often very effective to continue building up your advantage before releasing the ten sion. It all depends on whether your opponent is able to pull in resources faster than or as fast as yourself, or whether he can launch an effective counterattack elsewhere.
Initiative Having the initiative means you are controlling the events on the board, usually by continuous threats, direct or indirect, immediate or long-term. Since being in control means you can steer the game into positions of your choice, having the initiative is one of the most important imbalances. This is why grand masters value the initiative so highly and why they can happily part with pawns and even pieces just to sustain it. But it is a narrow path to walk upon, because missing a small tactical detail in one of the variations, or wrongly evaluating an end position, can easily shift the initia tive to the opponent. So strive for the initiative, but be careful if you have to give up something to gain it, and beware of initiative that is doomed to peter out, like the beginner's love for pointless checks.
122
Kn o wledge If your opponent h as the initiative, always challenge his threats and sacrifices. Do your best to outsmart him, either by finding equal or stronger threats so you don't have to play by his rules, or by accepting sacrifices that you consider to be in suffi cient to win or unsound. Accepted sacrifices are like money in the bank, and you can use the gained mate rial either to win when the initiative shifts or fo r a counter-sacrifice, a very com mon weapon among grandmasters. Example 134
(W)
Black has sacrificed a kn ight for a pawn to get a domi nating i nitiative in the centre. After 1 Bd2 a6 2 N S c3 Nd4 Black actua l ly has quite good com pen sation fo r the material deficit. White ca n instead choose to give back the materi a l by 1 Bxf4 exf4 2 0-0, creat i n g an u ncompl icated position with White having the a dvantage a n d a n easy way forwa rd.
123
Your Bes t Move
Com b i n ations Even though combinations are probably the most important part of chess knowl edge, the knowledge you actually need is the knowledge of thousands of standard combinations and combinatorial patterns. This enables you to subconsciously handle basic combinations in the same natural way you handle the simple movements of the pieces, which in tum means they become an integral part of your selection and your verification, leading to accu rate calculations. Since the myriad of combinations you should study are outside of the scope of this book, I will instead introduce you to the mechanics of a combination, so you can understand them better and know what to look for. We will return to the topic of specific combinational knowledge when we talk about training.
Definition There are many definitions for what a combination is. In our context, it is suffi cient to treat a combination as a series of forcing moves leading to an advantage for the player initiating it. Of course, there are combinations leading to bad positions, but no one executes them unless in error and they are not interesting to us. And yes, a simple capture or a favourable exchange also falls within this definition, but this is actually quite natural because in a simplistic way they are the simplest cases of a combination. Most of us have a sense of a combination being more than a favourable series of forcing moves, since we feel it should be something out of the ordinary. For this reason a combination is often said to include some form of sacrifice, mostly in the form of a temporary m aterial sacrifice. Again, for us this is not very interesting, since all sacrifices should be part of the forcing moves we look for anyway. Some theorists even add the importance of surprise, but your opponent might see the combination and yet allow it, even when it is advantageous for you, because no better defences exist. Or the combination may be just a persistent threat, pre venting your opponent from pursuing any moves which would enable your com-
1 24
Kn o wledge bination. S o surprise should n ot be part of the definition. Rather, you should try to make combinations as n atural a part of your calculation s as any other moves. This is why in this book combinations are part of what you should know by heart. Even if there are combinations l eading to other advantages, almost all decisive combinati on s create either a m aterial advantage or lead to checkmate, or at least create a position in which on e of them is inevitable. lf we for a second forget about stalemate, checkmate is equal to capturing the priceless king. This mean s m ost if not all of the mechanisms in checkmating com binations are the same as in material combinations. The only combinati ons really deviati ng from the pattern of creatin g a m aterial advantage are the drawing combinations, especially the ones l eadi ng to stalemate or perpetual check. But even these combination s share many of the same mecha nisms in that they still consist of a series of forcing moves leading to an advan tage, an advantage compared to the original position that i s.
Threats A threat is an intended m ove that will create an advantage unless it is adequately met by the threatened player. Threats are very closely related to forcing moves, in that forcin g moves are the moves creating threats. For example, if you move a pawn so it can capture the opponent's queen on the next m ove, it is a fo rcing move creating the threat of winning the queen. We have already touched on the importance of forcing moves in your calculation. The very n ature of their force and the limited choice they leave your opponent make them prime candidates for creating an advantage. Always evaluate all forcing moves for both yourself and your opponent, h owever unsound they might look at first sight, and always calculate a series of forcing moves through to the end. You should do this for all series of forcing moves, not just series of exchanges.
Simple Threats Simple threats are those threatening only one thing, such as a winning a piece or checkmating the king. There are only a limited number of simple m aterial threats:
1 25
Your Be s t Move
1
Capture. By capturing an opponent piece, you create the threat of win ning material. Usually, the material balance is immediately restored by a recapture, but until then it is a threat.
1
Attacking a more valuable piece. This includes checking the king.
1
Attacking an unprotected piece or adding a further attacker to a de fended piece so that the number of attackers is greater than the number of defenders.
1
Attacking or removing a defender by means of capture, deflection or even interference.
1
Threatening to trap a piece so it cannot escape capture.
1
Threatening to promote a pawn.
Example 135 (W) White wins by the s i m ple chain of th reats 1 Qxg7+ Nxg7 2 Rxg7+ Kh8 3 Rg8+ Kxg8 4 Rgl+ QgS 5 Rxgs mate.
The nature of a simple threat is such that even if the opponent has to meet it, it is often not dangerous, simply because the opponent just meets it with his next move. The threat still has the power of force, but unless the threat cannot be met, it does not win the game. It is when you start combining simple threats that their true force is unleashed. Many combinations, especially mating combinations, are simply a series of threats, one after the other, until one of them cannot be met. In this case we only use the power of the simple threats to reach an advantage. But more often than not, simple threats can be met, one after the other. The alter nating moves of the two players give the opponent a chance to always meet your latest threat.
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Kn o w l e dg e
Desperado
Few tactical devices h ave more potential for surprise than the desperado. The typical situation ari ses when one pl ayer m akes a capture and his opponent, in stead of making the obvious recapture, m akes another capture or creates another threat. The piece which is left uncaptured, the so-called "desperado", suddenly h as the potential to continue capturing or creating threats. Since recapturing this piece at the second chance normally loses m aterial, the opponent i s usually forced to con tinue capturing with his capturing piece. The first player running out of captures, or having to recapture, loses this chicken race. Example
136 (W)
Black has j u st ca ptured a pawn with 1 .. Nf6xe4 a n d plans to rega i n the piece afte r 2 Nxe4 Qe7 3 f3 ds. .
But Wh ite chose 2 Nxc6. If Black now captures with 2 ... bxc6, he loses the piece, since 3 Nxe4 Qe7 is cou ntered with 4 Qe2. I n stead, Black conti n ued in the desper ado way, 2 ... Nxc3 3 Nxd8 Nxdl 4 Nxf7 N xf2 (4... Kxf7 wa s a l so possible) 5 Nxh8 Nxhl, u na ble to ba i l out u ntil most pos sible ca ptures were exhausted by Wh ite. Since the desperado is outside our normal recapture h abit, it is very easy to over look or to mi scalculate the consequences. When entering this type of tactical se quence or l etting your opponent do so, be very sure to have calculated all possible variations.
1 27
Your Bes t Move
Example 137 (W) After 1...Nxe4, White entered a desper ado by 2 Bxd8 Nxd2 3 Bxb6. S i nce 3 ... Rxb6 loses to 4 Rxd2, he thought he could keep his bishop after 3 ... Nxb3 4 Ba7 Rb7 5 Bf2 Nas with a sl ight edge, despite bei ng a pawn down. But 3 ... Nxb3+ is check a nd after 4 cxb3 Rxb6, it is instead Black who has a sub sta ntia l advantage.
Deflection Deflection is when you force a piece to move away from what it is protecting. A special case of this i s the overburdened piece {or overloaded piece), guarding against two threats at the same time. If one threat is executed, the piece is forced to move away from the other threat. Example 138 (W) Black has just played .. .f7-f5, but now the q ueen is overbu rdened. After 1 exfs Rxfs 2 Bxb7 ! Black has to lose the pawn, beca use ifthe q ueen is a l lowed to be deflected by 2 ... Qxb7, Black loses the rook.
But of course a piece can be lured away in other ways. One of many common ex amples is when a rook attacking a nearly promoted pawn gets pinned on a rank and therefore has to leave the crucial fil e, letting the pawn promote.
128
Kn o wledge
Example 139 (W} With 1 Re4!, White pins the black rook and forces the pawn to promotion.
Trapping
Trapping is quite common in the openings. Th e trapped piece is often a bishop caught by the enemy pawns, or sometimes a rook that h as moved in front of its pawn chain and h as no way to get back. It is also not uncommon to see adventur ous queens being trapped early on, especially when going pawn hunting in enemy territory. Example 140 {B) A typical tra pping example from the Ruy Lopez. After 6 ... Nxd4 7 Nxd4 exd4, W h ite should n ot contin u e 8 Qxd4, be cause of 8 . . cs! 9 Qd S (or 9 Qdl c4) 9 .. Be6 10 Qc6+ Bd7 11 QdS c4 a nd the bishop is trapped. .
.
For some reason many players don't see a trapping coming. Maybe this is because there always seems to be so many squares for the pieces to move to. Even if a piece looks a bit restricted, we are often content with it having one more square to go to, not realizing how this square could also be easily taken out. A special case of trapping is the trapping of the king, which we call checkmate. Given that checkmate is the ultimate objective of the g ame, it is natural that this trapping is not as commonly overlooked.
1 29
Your Best Move
Decoy Creating a decoy is basically the same as creating a deflection, but the objective is instead to force a piece into a certain situation where it can be exploited in follow up tactics. A common tactic is to force a piece to a certain square, by capture, check or other device, where it is subjected to a fork. Example 141 (W) Black has just made the mistake of cap turing the pawn on a2. Wh ite wins by the decoy 1 Rd7! Qxd7 2 Nxf6+, or 1 ...Qe6 2 Bg4! 2 Qxg4 Nxf6+.
Obstruction The purpose of an obstruction is the same as for a decoy, but the idea of luring a piece onto a certain square is to h ave it blocking the opponent in a decisive way; for example, forcin g a piece to block the escape route for the king in a mating combination. Example 142 (W) R.Fischer-P.Benko, New York 1963 After 1 Rf6! Bxf6 2 es, the black bishop obstructs its own a rmy and prevents the l iberating 1 .. .fs, so Wh ite forces mate. White also wins after 1...Kg8 2 es h6 3 Ne2 followed by Rxd6, since the knight cannot move because of Qf5 and Qh7 mate.
Multiple Th reats So if simple threats are often not decisive, what if you could unleash more than one threat at a time? If you threaten two or even more thing s at the same time,
1 30
K n o wledg e surely it will be much more difficult, i f n ot impossible, for the opponent t o meet them all? Of course! Since your opponent only has one move to counter all your threats, this kind of threat is often winning. Again, there are only a limited number of multiple material threats:
t
Fork
t
Pin
i
X-ray
t
Discovered Attack
t
Interference
Fork
Even though many people only use the term "fork" for a knight or a pawn simul taneously attacking two pieces, here we wil1 refer to the fork as the situation in which one piece simultaneously creates two or more threats at the same time. For example, a queen simultaneously threatening checkmate and a capture would be a fork; likewise, a rook threatening two pieces at the same time along a rank or file. Forks are commonly combined with decoys or deflections. Example 143 {W) After 1 Rxd 7! Qxd7 2 Nes, the white knight threatens both the black queen and checkmate on g6. Black cannot meet both t h reats.
Pin
The term "pin" is usually only used for a piece being immobilized because moving it would expose a more valuable piece behind it. We will also use this term for the so-called "skewer", in which two pieces are at131
Your B e s t M o ve tacked at the same time, one indirectly by being on the same line as the piece di rectly attacked. Example 144 (W) After 1 Rd7+ Kg6 (1 ... Rxd7 2 Rxd7+ is i n stead a fork) 2 Rxc7 Nxc7 3 Rd7, the white rook is skewering the black knight and bishop.
Furthermore, we will also refer to the pin as any situation where a piece is block ing a line and moving that piece would enable the execution of a threat along the same line. For example, a knight blocking a rook from executing a back-rank checkmate would be in a pin. Example 145 (W) The black kn ight is pinned, si nce it can not move without leaving the way open fo r a checkmate on e8.
