Chess Tip Of The Day

In open (endgame) positions the two bishops are murder. In almost all positions two bishops give a tangible advantage. Edmar Mednis & Colin Crouch, Rate Your Endgame

With a very exposed king, a queen-swap is well worth one pawn at least. Cecil Purdy, CJS Purdy's Fine Art Of Chess Annotation And Other Thoughts - Volume Three

The Dutch Defence is fundamentally unsound because of the insecure pawn-skeleton, the constant breakthrough-threat e4 or d5 and, in the event of d5, the hole at e5! Alexander Alekhine, The Book Of The New York International Chess Tournament 1924

Avoid taking byes or quick draws - each game is a valuable opportunity to learn and test yourself. Keith Arkell, Chess magazine

Your only task in the opening is to reach a playable middlegame. Lajos Portisch, How To Open A Chess Game

Rapid development, and the hindering of the opponent's development, together constitute the chief problem in the opening. Iakov Neishtadt, Catastrophe In The Opening

The defender against a gambit can often secure the better position by returning the extra material at an opportune moment. Reuben Fine, The Ideas Behind The Openings

As a rule, typical middlegame positions are closely associated with a specific opening variation, so that to study them is to study the opening at the same time. Mark Dvoretsky, Opening Preparation

Material in queen-and-pawn endings isn't as important as how advanced your pawns are. Andrew Soltis, Grandmaster Secrets: Endings

Opening preparation has benefits that go well beyond the immediately practical; it will increase your understanding of middlegames and of chess in general. John Watson, Mastering The Chess Openings - Volume 4

When learning a new opening, only learn one variation to counter each of your opponent's lines. Learn one but learn it well. Edmar Mednis, Practical Opening Tips

Before ever beginning to think of making a passed pawn [in an endgame], get all your pieces into as good positions as possible. Cecil Purdy, The Search For Chess Perfection

The subconscious desire to end a game is responsible for many premature capitulations and draw offers. Ján Markoš, The Secret Ingredient To Winning At Chess

While in the middlegame the advantage of the two bishops is by no means always an important factor, in the endgame it is often decisive. Mikhail Shereshevsky, Endgame Strategy

Be extra suspicious of any plan that takes more than three moves to implement. Jonathan Rowson, Chess For Zebras

The presence of passed pawns on the board [in bishop-v-knight endings], as a rule, favours the side with the bishop. Mark Dvoretsky, Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual

Very much as the main 'goal' of 1.e4 is to enforce a successful d4, it may be said that after 1.d4 White's goal is to achieve e4. John Watson, Mastering The Chess Openings - Volume 2

In endgame play, if you find that one particular variation doesn't work, try switching move-orders. This often leads to the correct solution. John Emms, Starting Out: Minor Piece Endgames

If you have bad rook-ending technique, you should be worried. Jesus de la Villa, 100 Endgames You Must Know

Making a threat, often doesn't have any real impact. Creating two threats simultaneously is a different matter. John Nunn, Learn Chess Tactics

Achieving Morra mastery requires great mental flexibility, but if you must abide by a Morra formula, the most powerful one would be: when in doubt, chase the black queen. Marc Esserman, Mayhem In The Morra!

While it may sometimes be possible to hold positions with minor pieces by defending passively, in positions with major pieces it almost always proves fatal. Valeri Beim, Lessons In Chess Strategy

Because of their distance from the centre