X-Ray
Whereas forks an d pins normally involve two or more enemy pieces and only one of your own pieces, the X-ray normally involves only one enemy piece and two of your own. It's a not-so-common tactical device where one of your pieces protects the other, even though the enemy piece i s in-between. other definition s of X-ray exist, but this is the one we will use in this book. The whole idea with the X-ray is that one of your two pieces captures along the same line as the enemy piece, so if the enemy piece captures your second piece, your first piece can recapture. 132
K n o wledge The most common example is probably when you protect a rook challenged by an enemy rook on your first rank by returning your other rook to the same rank, but on the other side of the enemy rook. That way, both of your rooks protect each other even though there is an enemy piece in-between. This particular tactic is actually often overlooked when calculating combinations based on back-rank weaknesses. Example 146 (W) It is a com mon mistake a mong rookies to believe that White can win a pawn by 1 Nxes in positions like this. They think that Black ca nnot recapture becau se of 1 ... Rxes 2 Rd8+ Rxd8 3 Rxd8+ Re8 4 Rxe8 mate. But of cou rse Black just cal m ly repl ies 2 .. Re8, and the two rooks protect each other through X-ray. .
Discovered Attack
In a discovery attack, one piece unleashes a threat from another by moving out of the way. In doing so, it can itself make a second threat. Example 147 (W) Black has just played 1...Bc8-g4 instead of 1 0-0. White exploited the mista ke by 2 Bxf7+! Kxf7, followed by the com bined check and d iscovered attack 3 Ngs+, winning back the bishop. ...
Of course, if one of the threats is a check, the second threat i s usually impossible to meet. If the discovered piece is the checker, we call this a discovered check The most powerful example of this is the double check, where both pieces threaten the enemy king. Since both pieces cannot be captured or blocked at the same time, the king is forced to move. If it cannot, it is checkmate.
133
Yo u r Best M o ve I nterference
Interference is when a piece is placed so that it blocks one or more pieces from influencing important areas of the board. For example, if a rook protects against a checkmating threat, any piece placed between the rook and the m ating square is interfering. By interfering with more than one enemy piece, the interfering piece can effec tively remove defenders and thereby create several threats at the same time. If the interfering piece is pla ced at the crossroads between two crucial enemy lines, even capturing the piece often does not help, because the capturing piece still blocks the second line. Example 148 (W) W ith 1 NdS!, the wh ite knight is placed at the crossroads between the rooks and the bishop, threate n i ng both the rook on d8 a nd to q ueen the pawn. Black cannot survive after 1 .. Bxds 2 Rxd8 or 1 . R2xds 2 a8Q, and if 1. R8xd s White plays 2 Rh8 mate. .
..
..
It is also possible that the i nterfering piece only interferes with one enemy piece, but because in itself it creates a second threat, like a check, overall a double threat is created. Most examples of interference are quite uncommon in practice, but there is at least one situation that is too often overlooked. Every time a piece protects an other which is attacked, a protected enemy piece placed in its w ay can easily tum events around. For example, if a queen protects a rook along a file, an enemy knight placed in its way so that it is protected by a pawn would be impossible for the queen to cap ture. Even if the enemy knight can be c aptured by a pawn, the p awn would still block the queen from protecting the rook.
134
Knowledge
Example 149 (B) The white rook on d6 is p rotected, as is the d 3-square. But 1 . . Nd3+! i nterferes with the q ueen along the d-file and af ter 2 cxd3 the q ueen's i nfluence is still blocked. White loses the exchange. .
Com binations of Threats A combination is a series of forcing moves, which is normally equivalent to a series of threats, executed along forced paths until one of them cannot be met. Let us take a closer look at the mechanics of the combination.
Indirect Threats By an indirect threat I mean "a threat to threaten". Of course, this is often m uch too subtle to actually be of much value, but when you realize that an indirect double threat - that is, when you threaten to make a double threat on the next move - has almost the same value as a simple threat, the indirect threat suddenly becomes quite interesting. For example, a simple threat, like a check, combined with an indirect threat, like the threat of forking a queen and rook, is a double threat that often is just as strong as two simple threats combined. But before we get too excited about indirect threats, we should remember that an indirect threat is one further step from realization than a direct threat. Because of this, it is often easier for the opponent to find a move defending both threats. For example, if you try to combine two indirect forking threats into one double threat, it will often fail, if only because one of the indirectly threatened pieces in one threatened fork can protect against the other threatened fork, and the whole combination falls apart.
1 35
You r Best M o ve
Example 150 (W) With 1 Nf4!, W hite threatens not only 2 Ng6+ and 2 NdS, but even 2 Ne6, thereby creating a triple indirect threat. Although Black can meet two of these threats by moving the q ueen, he can not at the sa me time meet the threat of Ng6+.
Example 151 (W) I n this almost identica l position, 1 Nf4 sti l l combines the same three indirect threats, but this time they can a l l be met by 1...Qf7!.
Th reats as Protection
When you realize you can execute a threat, you should ask yourself whether its execution gives you direct benefits, or whether it is actually more valuable to you unexecuted. You have probably h eard the expression "a threat is stronger than its execution". In the same way, an indirect threat can also be stronger than its exe cution. For example, if you see you can create a mating threat by moving your queen, maybe it is better to "save" that threat until it can be made part of a double threat. A special case of this is to use a threat as a protective device. In Example 152, any square the queen attacks when threatening checkmate is indirectly protected. This means you can put another piece seemingly en prise on one of these squares. If the piece is captured, it can be regained with the fork created by the queen threatening checkmate. 136
K n o wl e dg e
Example 152 (W) White is able to play 1 Ncs, since the knight is protected by the mating threat 1 . Nxcs 2 Qhs, wi n ning back the piece. ..
Th reat Paths
As we h ave already stated, the series of threats combining into a combination can be as simple as a series of simple threats executed until one of them cannot be met. This can be seen as one straight path of threats:
Example 153 (W) With 1 Rxh7 White threatens check mate, but after 1 . Kxh7 2 Rh4+ Kg8 3 R h 8 mate, the result i s the same. . .
A simple double threat would immediately split the path into two, whereas a fork following a forced move would be a path split at the second threat:
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Your Bes t Move
Example 154 (W) After 1 Bxc4 White th reatens to win the pawn {threat 1). If 1...dxc4, White forks the q ueen {threat 2) and the al ready attacked bishop (th reat 3) by 2 Nxc4. The only way for Black to avoid this is to accept the loss of the pawn. 1 . Bxes 2 fxes dxc4 (or 2 ... Ne4 3 Bd3) 3 Nd6+ Kd7 4 0-0 does not help. . .
One of the most common threat paths in a combination is a longer series of threats ending in a double threat:
Example 155 (B) Black wins by 1 .. Rxe3 2 Rxe3 Rel+ 3 Kf2 Rxc3 4 Rxc3 Ne4+, forki ng king and rook. .
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Kn o wledg e Normally, once a double threat is achieved, the combination has reached its goal, but the threats in the double threat do not have to be one-movers - they can in tum be a series of threats, like a series of exchanges, so the threat paths do not have to stop after the junction:
Example 156 (W) With 1 Qe4, White th reaten s 2 Qxh7+ Kxh7 3 Rh3+ Kg6 4 Nf4+ Kgs 5 Rhs+ Kxg4 6 Bd1+ Qe2 3 Bxe2 mate, but also 2 Qxe8+ Rxe8 3 Rxe8+ Bxe8 4 Rxe8 mate. Black can try to protect both threats by 1 ... h6, but a third threat 2 Qe7 (not show n i n the threat d iagram), threateni ng 3 Qf8 mate at the same time as 3 Qxd8, decides the game. Of course, it i s easy to realize how these threat paths are just a special case of the calculation of variations. Even more so, they are actually the easiest calculations to perform, since they all consist of a l imited number of forced paths with a few junctions. So why is it we often miss these combinations, if not when they are immediately before our eyes, then more often when we look just a fe w moves into the future? The answer is usually one of two traps we fall into. The first one is that we do not look at all the forcing moves, and if we do, we do not see them all the way through to the end. Again, always look at all forcing moves, and always look at the position resulting from the possible series of forcing moves and try to see at least one move further. Even when we learn to look at all forcing moves, we are usually sloppy when it comes to looking at them a few moves ahead. Countless games have been won by
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Your Bes t Move
the player who looked at surprising forcing moves just a couple of moves into the future. The second trap is to consider chess as just a thinking game. There are many players who believe that if they are just logical and intelligent enough, they will be able to find the combinations, either by brute force calculation or by creativity. Yes, the sili con monsters are very successful at brute force calculation, and yes, grandmasters seem to create great ideas out of nothing. But remember that the human mind can not calculate millions of moves per second, and remember that there is a reason why grandmasters can play "bullet" chess with 60 seconds for the whole game. The answer is that in order to see combinations quickly and effectively as part of our calculations, we need to immediately and almost subconsciously recognize them. Chess is a thinking game, but it is also a game of pattern recognition. The more patterns you know, the more time you can save and use to see further than your opponent.
Specifics Specifics are about knowing your com bi nations. There is no shortcut to this knowledge. You have to study thousands of combinations and repeat them to make them stick. Remember, you are trying to make the combinations part of your subconscious knowledge. This means it is more important to learn them than to solve them. Of course, you will remember them better if you first try to solve them, but if you can't, just look at the solution, understand it and ask yourself why you couldn't solve it. Then remember it. Since repetition is the mother of learning, you should return to combinations again and again. You might, for example, start out with 1000 combinations and when you have gone through them the first time, repeat them in shorter time frames two, three or even four times. Then move on to the next 1000. Don't get me wrong, it is very fruitful, even necessary for becoming a strong player, to analyse complex positions involving complex combinations. But that i s not what you are after when we are talking about combination knowledge. In stead, we are talking about simple and medium difficulty combinations that can become part of your subconscious knowledge. Even repeating seemingly very simple combinations makes sense, because even they might not be an integral part of your calculations. It might instead be a waste of time to learn complex combinations by heart, because they are not common enough to be likely to appear in your games and your calculations.
140
Kno wledge
,. Atta�k··· ··· How is the concept of attack different from exploiting the imbalances of a weak ened king position, especially combined with the concept of time and dyn amic play, and even with combinations? Well, in chess as in life, everything tends to be interrelated, and it is the human mind that needs clearly defined and mutually exclusive concepts to make sense of it all. In reality, an attack often takes place in a weakened king position, and time and dynamic play is paramount to and almost equivalent to attack in its broader sense. And since tactical play is vital when breaking through, combinations are also an important ingredient. The reason for making attack a special area of knowledge is because of its impor tance and its special features. By attack, we mean an attack on the king, even if many of the features can be equally used when not explicitly attacking the king, most notably in dynamic play. The important difference between an attack against the kin g and other areas of chess is the difference in objective and the implications of the objective. Attacking the king mean s that you go for checkmate and no means are too extreme, no sac rifice too big, if you can achieve this objective. Because of this, the characteristics of attack are quite different from the other areas. The attacker should have the mindset to "do or die", that is he should do every thing i n his power to reach his objective, and play as if the game is lost if he can not reach it. In reality of course, it is not uncommon for a strong attack to gain material, and if the attack starts running out of power, the attacker can often fall back on this to win or get a draw. The important thing is the mindset, and not to settle too soon for small material gains.
Area Since you are playing the attack as a "do or die" mission, it i s only what is actually affecting the attack that is important. This means you are concentrating only on on e area of the board, the area where the enemy king resides.
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Your Bes t Move
King Location Since we focus our efforts in the area of the enemy king, it is important to under stand if and how it can actually change. If you are attacking an uncastled king, it will understandably try to escape to one of the comers, ideally by castling. This means your first objective h as to be to make castling impossible or at least very hard, and keep the king in the centre by any means possible. Then, and only then, can you start the actual assault. To a large extent the same is true for a castled king. If the king's position cannot be held, the king will try to evacuate the area and flee to the other fl ank It is im portant you prevent this by shutting off the king's escape. If you succeed in doing so, the king will most probably succumb to your forces. This is the secret of why so many so-called "quiet moves" prove to be so powerful. They don't seem to help attacking the king, but they keep him imprisoned. Example 157 (W) With 1 Rell, White cuts the black king off from its escape route a nd forces checkmate after 1 ... BeS 2 Qh8+ Ke7 3 Qxg7 mate.
If you cannot prevent the enemy king escaping, you can often make its escape costly. It is not uncommon for the whole flank to be obliterated when the king flees. Example 158 (W) S.Dvoirys-G.Kaspa rov, Vilnius 1975 After 1 Bxf7+ Kg7 2 Qh6+ Kxf7 3 Qxh7+ Ke8 4 Qxg6+ Kd7, a l l the black kingside pawns a re captured. W h ite continued the attack by doubling rooks on the d file, but the game was eventual ly d rawn.
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Kn o wledge Decentralization
Kings usually hide on the edge of the board because it is h arder for the attacker to get to that area. But this is also true for the defender, who can face serious chal lenges when trying to bring in his reserves. To get to a castled king, you need to start focusing on the edge of the board in stead of the centre, at least partially, and concentrate your forces on the edge. This is where the greatest risk lies. If your attack fail s, even if material is still the same, you will often find your fo rces in the wrong place, passive bystanders when the enemy forces take control of the centre and the game. This is why a thrust in the centre can be a very effective way to remove the sting from an attack. Example 159 (W) W hite started an attack with 1 Qg4 g6 2 N h 6+ Kh8, thereby decentral izing h is forces. After 3 Rel, Black killed the at tack by 3 . .fs and si m u ltaneo u sly tra pped the wh ite knight. .
Weakness One of the cornerstones of warfare is to attack your enemy at his weakest point. This is also true in chess and can hardly be overstressed. You should attack where the king's position is the weakest. But remember, a weakness is really not a weak ness unless you can get at it. Attacking Points
The most obvious plan is to start putting pressure on one specific weak square in the king's shelter, for example f7, g7 or h7 in front of the king. The aim is to either break this point down and invade with your pieces, or force your opponent to fur ther weaken the position, giving you new weaknesses to attack. In his highly recommended classic work Art of Attack in Chess, Vladimir Vukovic talks about so-called "focal points", from which your pieces checkmate the oppo143
Your Bes t Move
nent, and of secondary focal points, used by the attacking pieces. Of course, what you call them is not important, but you need to identify where the weak squares are and how to exploit them. Example 160 {W) White lau nches his forces on the foca l point g7 by 1 Nfs+! gxfs (or 1 ... Kh8 2 Qh6 Rg8 3 Rd8) 2 Qgs+ Kh8 3 Qxf6+ Kg8 4 exfs Qb3 (if 4 ... Rb8 s Qgs+ Kh8 6 f6 or s ... Kf8 6 f6) s Rd4, forcing Black to re sign.
Colour Complexes A weakness can be a single square, whether empty or not, whether protected or not, but it can also be a whole colour complex, meaning many squares of the same colour are weak around the enemy king. It's important to realize that in an attack, a weak colour complex does not depend entirely on pawns being placed on the opposite colour. If you look at bishops and pawns, it is obvious that they are biased towards one colour. But if you look at the knight, it is as biased as the pawn because it only covers one colour at a time. Also, the queen inherits half of its mobility from the bishop, and in some situations even the rook at close range and the king are biased in this way. So again, a weak colour complex is a set of weak same-coloured squares - weak because the pawns and the pieces around them are limited in their ability to cover that colour of square. If you think in terms of colour complexes, you will often find that by eliminating a single pawn or forcing a certain single weakness, the king's position becomes one big weak colour complex, ready for your forces to invade.
1 44
K n o wledge
Example 161 (W)
V.l n ki ov-T.Uberios, Plovd iv 1982 Black does not have a wea k colour com plex yet, but after 1 Bxf7+! Kxf7 2 Qx h7, Wh ite has created one by e l i m i n ating the pawns protecti ng the l ight sq uares. Black resigned after 2 ... Qh6 3 QfS+ Kg8 4 Rg6 Qd2 5 Qe6+ Kh7 6 Rg4 Rc4 7 e4.
Power To succeed in our attack we need power. A common mistake is to start attackin g with too few pieces. Often this i s because you recognize some o f the necessary elements of an attack and you want to grasp the opportunity before it disappears. Many beginners start attackin g the king with two or even one piece, n ot realizing that the number of successful attacks with fewer than three pieces is low. Unless the situation is very special, and the opportunity truly will disappear if you don't act immediately, mobilize your pieces fully before attacking. Remember, for every piece you mobilize, your opponent will at least n ot be able to mobilize more pieces in the same number of moves, and if you have the upper h an d in the at tacking area, your mobilization will be swifter and easier. Of course, if one or even several of your pieces have to overcome great challenges to get mobilized into the crucial area, it i s usually not worth pushing their mobili zation, and you should probably continue the attack without them. What is special about attacking is that we need the power in a certain area, and since the attack is "do or die", it is the power in that area alone that we are inter ested in. Thi s means that it doesn't matter wh at the total m aterial balance is, as long as it is to our advantage in the area around the king. It is very common to sacrifice one piece and then bring in a second one with a tempo. This way, your number of pieces in that area remains the same, but you have eliminated something in your opponent's defence when sacrificing. One of the most common examples of this is when you sacrifice a rook for a minor piece or even a pawn, just to bring the other rook to the same l ocation with a check, a rook that otherwise would have taken at least two moves to mobilize.
14 5
Yo u r Best M o ve
Example 162 (W) P.Mross-R.Teschner, Berli n 1949 By playing 1 Rxf6+! Kxf6 2 Rfl+, Wh ite eliminates a defender but stil l keeps a rook on the f-file. 1
He won after 2 ... Kes (if 2 ...Ke7, then 3 Qxg7+ Ke8 4 Rxf8 mate) 3 Rxf8 dS 4 Qg6 Kd4 s Bxds Kcs 6 Qd3 exd s 7 b4+.
An interesting fact is that numbers are often much more important than size. Since in the attack a few squares or open lines are often what is important, any piece attacking the square or influencing the line is as important and as powerful as any other, no matter what size it is. Example 163 (B) V.Alatortsev-1.Boteslavsky, Moscow 1950 With 1...Bxfl! 2 fxgs Rxe2, Black creates a majority of pieces. The white q ueen can do l ittle to help its king. After 3 Qc3 (3 Qd4 B h 3 4 Qh4 Rg2+ 5 Khl Rxa2 6 Rel Bg2+ 7 Kg1 Bc6 is stil l losing) Bg2 4 Qd3 ( 4 Rb1 Rxa2 would have put u p more resistance) 4... Bf3 5 Rfl Rg2+ 6 Khl Bc6 7 Rxf8+ Kxf8 8 Qf1+ Rf2+ Wh ite resigned. A pawn covering a weak square on h7 and also covering a king escape via f7 is of ten more powerful than any piece, and rooks could be almost worthless if no open files are available. On the other hand, the unchallenged mobility of the queen and its ability to cover all adjacent squares when close makes it an invaluable piece in the attack, as we all know.
Time Time is almost always a crucial part of an attack. The main reason for this is that our "do or die" mission is all about overpowering our opponent in one area of the 146
Kn o wledg e
board. The more time the opponent h as, the more he will n ot only be able to coor dinate his local defence, but al so bring in reserves from the rest of the board. Momentum
Momentum is about constantly m oving forward, building up your attack and exe cuting it, never letting your opponent save his breath or catching up with you. Every move should h ave a purpose in an attack, if possible threatening something the opponent must lose time defending. If you feel you don't know what to do next, think h arder, because every move has to count for something. Even quiet moves h ave a specific purpose an d can be extremely strong. Losing the momen tum means losing your attack. Example 164 (W}
R.Fischer-0.Cel le, Davis 1964 Wh ite keeps the m omentum of the at tack by further sacrifices: 1 Nfs+! gxfs (if 1 ... Kf6 2 Rd6} 2 exfs Rac8 (or 2 ... Qxfs 3 Qd6+ Kd8 4 Qxf8+ Kc7 5 Qxa8) 3 Rxd7+ Qxd7 (3 ... Kf6 4 fxe6 Rxc7 5 Rxc7 a l so wins} 4 f6+ Nxf6 5 Rel+ Ne4 6 Rxe4+, with a n easy win for Wh ite. As long as you feel your advantage is increasing move by m ove, and as long as your opponent must spend more and more time defending, you know you are on the right track. If not, you should spend time evaluating ways of getting the attack moving in the rig ht direction again, or decide if you have overestimated the attack and n eed to try bailing out. Example 165
(W}
White has sacrificed a piece to get a n attack aga i n st the black king, b ut Black has just played ...Qa 3-e3 and ca n meet a l l th reats agai nst h is king by i ntercept i n g on h 6. I n stead, W hite ba i led out a n d rega ined most of h is materi a l by 1 Bd3+ Qh 6 2 fxg7+ Kxg7 3 Qg4+ Kh8 4 Bxa6.
1 47
Your Bes t Move
Phases An attack usually moves through different phases:
The first one, the preparation phase, is non-committal. The moves you m ake are aimed partially towards the enemy king, but maybe just as much towards the cen tre. Of course, the centre is an excellent springboard to either flank, and control ling the centre is still a good way of restricting your opponent's space and free dom of m ovement. At this stage, you can discontinue the attack at any time. Example 166 {W) J.Capablanca-G.Levenfish, Moscow 1935 W ith 1 Bd3, White a im ed the bishop at the fut u re location of the black king. After 1...a6 White followed up with 2 e4 cs 3 es, controlling the centre and put ting p ressure on the i mporta nt defend ing knight. The preparation contin ued with 3 ... cxd4 4 Nxbs N xes s Nxes axbs 6 Qf3 Ras 7 0-0 b4 8 Bf4 Be7 9 Rfcl 0-0. When you think you have reached the point of no, or at least little, return, which is when you feel you have to start decentralizing your forces in order to continue the
148
Knowledge
attack, take some time to evaluate the risks and the potential for success. This is something you should always do before m aking a commitment, be it an attack, a sacrifice, a creation of an imbalance, castling, or a simplification into an endgame. Exa mple 167
(W)
J.Capablanca-G.Leve nfish, Moscow 1935 Continuing from the previous exam ple, with 1 Qh3 Wh ite sta rts to decentra l ize h i s forces a n d contin ues with 1 ... Rcs 2 Rxcs Bxcs 3 BgS h6 4 Ng4. The ga me en.t Rel Qb6
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ues . ·Qxf!B First scan
I am sure you will find that if you follow this first scan by a second level, where you look at the remaining candidates just a bit deeper, you will find your calculation s to be more effective as well as more accurate. After this second level, you are well equipped to try to see the variations to the end, starting with the candidate with the highest potential value. If the calculations are very complex, and the candidate you are lookin g at is not standing out as the best one, you might even want to add yet another level, to see far into the future and really establish which candidate is the best. Example 194 {B) After the first scan, Black decided the possi ble ca ndidates were, in descending order of possible value, ... Re7, ... Rc8, ... Ra8 and ... Ne3. He positioned ... Ne3 last, beca u se the sha i low variation 1... Ne3 2 Bxe3 fxe3 3 Qxe8, losing the exchange as well as the mating threat o n g2, seemed un promising. I nstead he dived deep i nto the com plications of 1...Re7 2 Qxfs Rxa7 3 NgS QhS 4 Ndf3. A second scan wou ld have revea led that 1...Ne3 2 Bxe3 fxe3 3 Qxe8 exd2 4 Nxd 2 Qxd2 is m uch more promising a n d probably winni ng.
1 73
Your B e s t Move
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Second scan Depth First It is important to point out that even though successive deepening is the most efficient way to sort candidates, the human mind is usually much more comfort able with going depth first. We want to consider one candidate at a time, look at the most likely reply by the opponent and then at the strongest-looking follow-up for us, and so on. Only when we have reached an end position, where we are reasonably comfort able with the end value, do we trace our steps back and consider other opponent replies, first those closest to our end position and then successively working our way back to the start position, having considered all potential candidates for both ourselves and the opponent. Root
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1 74
JC
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Skills Going depth first is especially effective for humans when it comes to establishing a main variation. This main variation can then be visualized clearly and used as a backbone for the calculations, with shorter variations branching out from it. The main variation usually contains the moves which are consistent with the idea of the candidate move, for example the motif of a combination, as well as the ex pected opponent replies. The most important branches off the main variation then become the opponent replies that could potentially shatter this idea. We know this as move verification. Only if such a shattering reply is found do we look for improvements to our own moves. Example 195 (W) White is looking at the main branch 1 Nxg7+ Kf8 2 Bh6 Rg8 3 Ne6+ Ke8 4 Nxd8 Kxd8 5 Bf4 Qg4 6 Bg3, wh ich leads to a decisive advantage. But when verifying the variation, White finds a stronger variation fo r Black with 4 ... Qh 3 5 g3 Ng4. Backtracking his steps in the m a i n variation, White fi nally finds 3 Nfs+ Ke8 4 f4 to be m uch stronger, preparing 5 Bgs. Generally, successive deepening and depth first can and should be used together. Use successive deepening for at least a first quick scan, and ideally also for a sec ond shallow evaluation, before establishing a main line and then working your way depth first. Amendments
In perfect calculation, you wouldn't need to change your variations. But we are far from perfect and during our calculations we often find ideas and moves that we didn't consider in earlier variations, but that are perfectly viable. We then can, and should, revisit the variations affected. Most of us also revisit the main variations again once we have completed our cal culation s. If you have the time for this, it might be a good idea, because the second time you look at it you know which moves are part of the main variations and you 1 75
Your Be s t Move
can more clearly visualize the variations. This leads to greater accuracy. A common amendment among strong players comes into play when a promising idea seems to be shattered by something they find during calculation. Instead of just giving up on the idea, they start looking for improvements, for anything pre paring the idea, so that it works on their next move. Example 196 (W) Wh ite first looks at 1 Nxc8 Qxc8 2 Rxa s, but realizes Black has the stronger 1...Qxd4+ 2 Qf2 (or 2 Kg2 Rxc8} 2 ... Qxf2+ 3 Kxf2 fxes+ 4 Ke3 Rxc8. Instead, White played 1 Qe4, protecting d4 and th reatening 2 Nxc8 followed by 3 Rxa s. The game conti n ued 1...fxes 2 Nxc8 Qxc8 3 Qxes. Yet another way to improve ideas which aren't working is to change the order of the moves that are part of the variation. Often you know which moves you need to make, and usually you have some idea about the move order. But it is not un common to find that another move order is much more efficient and can even be crucial for the idea to work This is especially true when calculating combinations. Example 197 (W) Wh ite has been looking at 1 Rxc7+ Kxc7 2 Qa7+ Kd8 (if 2 ... Kc8 3 Nxb6+ Kd8 4 Qxb8+) 3 Qxb8+, but it is not clea r if this is win n i ng. But changing the move order leads to a q uick win after 1 Qa7+! Kxa7 2 Rxc7+ Ka8 3 Nxb6 mate.
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S k ills
Eva l u atio n Evaluating a position means estimating some form of value of the position, whether consciously or subconsciously, accurately or within a range.
Dynamic Value There are several reasons to evaluate a position. The most obvious reason is to put a value on the end position of a variation. This value is also used as the value of the variation. Each of our candidate moves gets the value of the variation chosen with best pl ay from both players. When we h ave found a value for all the candidates, or at least know that those candidates we could not accurately evaluate do not have a maximum value greater than the best candi date, we can safely choose the candidate with the highest value as the best move. This is also the value of the start position and is called a dynamic value. Do not confuse dynamic value with dynamic imbalance. A dyn amic value is simply the product of surfacin g end position values using calculation. Example
198 (B)
A static eva l u ation would j u st see the extra excha nge fo r Wh ite, but the dy n a m ic va l ue is d ifferent. After 1 ... Bxf4 2 h3 (2 Rxf4 Rxd7 3 Qf1 Qxf4 wins for Bla ck; or 2 g3 Bxg3 3 Rd2 Bf4 with enough compensation) 3 Qg3 3 Kg1 (3 Rxf4 Rxd 7 4 Qxd7 Qxf4 is ad vantageous for Black) Qh2+ 4 Kf2 Qg3+ 5 Kg1 Qh2+ it is evident that the dy namic va l ue is a draw.
Static Value However, when the end position i s evaluated, we actually perform a static evalua tion. That is, we evaluate the position without any calculation. To be able to do 177
Your Bes t Move
this, we analyse imbalances, consciously or subconsciously, weigh them against each other, sum the values, and come up with a total value of the position. Often one or a few of the imbalances easily outweigh the others and more or less become the value of the position. This is of course the case when the position is a known win or draw, but also when we reach a quiet position where one of the players has a substantial m aterial advantage or a crushing attack. Example 199 {W) No special tactics exist i n this position. White concluded that h e had a lasting advantage, eva luating h is extra pawn and h i s connected passed pawns as more val uable than his broken pawn chain a n d doubled pawns.
The static evaluation is also used to evaluate start positions. This is usually done in quiet positions, when there are few and only weak forced moves. In these posi tions calculations are futile, since there are usually too many viable candidates to choose from, both for you and for your opponent. To get a true static value it is usually not enough just to analyse the different imbal ances. It is also necessary to evaluate how they can be exploited. In a sense, this too is a kind of dynamic value in that the plan to exploit the main imbalances involves visualizing a future. But let us call all values not based on calculation "static".
Expectation The value of the start position, whether static or dynamic, is used to set expecta tions. As discussed earlier, expectations can be a help when pruning variations. It is also important for us to know when the position demands attack and when it demands defence. Accurate evaluations, leading to realistic expectations, help us realize and focus on what we need to do. This way we can start looking for a suit able plan and for candidate moves meeting our expectations. Your expectations are also one of your biggest enemies, since in many positions you don't expect any lethal combinations. And yet they always arise, even in the quietest of positions. The danger is that they arise and disappear suddenly, and
1 78
S k ills
often when you least expect it. There are numerous examples, n ot only of games lost because of this, but also of games where both players miss a winning combination, simply because n either of them expected it. Example 200 (B)
W.Fairhurst-S.Reshevsky, Hastings 1937 These two very strong pl ayers both ex pected White's i nitiative to be t h e only i m portant factor, and com pl etely ne g lected to look at B lack's possibil ities. The ga m e saw 1...h6 2 QhS Rf8, but B l ack missed not one but two o pportu nities to play 1 ... Rc1+! 2 Bxc1 Qa 7+ 3 Kh1 Nf2+ 4 Kg1 N h 3+ 5 K h 1 Qg1 mate. By n ow you should hopefully be tired of h earing me warn you about forgetting forci ng moves. If you are, I have succeeded in the most important l esson in this whole book.
Uncertainty Of course,
obtaining a true value of a position is only possible if it is clearly win ning, losing or drawn. There is little to say about these evaluations, since they are absolute. The only question is h ow a player should react when realizing a position h as such a value. For the player with the wi nning position, or for the player content with a clear draw, the most important thing is to not allow any surpri ses. This is accomplished through great accuracy and by not allowing any counterplay. For the player with the losing position, or for the player needing or seriously want ing more than a draw, the most important thing is in stead to create dynamism, imbalances and counterplay, to complicate the position and to set cunning traps. But in most positions, we can only estimate the true value of the position. Some times we can be confident this estimate is as close to the true value as we need to serve our purpose, but sometimes, even after extensive calculation and thorough analysis of the imbalances, we are at a loss. Even then, often we don't really need to know the true value, but only the mini mum and m aximum possible values. For example, if a candidate has a minimum 1 79
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possible value greater than the maximum possible value of another candidate, it is still clear the first candidate is preferable. Example 201 (B) Black's situation is serious. Both 1 ... Bc8 2 QhS+ Kd8 3 Qf7 Re8 4 Qxf6+ a n d 1 ... Rxgs 2 Qe6+ B e 7 3 Qd7+ Kf8 4 Rfl+ Kg7 5 Qxe7+ a re clea rly losin g. Black's best chance is the blow 1 ... Rxc2+ which still m ight lose, but might a lso save the ga me after 2 Kxc2 Qa4+ fol lowed by ... Rxgs, since now d7 is pro tected . Black does not need to know whether this move is enough for equal ity, since all other moves lose. The defence was not enough: 3 Kd2 Rxgs 4 Qe6+ Be7 s Nc3 Qc6 6 N d s Rg7 7 Nxe7 Rxe7 8 Qg8 mate. Minimum possible value is usually the value a candidate h as in a worst-case sce n ario, which is usually the resulting value should your combination, attackor other plan fail. Maximum possible value is usually the potential value a candidate has if everything works out. Example 202 (B) At first Black thinks he has to play 1 ... N b6, b ut then h e sta rts to exa mine 1...Ncs 2 Bxcs Bxcs 3 Rxcs a n d the pos sibility of a double attack by 3 ...Qf6. Clearly, the m i n i m u m value (the worst case scen ario) is that Black loses a piece, whereas the maxim u m val ue is to win the exchange if the double attack holds. It turns o ut that 3 ...Qf6 wins after 4 Rbl (or 4 Khl Qxa l+) 4...Qg6+ 5 Kf2 Qg2+ 6 Kel Qhl+ 7 Ke2 Ng4+ 8 Res Qg2+ 9 Kdl Nxes. 180
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A really difficult situation occurs when the minimum value is clearly l ess than that of other candidates, but the m aximum value is also considerably higher. This is the case with most intuitive sacrifices, but is also not uncommon in m any other, usually highly dynamic, situations. Some players rely heavily on intuition to evaluate candidates like this, but usually the candidate is chosen after careful consideration of the risk involved, how big the potential gain is, and how badly the player wants or needs the outcome. Example
203 (W)
V.Ana nd-V.Bologan, New Del h i /Tehera n 2000 With h is passed pawn and aggressive play on the q ueenside, Black seem s to h ave a sma l l edge. To wrest the in itiative, Wh ite played 1 Nf6, the true va l ue of which is hard to see. The m i n i m u m va l u e is rea lized if the piece sacrifice turns out to be fa u lty, but the maxi m u m va l ue is very h igh, with an attack crashing through. Black wisely t urned down the sacrifice, si nce 1 .gxf6 2 gxf6 h6 3 Ne6 would have won for W hite (3 .. .fxe6 4 f7). ..
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Pl a n n in g We h ave already stated that you need some form of plan to direct your moves. The reason for this is that a move should make sense not only by itself, but also to gether with the moves before and after. Your moves will become much stronger if they have a common purpose and a common direction. One might argue that if you look several moves ahead and select the move l eading to the most promising position, the moves of that variation do work together to reach that position and can therefore be called a plan. This is absolutely correct and is in fact the reason the silicon m onsters nowadays can outplay us all without h aving much of a formalized plan. But the human mind fin ds it difficult to look at too m any alternatives, and to prune the myriads of variations we need something to direct our choices towards a g oal. Of course it is important to know why you select a move and that reason is part of at least a simplified plan. If you capture a piece to win material, the plan, or rather the objective, is to win m aterial, and if you m obilize your pieces to their best squares, your plan might be development and board control. You just haven't put the plan into words. This subconscious planning is the reason for including the imbalances and their treatment in the knowledge section of this book, and why it is so important to know the overall plans of your openings and the common plans in their variations. This way, simple plans become an integral part of your selection. But knowledge only takes you so far. You need to be able to formulate a plan of your own and that plan has to meet the demands of the position. Planning is especially important in the endgame, since it is almost impossible to play it well without constantly following a plan. This is because tactics play a lesser role in endgames, and because m ost m anoeuvres take several m oves to exe cute. It is crucial to realize that since a plan needs to meet the demands of the position, it has to change whenever the position demands a change. For this very reason, it is common in contemporary chess to have quite short plans, constantly evolving depending on the opponent's choices. 1 82
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There i s a reason why so many grandmaster examples of l ong-term plans are from many years ago. Nowadays opponents are much less l ikely to allow you to follow a plan through unopposed, and therefore you will most probably have to change it or amend it at some point. Creating a full plan n orm ally involves the following steps:
Analysis To meet the demands of the position, you n eed to understand the position. The first step of planning is to analyse the specifics of the position. Especially impor tant in this analysis is the understanding of imbalances. You need to recognize and identify which imbalances are present and h ow promi nent they are in the position. Knowing your imbalances also gives you a hint of how they should be treated to work in your favour. For example, a backward pawn can be fixed and the square in front of it can be used as an outpost. If the pawn i s o n a h alf-open file, i t is also vulnerable to a heavy piece build-up on the file.
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Example 204 (W) Black has sacrificed a pawn to ope n up l i nes towards the white king, leaving White with a passed pawn on the a-file. The most i mportant i m balances a re the potentia l attack along the open lines and the long-term potentia l of the passed pawn.
The goal of your analysis is to decide which imbalances are the dominating ones. They usually coincide with the greatest weaknesses in the enemy camp, or in your own camp if you are on the defence.
Synthesis From the dominating imbalances you then synthesize your objective, so that you can direct your forces towards a common purpose. If the dominating imbalance is the weakness of a backward pawn, your objective might be to attack and win the pawn, or it might be to control and occupy the weak square in front of it. Continuing Example 204, White decided the objective was to simplify into an end g ame, where the attack is negligible and the passed pawn is a winning advantage.
Formu l ation It is only when you h ave a clear objective that you can start formulating an actual plan to achieve it. The formulation of a plan ideally starts by imagining the posi tion you would like to achieve. This position is the final position where you have or are just about to realize your objective.
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Example 205 Conti n u i ng from Exa mple 204, White i magines h i s idea l position, where the queens are exchanged, the wea k c6square occu pied, a nd the a-pawn ca n not be stopped u ntil i t is d e e p i nto the enemy cam p.
Once you know the position you would like to achieve, you should look at what moves can make it come true. At this point it is not too im portant to figure out in what order to play the moves, or which moves the opponent will play durin g that time. Of course, obvious opponent moves like recaptures would have to be taken into account.
Example 206 Continu i ng from Exa mple 205, to reach the ideal position W hite first needs to exchange queens. The s i m plest way to offer the exchange is by Q(d2)-d3-bS. If Black avoids the excha nge, the wh ite queen wi ll i n stead become a power house on the qu eenside. Once the queens are excha nged, the moves Nb5-a7-c6 would form pa rt of the plan, as wou l d Kc2, Ral a n d a4.
Verification In the same way you have to verify a selected m ove duri ng move selection, your formulated plan needs to be verified for soundness. This means you h ave to look for ways your opponent can stop its implementation. It doesn't matter whether h e can stop it by passive defence, by counter-attacking or by tactical means. But in th e same way you don't give up on a move durin g move verification with out trying to improve on the variations, you should not give up on your formu lated plan without first asking yourself whether there is a way to improve it. 1 85
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Example 207 Conti nuing from Exa m ple 206, it be comes apparent that White's plan to exchange the q ueens without delay can be met by ... Rxa2 once the knight on c3 recaptures the q ueen on bs. But White does not want to give Black too many chances of ruining the plan by ... Ras or ...Qb4 followed by ... Rfb8. Looking at the position after ... Rxa2, White can switch h is objective to domi nating the queen side and pressuring the wea k pawn on c7. It is obvious that Black will have problems after Nec3, Kc2 a nd Ral. It is important to realize the difference between plan verification and move verifi cation. The verification of a formulated plan is primarily about looking for ways for your opponent to prove that your plan is unsound, whereas move verification is primarily about l ooking for tactical refutations or surprisin g replies from the opponent.
Real ization When your plan has been successfully verified, it is ready for realization. While planning is primarily done during the move preparation (the Prepare step), the actual realization is done as part of the move selection and move verification processes. The formulated plan and the plan verification is vital input to this process, simply suggesting moves that should be part of selection and verification. Realization is all about proving the viability of the chosen plan by calculating concrete varia tions and visualizing concrete end positions.
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Example 208 (W) Wh ite's obvious main ca nd idate is 1 Qd3, with the m a i n va riation 1 ... Nhf6 2 Qbs Qxbs 3 Nxbs Rxa2 4 Nec3 Ra1+ s Kc2 Rxd1 6 Rxd 1 Rc8 7 Ra1, a n d it is clear that White is domi nating the posi tion. An a lternative cand idate, protecting the a-pawn, is 1 Kb1, but this gives Black the opportu n ity 1...Qb4 2 Qd3 Rfb8. After 1 Qd 3, 1 ... Qb4 ca n sti l l be an swered by 2 Qbs. Black cou l d avoid the exchange by 1... Ras, but after 2 Qc4 the white q ueen enters the battlefield with fo rce, creating possibilities like b4 a n d Qc6. W hite chose 1 Qd 3.
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C reativity I was first uncertain whether I should include creativity as a central skill, especially since I am convinced the closely related concept of intuition is mainly just subcon scious knowledge. But creativity definitely plays an important part in chess, and there are plenty of examples of creative ideas that would be very hard indeed, if not impossible, to come up with by just using rational thinking and conscious or subconscious knowledge. That said, if intuition can be acquired from experience and knowledge, pure crea tivity is much h arder to define and also to acquire or train. I can only urge you to always keep an open mind and to actively try to create new and unique patterns in your play. I do think creativity can be acquired, but only by active choice, and only by breaking free from accepted rules and stereotyped patterns. There are many ways of increasing your creativity and your lateral thinking out side of chess. Numerous books and training courses are available on the subject, usually concentrating either on business or personal development. Acquiring a creative attitude and thinking outside of the box will help you in all areas where creativity is essential, and chess is no exception. There should be a balance between using the patterns in your knowledge base to build up your understanding on one side, and breaking away from stereotypes and having a completely open mind towards new ideas on the other. We must not forget the extremely important part that pattern recognition plays in chess, and throwing it away for the sake of an open mind will more often than not prove dis astrous. Creativity in chess can take many forms. The most obvious creativity is when you suddenly and for no obvious reason start looking at a candidate move that you or most people would immediately dismiss as bad. Of course, by scanning all moves during the selection, you would see the move, but you would normally not look any further.
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Example 209 (B) V.Topal ov-A.Shi rov, Linares 1988 Afte r a n a lysing the position for a long time, Black rea lized that a l l norma l con tin uations lead to a d raw, since the wh ite king reaches e3, for exa m pl e 1 . Be4 2 g 3 Kfs 3 Kf2. ..
He contin ued with the truly rema rka ble 1 B h 3 ! a n d after 2 gxh3 (2 Kf2 Kfs 3 Ke3 Bxg2 is no better) 2 ... KfS 3 Kf2 Ke4, the black k i n g was sudd e n ly i n a posi tion to help the pawns in their pursuit fo r promotion. . . .
The ga me ended 4 Bxf6 d4 5 Be7 Kd3 6 Bes Kc4 7 Be7 Kb3 and Wh ite resigned. This kind of creativity is usually triggered by a hidden and subconscious p attern, or by a creative idea of an unusual plan or combination. It is only n atural th at creativity is n ot only close to intuition, but also the sort of rule in dependence some theorists and authors describe i n modem chess. The ba sic idea is th at yes, patterns and rules are good suggestions to you during selec tion, but never l et them rule you. Your best move or plan might very well seem to contradict some of them. Al ways be open to ideas that seem suspicious or even bad at first sight. S o let your open mind inspire you to look at unusual ideas and moves, but always let calculation be the final judge of your creativity. Or if the position is too com plex to calculate, let your intuition guide you. Creativity will take your play to new levels, but without thorough analysis of its consequences, it serves you badly.
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There are ultimately only two ways to lose a game (if we don't count tournament rules like losing if your m obile phone rings). The obvious way is the whole purpose of the g ame. If we are checkmated, or if we resign because we see no way of avoid ing checkmate, the game is lost. But the second way is just as much a part of modem chess. In all competitive chess you h ave only a certain amount of time in which you have to m ake your moves; either a time for the whole game or for a certain number of moves, or a com bina tion of both. If you run out of time you lose. This rule is perfectly clear to us at the start of the game and so we should take it just as seriously as what is h appening on the board. There are still many players n ot really taking this in, blaming their loss on lack of time and their bad moves on time pressure. But lack of time is never an excuse, just an explanation like any other explanation for bad move choice. It is absolutely crucial you learn how to h an dle your time. And make no mistake, this is obviously a hard discipline. There are countless examples of grandmasters losing in time trouble because they spent too much time earlier in the game. Play ers that really should know better.
Distribution Some players argue that it is more important to spend time early in the g ame, be cause later on it might be too late. If you get a bad start, time will not be enough to save you. While this is'true, the argument suffers from the same logic as the amateur telling you that the opening is so much more important than the end game. The truth is that, as important as it is to h ave knowledge of all phases of the game, it's just as important to distribute your time among all the moves you h ave to make. First of all, you need to know h ow much time you h ave for the number of moves you know you'll n eed to make (or at least think you'll need to make). This will al low you to calculate the average time you have for each move. This is of course
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important information, since at l east you'll know if you are spending more than the average time on a move, or even if you pl ay too rapidly. For example, if the time limit is 40 moves in two hours it means you have three minutes per move. Alternatively, if you h ave S minutes for the whole g ame, you can start out by planning for the game to be a certain number of moves, like 40, and conclude you h ave about seven seconds per move. Don't misunderstand me, you should n ot try to spend the same amount of time on every move, but you should keep a close eye on how your average time is track ing. If you know your opening theory, you will also realize that your first s-10 moves (or possibly even more) will take you almost no time, so your avail able average time can be increased. So in our example with 40 moves per two hours, in reality you might have a whole two hours for 30 moves, or four minutes per move. Of course there is no reason or need to spend more time than n ecessary on each move, so forced or natural moves, such as recaptures, should not take much tim e. That said, if you h ave a reasonable average time per move, you should always try to complete the whole thinking process circle every move, possibly with the excep tion of the Prepare step, which inherently looks at more than one m ove at a time. And do not just blindly accept moves you think are forced or natural. Forced moves an d calculations have to be rechecked every single move. In blitz chess you really don't h ave tim e for m uch of anything, but even in rapid- . play you should always look at threats and forcing moves for both sides. If during your game you find your average time remaining per move decreases too much compared to your initial plan, you should start to get a sense of urgency, not by skipping thinking steps, but m aybe by avoiding too m uch complication. Re member, later moves are usually just as important as earlier ones and deserve as much attention and effort from you. You'll have a perfect distribution of time if you make the known opening m oves immediately, forced and n atural m oves reasonably quickly, and average moves in an average amount of time. In this way you'll h ave sufficient time l eft over for the few critical moments in your game. Some points in the g am e are potential turning points and demand more time. But even then, if you fin d yourself spending more than maybe five times the average time on one single move, ask yourself whether you are doing the right thing.
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When Time is Ru n n i ng Out S ometimes time does run out, whether it's due to spending too much time on ear lier moves or for other reasons. If you find you have just half your original average time left per move, start being pragmatic and h ave a slight bias towards low cal culation candidates, especially if their value seems close to the more complex candidates. Do not stop performing Update, S elect, Verify and Check and be par ticularly careful not to skip or rush verification. You will regret it, I guarantee you. Of course, once you start moving into an average time comparative to rapid chess, it becomes increasingly important to save time and to be pragmatic, but continue checking threats and forcing moves for both sides. And when you have less than half a minute per move and are close to the blitz chess average, you h ave crossed the line. This is when you have to start trusting your intuition and experience for just about every move. It might not sound too bad, but remember you h ave to be very strong to have such a good intuition, and if your opponent h as more time left he will m ost certainly have the upper hand. You do not want to get into this situation. Intuition is good, but intuition and logic is much better, especially when combined with less stress. An important aspect is what you do about n otation. You should try to continue notating your moves until you get into blitz mode, and even then you usually need some way of recording how many moves you have left to reach the time control. In this case, just mark every m ove you m ake on your scoresheet, and then record the m oves fully when you reach the time control or when the game is finished, which ever comes first. If your opponent has more time than you, obviously you will try to think during his time, and sometimes this works pretty well, but what do you do when you are the one with more time on the clock? I am convinced you play your best when you play according to your usual rhythm. So don't let your opponent's time trouble affect you too much. Use your time as usual and choose your move as you would in any normal situation, possibly with a slight preference for surprising and complicating moves - that is, if you have the time to figure out their consequences. The idea, of course, is that if you present your opponent with a move he did not ex pect, or a move that is so complex it has to chew up his time, and if you have actu ally spent time considering and checking it carefully before he even knew you were going to choose it, then this move could be the final straw in his time trouble. Finally, don't let yourself become stressed because your opponent is making his
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moves quickly. He has to, and you can be sure he is more stressed about it than you, and much more likely to make serious mistakes.
The Big Thi n k You should b e prepared t o spend more time o n certain moves, sometimes even a very long time. The i mportant thing is that you are doing this when you actually have time to spend, and more importantly, that you spend it for the right reasons. The moment to spend more time on a move is when the g ame is at a turning point That i s, when it potentially makes a big difference which move you choose. Some critical moments are easy to identify. If you are evaluating a move that could decide an otherwise equal position, or save a lost position, then it is of course worth every second to figure out its consequences. But don't waste all your time and risk ending up in serious time trouble.
After the Opening It is not hard to realize the importance of taking extra time right after your known opening moves, since at that point you have not established any thinking rhythm . But more importantly, you h ave not built up your understanding o f the position, other than your home preparation that is, since you have not calculated any varia tions, looked at any forcing moves or other candidates or replies, and you h ave not built up any positional understanding. In short, you hav� not done the Update, Select, Verify, Check or Prepare steps at all, just the Execute step. So take a deep breath and do a proper Prepare step, followed by thoroughly going through the other steps. Example 210 (W} Black has just played ... QC7-b6, which takes White out of his known theory. Usi n g h i s general knowledge of this Na jdorf Sicilian, White shou ld now take some extra time to recall the plans and common moves a nd do a proper U p date, Select a n d Verify. White chose 1 Qe3, to avoid h aving to retreat the knight to b3, but the the matic 1 NdS exdS 2 Nc6 (or 1 . Qxd4 2 Bxf6 gxf6 3 BxbS) was a lso possi ble. ..
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Another absolutely crucial moment, when you have to make sure what you are getting yourself into, occurs when you are considering transforming the position into an endgame, often by trading queens. Endgames, as opposed to middle games, follow their own rules and their own pace, and they are more often than not already decided once you enter them. As I've said before, make sure your chances in the endgame are better than in the middlegame before entering into it, or before you let your opponent do so. This is not the time to be lazy. Make a thorough evaluation of the endgame position and calculate as far as you need to make up your mind. Example 211 (B) Black is aggressively placed a n d i s clos ing in on the wh ite king. He has the op portunity to win a pawn by 1 . Rxh3+ 2 gxh 3 Qxf3+. . .
The challenge is that after 3 Qg2+ Qxg2 4 Kxg2, Black has entered an endga me with opposite-coloured bishops a n d only one pawn extra. After ca reful consideration, Black eva lu ated h is chances i n the e ndgame as bet ter and chose 1 ... Rxh 3+. Once you have actually entered the endgame, it is usually also a good idea to sooth your often fiery feelings from the middlegame, and get into a calm and planning rhythm for the endgame. If you can, take some extra time at this point. Transforming Imbala nces
You also have to spend some extra time whenever you are transforming other im balances. This is also quite natural because when transforming an imbalance into something else, you need to establish whether the new imbalance is more valu able to you, taking into consideration any concessions you might h ave to accept.
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Example 212 (B) Black used a lot of time before entering 1 ... Rxf3 2 gxf3 Nxes 3 Qe2 Qf8 4 f4 Ng6. For the exchange, Black got a pawn a nd created weak doubled pawns for White on the half-open f-file.
This is especially important for static imbalances, since they rarely change. So every pawn move and every exchange need to be carefully considered. It is way too common for players not to care much about these two aspects, but the truth is they often lay the foundation for the outcome of the game. Changing a Trend
Have you ever felt the game slowly slipping away from you? This is a common feel ing among stronger players, because when no obvious mistakes are made, small advantages tend to accumulate, creating a trend. The first sign of a bad trend is usually that it becomes hard to find a good move. Once you have realized this, you will most probably also realize that your oppo nent actually has more than one good move to choose from, and that he has at least one natural and good plan. You might even get the sense that his game can virtually play itself. It is crucial you pick up trends like this, and also crucial you are aware of how seri ous the situation is. If you find no way of changing a trend, you will most likely lose the game, even if you sometimes can prolong it substantially. Obviously, the earlier you can identify a negative trend the better. Strong players can sense the danger in a position long before it materializes, a sense gained from experience and helped by suspicion.
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Example 213 (W) A.lvanov-J.Si lman, New York 1991 Black has just played ... Nc6-a 5 a n d has increased his i n itiative over the l ast few moves. White stopped the knight entering c4 by 1 b3, offering the excha nge to turn the tables. After 1 ... Ba6 2 a 3 Bxe2 3 Qxe2 Bxa1 4 Rxa 1 bxa 3 5 Rxa 3, W h ite was out of the woods a n d had the edge. When you identify a negative trend or get that feeling of danger, something needs to change. You need to do whatever you can to break the trend, and you shou1d be wi1ling to spend time finding the means.
Indecisiveness Sad1y, the biggest creator of time troub1e is not the we11 motivated big think, but rather spending too much time making your mind up. Sometimes indecisiveness stems from trying to choose between two candidates. Maybe they both look promising, but you cannot make up your mind about which one you prefer. They might both be forcing or positional, or maybe one is quiet and positional and the other one complicated and tactica1. Whatever the reason fo r spending time making your mind up, once you have done your best to establish the value of each candidate and weighed the risks and po tential gains, just make a decision. You will most probab1y not be any wiser ten minutes later. Do not jum p back and forth between the moves just repeating variations. Remember, if you cannot make up your mind, the candidates are like1y to have approximately the same value. A close relative of this is when you cannot seem to establish an accurate va1ue for a candidate or a variation. Some positions are just too dynamic and comp1ex to be able to evaluate accurately, it doesn't matter if you are human or machine. It's important to realize when this is the case, do your best to establish a va1ue, weigh up risks and potential gains, and 1et your intuition guide you. You real1y don't have much choice, as wasting time in vain definitely wil1 put you in troub1e. Sometimes you are evaluating a promising candidate you rea11y be1ieve in, but 196
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when you calculate the variations, you really cannot m ake it work. After a big think, you finally come to the conclusion that you have to pick another move. Looking at the clock and realizing how much time you have spent, you get stressed and almost panic, since you still don't know what move to make. Many, many mistakes have been made in this situation, because people tend to pick a second m ove that just looks good, without verifyin g it. Accept the fact that whatever move you will choose in the end, it will have to be just as scrutinized as any other. The fact that you spent considerable time on another move does not change this. Remember, spending m ore time on a move you rejected than on the move you selected should be a warning sign. Many people also spend a lot of time because they simply can't find a move they like. Thi s situation is closely related to being unable to find a move that m eets your expectations of the position. But you don't have to find a m ove you like - there might not be one, and your ex pectations might not be correct. Your task is to choose the best move, regardless of whether it meets your expectations or not. Just find that move and execute it.
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How do you prepare in order to be successful in finding your best moves and ulti mately winning your games and doing well in tournaments? How do you obtain the knowledge and the skills you need, and are there more aspects you should cover before you sit down in front of your opponent? I have identified five distinct areas of particular importance:
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The simpl e answer is doing lots and lots of training to build the necessary knowl edge and to practise the necessary skills. But it m atters little h ow much you train if you don't h ave the physical ability to endure a long game or if you h ave the wrong mental mindset. If you cannot think well enough, no knowledge and no skill will be able to save you. And you can prepare yourself even further by knowing your opponent, and also by knowing yourself well enough to be able to learn from your failures. At this point I would like to stress that the recommendations I make in this section are purely based on what has worked best for me and the junior players I have trained, even though some finding s are widely accepted and some even obvious. I advise the reader to try out the recommendations and vary them to suit his own individuality. Find out what works best for you.
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Don't fool yourself. Even if chess is a game of the mind, your physical strength is important. Not that you need a lot of muscles, but you do need to be fit to endure a long game and to be able to stay alert and concentrated for several hours. Remember that many games are decided because one of the players suddenly loses concentration, often several hours into a game. Well, an alert body serves an alert brain. Most of what I will tell you about your physical ability should be a matter of course, but most players need to be reminded nonetheless.
Rest Like with any other creative and logical use of the mind, it is important not to be tired. Make sure you get enough sleep the week before a tourn ament. It is often most efficient to get into a routine, going to bed the same time and ris ing the same time each day, obviously with enough hours in between to give you a decent sleep each night. How much sleep is needed depends on the individual, but don't underestimate the number of hours you need. Some players love to prepare, analyse and even play the same day as a tourna ment game. The downside to this is that the mind concentrates on details and is not saving its power for the game. You should already have prepared everything before the day of the tournament, and you should try to get some distance and rest before the battle. I would even recommend settling down your mind the day before the tourna ment, not pushing too h ard with preparation. The day before it is much more im portant to get into the right mindset than to look at details or play a lot of training games. Again, the hard preparation should already have been done. If possible, take the day off and just relax.
Exercise To be fit for hours of playing chess you need endurance, keeping your thinking on an even level for as long as it is possible. This means you should try to keep your 2 00
Prepa ra tion body healthy and fit. I usually prefer running at least three times a week, but exactly what you do is not important. The important thing is that it builds your fitness and your endurance. Knowing myself, it's even more important to do something you enjoy, since oth erwise the risk of not keeping it up is usually too big. You will get more energy by exercising, and m ore energy will help you stay con centrated longer. These are facts.
Food and Drink When it comes to food and drink, again our aim is to stay evenly concentrated for several hours. This means you are really not after any energy kicks, since they are always short. So try to avoid energy drinks, coffee and sugar, unless you are at the end of the game and are struggling to maintain focus. Of course, a short energy kick is better than no energy, but when the energy kick is over, you usually get more tired than before. You should also not eat too much before the game, or between games if you are playing more than one a day. Food needs breaking down, and the body will con centrate on this task enough to make you tired the following hour or two. That said, concentration needs energy, so of course you need food. You should eat enough to not be hungry during the game, and you might eat something small between two games scheduled on the same day. And again, avoid sugar.
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Your mental ability an d your mindset are crucial for your overall ability to play well and to win. Remember that the very reason you need to be physically fit when playing chess is so the mind can stay focused. If your ability to use that focus disappears, or if you lose your will or your hope, you will most certainly lose.
Goal Visualization First of all you need to believe you are strong enough to win. If you are already among the top ten in the world, or if you for some other unfortunate reason only play people weaker than yourself, this will not be a problem. But if you try to stretch yourself and constantly reach higher, chances are that you will play many stronger opponents, maybe even much stronger than yourself. A mental method used among many top athletes is that of goal visualization. Us ing this method, you clearly and repeatedly visualize reaching your goal, for ex ample winning the tournament. Try to visualize this as vividly as possible for it to become part of your belief and to affect your mindset. Then continue visualizing pl aying each of your opponents. The more you know them the better, because you can even visualize their weaknesses and how you might beat them. Visualize yourself h aving a rating considerably higher, maybe a rating you think you will be able to reach within a year or two, and visualize how your strength is used to grind down your opponents, one by one, until the end. Repeat this process daily for several days or even weeks before the tournament.
Attitude Once you believe you can beat your opponents, you need to have the right atti tude. First of all, you need to realize that you are as strong as your moves, not stronger, but nor weaker. This means that if you make grandmaster moves, you can beat a grandmaster. But it also mean s that if you make weak moves, if you are shuffling you pieces, or if you are content with finding a good enough move, then you can lose to weak players, regardless of your rating. Don't fall into this trap. It is crucial that you be202
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lieve it does make a difference which m ove you choose. Because it does! Both you and your opponent will get chances to find a move that is clearly the strongest in the position, yet is hard to find. There is no one to tell you when you have to look for such a move, and m ore often than not it will be in a position where you least expect it. The conclusion is that you always have to try finding that best m ove. Always! It is the only way to excel. You should always believe it is possible to win, even against a strong opponent. The goal visualization is an important preparation for this, but when you are sit ting at the board, your attitude should be to win. S ome players convince themselves a bit too much, feeling almost invincible. This is naturally most common against weaker opponents. The effect is that they start believing the game will play itself because they are so strong. But again, you are only as strong as the moves you make. S o if it is important to believe you can win, it is equally important to realize that it will take hard work. You should tell yourself that you will only fin d the right moves if you put in the required discipline and hard work. You have to do your Update, your S elect and your Verify, and you have to do your calculation and your plan ning when needed. There is no easy way to excel. And since your attitude should be to win, you should be prepared to take well informed risks. Well-informed is the key, because it is easy to take risks, but most risk-taking will only get you into trouble. And you want to win, not to lose. A well-informed risk is a risk where you h ave done your hard work of calculation and evaluation, and weighed up the possible gains against the risk, and still think the move has good prospects. Such a risk, even if it might feel scary to leave the comfort of an even position, ac tually should make you feel more secure, because there is nothing in an even posi tion saying that you will not lose if you avoid risks. Be brave, but never foolish! Another virtue in chess is patience, which seems almost contradictory to what we said about taking risks. But there are many situations where taking a risk is un necessary, like when you already h ave a winning positional advantage, or when patient defence will wear down the attacker. Taking a risk in these situations would be misguided. Never panic! Never take a risk without seeing potential gains greater than the al ternatives. Be patient. Your tum will come. Always believe you will get another chance if you are defending. But you have to look for it, otherwise you will likely miss it, and you might only get one chance.
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Training Training i s all about building your knowledge and strengthening your skills. Armed with a solid knowledge, your mind will consciously or subconsciously lead you to good possible candidates and ideas, whether tactical or strategic, dynamic or static. Your skills will then take you the rest of the way, by using what your knowledge has suggested. Your skills will enable you to fill in and figure out what your knowledge alone couldn't, evaluating variations and plans and reaching complex conclusions. Governing all your skills is the thinking process, outlined in the beginning of this book. Of course, the thinking process in itself can be seen as a skill, the skill of how to combin e the other skills, but we will treat it separately. So to master chess, we need to master the art of selecting moves, and to select moves we need to master all the areas in both knowledge and skills. They are all crucial to your success, so I recommend you treat them as all equally important. But how do we train our knowledge and our skills? Well, I am sure you have heard the expression telling us that repetition is the mother oflearning. This is definitely true for knowledge, since the human brain seems to make less used knowledge fade away. And for skills, I think we can all agree practice is one of the main ingre dients. The conclusion is that you have to build your ability on repetition and practice. And for it to be effective and to help you not to slip, establish a training schedule and keep track of your training. If you are ambitious, you should have an ongoing training schedule, which you increase substantially the weeks before an important tournament. Of course you should also take leave from your training, but don't let it slip. Apart from explicit repetition and practice, it is also important to play a lot of games, both blitz games and long games. By doing so, you gain all the experience you would otherwise only get from your preferred tournaments. You will evaluate, calculate, plan and play so many more positions, and you will have the freedom to explore and to try out things you might not have done in an important tournament.
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Prep a ra tion Playing blitz chess lets you experience many more positions than you could oth erwise, and you can train your pattern recog nition and your ability to h andle time pressure. On the other hand, you need much more time to train your calcul ation, planning and thinking process, which is what you get in l onger g ames. So don't overestim ate the value of either fo rm compared to the other. Play both. You should also be careful not to overestimate the value of playing games com pared to performing other training. Some players think the more they play, the better they will become. But this is usually only true up to a certain level. Most players not also doing substantial and focused training stagnate and get stuck in the same patterns and the same old way of thinking. To move on, some thing needs to change, and if you have repeated less optimal patterns for too long, you might find it hard to get rid of them.
Process The best way of training the thin king process is to start out by playing games where you have a lot of time for each move. Playing correspondence chess on the Internet is a good example. What you do is you explicitly make yourself perform all parts of the thinking process described in this book for every single move, re gardless of whether you think it is a waste of time. The idea is of course for you to cement the whole process, so that after some time you don't have to look it up or even try to remember the steps - you just know. And once you get to that stage, you will find it actually doesn't take so much time to be disciplined. Of course, since your goal probably is to perform well in over-the-board play, you should try not to move any pieces around. And by the way, you might find that you still lose quite a few games to the correspondence enthusiasts. But don't de spair, because your goal is not to play good correspondence chess. Correspon dence is very different from over-the-board play. Once you have grasped the thinking process well enough, you should start playing non-correspondence games. The Internet is still a good choice, but you should limit your time to what you would have in a real game.
Knowledge Opening
Knowing your opening is about knowing the underlying principles, the most 2 05
Your B e s t M o ve common plans and tactics, but also all the main variations. There is nothing like thoroughly understanding an opening. It is also extremely time and effort saving to know the main variations by heart. First of all, you must decide on which openings you want to learn. Once you have done this, read and study books specializing in them. And when reading them, make a special effort to identify and remember the main themes, plans and tac tics, especially in the variation s you think you will use. Make sure you play through plenty of grandmaster games featuring the critical lines of your chosen openings, noticing the common moves, the ideas behind them and their order. Also note the typical endgames resulting from the openings, so you can build specific technical knowledge around them. Then build a detailed repertoire with all the variation s you think are worth re membering. We have already discussed the size and detail of such a repertoire. Just remember that you want it to be both broad and deep - broad and shallow enough to cover just about any opening you might encounter, and deep enough to get you going far into the middlegame when playing the main lines. Once you have built your repertoire, start remembering it by plain and simple repetition. It is a big job, and you will find it mundane, but once you have re hearsed it many times and realize you actually remember all the lines, you will have a foundation to l ast you for years. Repeat this training now and then, especially before tournaments. But also re member to keep watch for important new findings, either by subscribing to chess magazines on the subject or by continuously checking the lines played by the top grandmasters. If they play your variations, you can expect more of your own op ponents to follow suit, so watch out for novelties. Endgame
Apart from the generic principles described earlier, knowing endgames is mainly about knowing the common theoretical endgames. There are some endgames all chess players have to know, many more very useful ones, and plenty of rare and not-so-useful ones. If you don't already know the basic endgames, make it a priority to learn and re hearse them until you never forget them. Then make up a list of all endgames you think would benefit you, and don't make it a short list. The list should h ave a large amount of pawn endgames and rook endgames: pawn endgames to give you a foundation for quickly assessing potential pawn end206
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games i n your calculations, and rook endgames simply because they are the most common endgames. Repeat these endgames now and then, especially before tournaments. As part of both your knowledge building ar.id your skill practice, to train your technical ability and your ability to calculate and plan in endgames, select train ing positions from books on the subject and analyse them. Also take every opportunity to play endgames, even if they at first sight look dull or dead drawn. You will find not nearly as many of them will end in a draw as you might think.
I m balances To train imbalances, first of all understand and learn to recognize them and the generic ways to h an dle them, as described earlier. Then select a large number of positional example positions from books on the subject or from other media. Analyse the imbalances and try to understand how they are created and sustained, and how to increase their value and how to neu tralize them. This training can be combined with practising planning, since the two are closely linked.
Combinations The knowledge of combinations is the knowledge and recollection of thousands of common combinations, not necessarily complex ones. In fact, the complex ones are usually less common and therefore not as important, even if at first one might think they would be even better to know. Also realize that even though solving combinations we have never seen before is good skill practice, it does not necessarily mean they build much knowledge, since you do not repeat them. As mentioned earlier, to build your knowledge of combinations, you should select thousands of easy and medium combinations, and repeat them again and again. You can, for example, start with about 1000 combinations, either from one of the many books filled with combinations, or using digital training media. It is actually not that easy to find the right level of complexity, since the combina tions should not be hard enough to be useless knowledge, nor easy enough to be trivial.
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Yo u r Best M o ve Once you have selected the first batch of positions to solve, start out by solving them, one by one. If you solve all of them, they are too easy, but if you have a hard time solving more than half of them, they are probably a bit too hard to be opti mal. Give each position some time to understand and figure out, but when you get stuck, look at the solution, take a short pause trying to remember it, and move on to the next. It is often effective to repeat them say ten by ten, so when you have looked at ten positions and tried remembering them, you return to the first one and check that you actually did learn something before you continue with the next ten. This way you continue until you have looked at all the positions and tried solving and remembering them. It is up to you how long you take for this. It depends on how much time you are willing to spend and how ambitions you are. Just remem _ ber that this knowledge base, the combinations, is probably the most important knowledge you will build. When you h ave reached the end, start all over again. This time, spend less time on each position, but also be harder on yourself with the solutions you cannot re member. Make a special effort to remember them. And when you are finished, you start again. Repeat the process, using less and less time, until you feel confident about remembering most if not all of the combina tions. Then select 1000 new ones and start again. If you have very high ambitions, you should keep on doing this for your whole career, or at least until you feel it really does not give you anything new anymore. Attack
To gain knowledge of attack, play through explicit attacking games, notice the patterns and the means of gaining and sustaining the initiative, and try to under stand the impact of the selected moves. There are books dedicated to the subject, containing not only the actual games but of course also explanations to ease your learning. To further increase you knowledge and experience in attacking, play explicitly ag gressive training games, where if possible you concentrate on attack, and where you take more risks than you might h ave done in an important tournament. This is one area where blitz or rapid chess can be very efficient in trying out different attacks and quickly building experience.
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Skills Calculation
To be able to calculate at all, you need to be able to visualize the positions in the vari ations. To practise your visualization, there is nothing better than playing blindfold chess. At first it might not seem to give you much, but the more you do it, the more clearly you will see the positions in your mind, not only in the blindfold g ames, but al so when you calcul ate variations in a n ormal g ame. Another effective way to train calculation is to select complex positions (or even complex studies, even though they tend to be less practical), and start calculating the relevant variations. There are several books and digital resources filled with training positions, but you can also just select interesting grandmaster games, play through the game up to some critical point, and start from there. When you calculate, make a special effort to practise successive deepening and effi cient pruning. Make it a priority to know you have a sense of all possible candidates, both for yourself and your opponent, and try hard not to calculate many unneces sary variations. Remember, strong players don't calculate more variations, they cal culate the most important variations, which is of course easier said than done. As soon as you h ave a major branching a few moves forward, also make an effort to visualize the position clearly, an d try n ot to return to the original position when you start calculating another branch. The thin king process tells you of two different calculations: one for selection and one for verification. The selection is when you look primarily at your own candi dates and try to m ake out which one you think is the strongest. You can look at this step as the first scans of successive deepening, and as building the main branches of the tree. You fill in details in the tree until you think you know which move to select. Concentrating on the opponent's possibilities, the verification then fills in all the details needed to prove th at the candidate you think is the strongest actually h as the value you expected, and that no n asty surprises wait around the corner. There is an interesting calculation training mode in the chess program Fritz, where you can make your moves without actually changing the diagram. When you are finished with your calculation, Fritz can then evaluate your effort. I highly recommend this way of training, whether you use Fritz or another program you know has this capacity.
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You r Bes t M o ve You should of course also train your calculation by just playing games. Correspon dence games are fine, just as long as you calculate without moving the pieces. Of course, once you have finished, you can check your visualization by moving them. Evaluation
Evaluation is so tightly tied to imbalances and planning that you would practise them together. When you plan, you identify the imbalances, analyse them, and evaluate their value in relationship to each other. You then identify your objec tives and form and verify a plan. If the plan works out, including possible tactical variations, your evaluation of the imbal ances and the position becomes complete. You have come closer to the true value of the position at hand. Planning
To practise planning you should have plenty of time at your disposal, at least ini tially. You need the time to properly analyse and synthesize the imbalances, and to formulate and verify a plan to reach the objective. Again, correspondence games on the Internet are a good way to practise. Be sure to go through all the steps of planning to cement the process and to make good decisions. But remember that planning is only the Prepare step of the thinking process. Even if it makes your move selection and even your move verification easier, you still need to also go through all other steps in the thinking process. Time
Practising time management is probably best achieved by playing games with the same or slightly less amount of time as you would normally have in a tournament. If you choose this method, be sure to note exactly how you use your time and try identifying potential issues in your handling. Another way to focus on choosing a move within a certain time is to select compli cated positions and give yourself a limited amount of time to choose a move. Since the positions are complicated, you should not give yourself too little time. Somewhere between 5 and 15 minutes is probably reasonable. There is nothing like playing blitz chess to practise your handling of time pressure. Play a lot of blitz chess, even if your only goal is to become a stronger player in games with more time. It will make your play stronger. 210
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W e h ave all heard the expression "know your enemy", which is central t o all war fare. It is quite n atural, since knowing your opponent will put you in a better posi tion to foresee his actions and to use his weaknesses for your own benefit. Chess is no exception.
Opening In modern chess, opening preparation is paramount for world-cl ass players, and you constantly see grandmasters trying to out-prepare each other by preparing strong n ovelties in the opening variations most likely to occur in their games. One might think it is a bit sad that even a weaker player can sometimes out prepare a grandmaster by using powerful chess programs to find surprising nov elties, but whether you like it or not, this is an important part of modern chess at higher levels. This means you should try to find out who your opponents are likely to be before a tournament, and then try to find out which openings they prefer, and which variations. Then compare this to your own opening repertoire and decide whether the varia tions in your repertoire will be sufficient, or whether you want to add new ones now that you know the likelihood of them materializing h as increased. Be sure to learn these variations and rehearse the ideas and plans for the opening. It is also worth mentioning that if you already happen to have a bad track record in these variations, or if you think your opponent knows you well enough to have prepared heavily too, you might want to consider switching to another opening. But if you do, be very careful not to fool yourself. You should still make sure you know the opening well and that the opening suits your style.
Style Even more important than your opponent's opening preference is his styl e. How does he usually win? Is he primarily positional or tactical, does he like open or closed positions, middlegame or endgame, bishops or knights?
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Yo u r Best M o ve Whatever you find out from your opponent's games, compare it to your own style and try to figure out whom the clash between your styles will probably favour, and what you might do to take advantage of it.
Strengths and Wea knesses Very closely linked to the style are the strengths and weaknesses of your oppo nent, basically because most of us either have a style making us strong or let our style become a product of our strengths. This is natural and it is even the best way to utilize your strengths. So when you try to get to know your opponent's style, also look out for his strengths and his weaknesses. Does he tend to miss tactical opportunities, or mis calculate, or is he weak at planning or at endgame theory? Or is he a formidable attacker, razor-sharp calculator or tactical genius? Again, once you find them, try to steer clear of his strengths and try to reach posi tion s in which he is more prone to make mistakes. Of course, equally important is that you don't end up in a position where you al so are weak. But even then, if you know you are likely to enter positions in which both players are less strong, at least you have the possibility to prepare and h opefully strengthen yourself.
Rating If the relative strength between you and your opponent is substantial, you might also play differently depending on your opponent's rating. When you face a player that is normally much weaker than yourself, the most im portant thing is not to make any significant mistakes. The verification becomes more important than the selection. The reason is simply that when neither of you make any mistakes, your average ability to choose stronger moves than your op ponent will most probably decide the matter in the end. But be patient, very patient. Your opponent is likely to get frustrated and to make mistakes you can start working on . On the other hand, if you play a stronger player, unless he has a bad day some thing out of the ordin ary has to happen for you to win. So you need to increase the likelihood of your opponent going wrong. To do this, you need to complicate the position and be prepared to take more risks than you would normally do. This might at first seem like the very opposite of what you would expect. Wouldn't a stronger player be better equipped to face complicated positions? Yes, abso lutely, that is why he is stronger than you, but it is still your best shot. The human 212
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mind needs to b e reminded that a n even, uncomplicated position does not mean you are more likely to avoid losing in the long run.
Psychology Some players try to intentionally stress their opponents or m ake them feel uncom fortable. I will not recommend this, since I see it as bad sportsmanship and since it is against the rules of chess. That said, of course you should m ake a strong and controlled impression on your opponent. If he feels weaker because you appear strong, that is his problem. If h e feels weaker because you actively m ake h i m feel bad, it is your problem, and you should stop. It is quite common for players to m ake their moves in such a way that their oppo nent thinks they are strong. For example, they might m ake the moves fo rcefully, full of confidence, and by doing that they try to affect their opponent's im pression of them. I don't know about you, but personally I think the h ardest opponent is the one making every move in a controlled and consistent way, always looking like he knows exactly wh at he is doing, and n ever ever letting on if he is stressed or ex cited. If there is anything that can make you unsure of your own ability, it is facing someone who never sways. Just pl ay your game, h ave faith in your abilities and your possibilities. Be in con trol, know what you are doing and don't show your opponent if you are distressed. If possible, show great concentration and radiate will and ambition. This is how you scare the wits out of your opponent.
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Fa ilure , Of course, knowing your opponent is not enough. You have to also know yourself. Hopefully, we all know ourselves better than we know our opponents, but we can all improve substantially by analysing ourselves and what happens to us. Many rising players concentrate on their strengths, sometimes subconsciously since we all tend to repeat earlier successes. It is important to know our strengths, and yes, we indeed have the greatest chance of success if we can use our strengths, but it is also important to realize that you don't learn much from study ing what you did right. By doing that, you simply look at what you've already found at least once and are therefore likely to find again. Nothing learned. Instead it is natural that we learn the most from looking at our mistakes and our failures. Some players avoid this, not only because it is not as fun, but because it can even be painful to bring back the memory of a loss in a crucial game. Never theless, this is exactly what we all have to do. Failure can take many form s, but you learn from all of them by asking yourself why you failed, and then trying to figure out how this failure could have been avoided. If the answer i s a lack of skill or knowledge or even process in a certain area, you need to find a way to improve, usually by training.
Calcu lation The most obvious failure is making a mistake in the calculation. This happens most often because you missed or underestimated a reply from your opponent, more often than not a surprising forcing move a few moves deep. It is important to identify the missed move, to ask yourself whether you missed it because of lack of discipline or because you have a tendency of missing this kind of move. It is usually a good idea to collect these positions and m ake them part of your combination training. If you rehearse them often enough, you will not fall victim again. The very same is true for the winning or saving moves you missed in your selec tion, again most possibly forcing moves. Identify them and m ake them part of your training.
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Of course, miscalculation is n ot always about missing m oves for you o r your op ponent. The skill of calculation has m any facets, and failure can also come from b ad visualization or n ot looking deep enough. In these cases, it is n ot the move but the skill that is flawed, and you might consider ramping up your blindfold chess or your other calculation training.
Planning Even though tactics is king, you don't always lose because you missed a move and miscalculated. The stronger you become, the m ore important strategy and posi tional play will become, and it is important you evaluate the position correctly and formulate your plans accordingly. This kind of failure is often the result of overestimating your own possibilities and your own plan compared to your opponent's. Even worse, it might even b e be cause you didn't even try to identify your opponent's possibilities and how they might affect your plan. Again, you need to identify why you failed. Did you look at your opponent's possi bilities? Did you overestimate your own? Was there a better plan you could have chosen, or should you even have avoided your very opening choice? Once you think you know what you could have done better, m ake sure the pat terns stick in your mind to b e used the next time you play a similar position. A special case of this kind of failure is when an attack fails. Then you need to ask yourself whether the attack was premature or even unwise, and what you could have done instead. Or was the attack correct, b ut your opponent's attack crashed through first? This kind of failure is very common and also one of the hardest to identify the cause for. Sometimes the very opening calls for such a race, and time is usually the de ciding factor. You can find yourself in a game where both sides know exactly what to do to at tack, and ten moves l ater, your opponent's attack proves faster or stronger. You might not even understand what you could have done about it. Usually, there is a way to improve the attack, and you should try h ard to find it. But remember, if you feel you could h ave done nothing about it, maybe you are playing the wrong opening.
Time If you find yourself losing because of l ack of time on the clock, you probably need 215
You r Best M o ve to train yourself to be more pragmatic in your move selection, and definitely to be more disciplined in using your time. Do remember that all moves will use some time on the clock. It does not really matter if you think you need to spend a lot of time on a certain move, if you don't save any time for the coming moves. Some people fail because they don't use their time, either because they think they don't need it or because they are fooled into playing too quickly by their opponent. This kind of failure is a sign of bad discipline. You should know exactly what you need to do to reach a conclusion every time it is your tum, and whatever time you need to do that is probably the right amount to spend.
Attitude More often than you might think, failures are a result of a player's attitude. Most commonly, this happens when having strong expectations of a position. Endless numbers of players have found their won position ending in a draw because they thought the game would win itself, or lost a position because they thought it was a dead draw. There are even many examples of players who have resigned in a drawn or even won position. If this is the case for you, tum it all around and discipline yourself to play until the end, and to always m ake your opponent prove he has a win or a draw. It is just a matter of attitude. Never think an even position means the g ame is drawn. Never accept a draw in a position you cannot lose, or in a position where you are on top, unless it is really and truly a dead draw. And never resign a difficult position until the winning moves are obvious even for a weak player. Do not assume anything. Another common failure is the tendency to draw too many games. This is not only because you accept draws in even positions, but quite often because you don't create enough imbalances or the correct imbalances to really achieve the means to win. If you are afraid of giving your opponent imbalances to work with, you will usually not get any of your own either. The core of this predicament is usually risk avoidance. You n eed to change your attitude towards taking well-informed risks. You need to change your attitude.
Knowledge Failure can also be the result ofl ack of knowledge. It is common for players to miss wins or draws in theoretical endgames not known to them, and the lack of proper understanding of an opening and the associated plans and mechanisms is also a 216
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common cause of failure. In both these cases you need to i dentify exactly what you didn't know and work out a way to correct it. Also ask yourself whether there are similar kinds of posi tions you should learn to h andle as well, and how big your g ap is in this area. Have you spent too little time looking at theoretical endgames? If so, you might want to set up a whole training plan for improving your endgame knowledge. Don't be afraid of identifying where you h ave your weaknesses. It is by improving your weaknesses you become truly strong. Remember, to win, your opponent n eeds to exploit weaknesses. Don't m ake it easy for him.
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By now I hope I have convinced the reader of the potential gain s of using a disci plined way of move selection, and how such a process heavily relies not only on the necessary skills. such as calculation and planning, but also extensively on hav ing a substantial knowledge base to guide immediate and subconscious decisions and ideas. Chess is not only about experience, knowledge and pattern recognition, nor is it only about brain power, visualization and logical thinking. It is not even about the discipline or the process. To succeed, you need it all, and you have to be driven by a strong will, having great endurance, and knowing yourself as well as your oppo nent. I would like to end by giving the reader some words to think about. If you have listened to all I have been trying to pass on, you will no doubt know what they all mean. Together they embrace the essence of this book Good luck in the quest for your best move! You win games, not tournaments. Play to win. To win, you have to risk losing. An even position does not mean the game will be drawn. Know your opponent. You can beat your opponent, but it will take hard work. No game plays itself. Every game h as to be played until the end. 218
Conclusion
Make your opponent prove himself. It does m atter which move you make. To find, you have to look You might only get one chance to win. It only takes one bad move to lose. Find the best move. Trust your opponent will. To win, you will h ave to find what your opponent doesn't. Look one move further. All forcing moves are potential winning moves. Combinations arise as quickly as they disappear. Treat every position as if a combination is possible. There is luck in chess, but no bad luck Believe the opportunity will come. And don't miss it. Every move has drawbacks. Find them. Never make a move without looking for alternatives. Never make a move without looking at your opponent's replies. Trust calculation and worst case, not wishful thinking. Don't let your plan blind you. Embrace your mistakes or you will repeat them. Never trade a promising attack for a small m aterial gain or an unclear endgame. Never concentrate on winning back sacrificed material . If you h ave time, use it. If you know you have found the best move, m ake it.
You are as strong as the moves you make.
219
Reco m m e n ded Resou rces
Below are some of the resources I can recommend for improving your chess along the lines described in this book. It is by no means complete, and I am sure the reader will be able to find many other resources suited for the purpose.
General Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy, John Chess Strategy inAction, John Excelling at Chess,
Watson (Gambit Publications 1999)
Watson (Gambit Publications 2003)
Jacob Aagaard (Everyman Chess 2002)
Move Selection How to Choose a Chess Move,
Andrew Soltis (Batsford 2005)
The Improving Chess Thinker,
Dan Heisman (Mongoose Press 2009)
Test Your Chess IQ,
Larry Evans (Cardoza 2001)
Multiple Choice Chess,
Graeme Buckley (Everyman Chess 2002)
Multiple Choice Chess II,
Graeme Buckley (Everyman Chess 2003)
Opening The System,
Hans Berliner (Gambit Publications 1999)
Experts vs the Sicilian, Jacob Aagaard, John Understanding the King 's Indian,
Mikhail Golubev (Gambit Publications 2005)
Understanding the Griinfeld, Jonathan
220
Shaw et al (Quality Chess 2006)
Rowson (Gambit Publications 1998)
R e c o m m e n d e d R e s o u rc e s
E ndgame Si/ma n 's Complete Endgame Cou rse,
Jeremy Silman (Siles Press 2007)
Winning Chess Endgames: Just the Facts!, Lev Alburt and Nikolay Krogius (Chess Information and Research Institute 2005 ) Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual, How to Play Chess Endgames,
M ark Dvoretsky (Russell Enterprises 2006)
Karsten Muller and Wolfgang Pajeken (Gambit Publi
cations 2008) The Survival Guide to Rook Endings,
John Emms (Gambit Publications 2008)
Excelling at Techn ical Chess, Jacob Aagaard
(Everyman Chess 2004)
Imbalances and Planning How to Reassess You r Chess, Jeremy
Silman (Siles Press 1997)
The Reassess You r Chess Workbook, Jeremy Silman (Siles
Press 2000)
The Method in Chess,
lossif Dorfman (Cloitre lmprimeurs 2001)
The Critical Moment,
lossif Dorfman (Game Mind 2002)
Test Your Positional Play,
Robert Bellin and Pietro Ponzetto (Batsford 2003)
Combinations Rapid Chess Improvement, Forcing Chess Moves,
Michael de la Maza (Everyman Chess 2002)
Charles Hertan (New in Chess 2008)
Chess Training Pocket Book,
Lev Alburt (Chess Information and Research Center
2000) Chess Training Pocket Book II,
Lev Alburt, Chess Information and Research Center
2008) Winning Chess Tactics for Juniors,
Lou Hays (Hays Publishing 1994)
Manual of Chess Combinations, Volu mes 1A, 1 B a n d 2,
Sergey lvashchenko (Russian
Chess House 2002-2006) Manual of Chess Combinations Volume 3,
Alexander Mazia (Russian Chess House
2003) Attack Art of Attack in Chess, Vladimir Vukovic (Everyman
Chess 1999)
The Attacking Manual: Basic Principles, Jacob Aagaard
(Quality Chess 2008) 221
Yo u r B e s t M o ve The Attacking Manua l 2: Technique a nd Praxis, Essential Chess Sacrifices,
Jacob Aagaard (Qua1ity Chess 2010)
David LeMoir (Gambit Publications 2004)
Calculation Excelling at Chess Calculation, Jacob Aagaard The Inner Game of Chess, Andrew Soltis Inside the Chess Mind, Jacob Aagaard The Grandmaster's Mind,
Fritz 12 (ChessBase) ChessBase 11 (ChessBase) Mega Database 2011 (ChessBase)
222
(Random House Puzzles & Games 1994)
(Everyman Chess 2004)
Amatzia Avni (Gambit Publications 2005)
Computer Resources
CT-ART 4.0 (Convekta)
(Everyman Chess 2004)
"I look one move ahead ... the bestl"
Siegbert Tarrasch
Chess is a wond e rfully ric h a n d complex g a m e , but ultimately the g o a l c a n be simply defined as consistently fin d i n g th e best move. If yo u a re a b l e to do this, you will win you r g a m e s . However, the million d o l l a r qu estion is: how can we give o u rselves the very best c h a n c e of doing so? Per Ostm a n is convinced that there a re three key elements: first and foremost, a structured move-by-move thinking proc ess; second, the desired skills to exec ute this process; and fin a l ly, traditi o n a l c h ess knowledge we c a n b u i l d upon. Ostma n exa mines these three vital b u i l d i n g b l o c ks w h i c h form t h e b a s i s o f what w e n e e d t o master. H e describes in deta il a c l e a r thi n ki n g proc ess he h a s d eveloped over several yea rs as a c h ess tea c h e r - a process to g u ide us in o u r u ltimate search to find the best move. • I m p rove your c h ess by stru ctured move sele ction • N u merous exa mples to i l lustrate c l e a r thinking proc esses • Covers c a l c u lation, planning and atta c king skills
• I n c ludes opening, middlegame a n d e n d g a m e play Per Ostman is a n expe rienced c hess tea c h e r and a n a lyst. H e has trained his son,
Erik, to become o n e of the stro n gest j u n ior p layers in Austra l i a a n d h a s guided
his school to conti n u e d s u c cess at state c h a m p i onships. H e works as a Solutions Architect for M i c rosoft, a n d has a lso d eveloped com puter c h ess programs.
I SBN
9 7 8- 1 -8 5 7 44-660-9
52695
1 1 1 11 11 1 1
9 7 8 1 85 7 446609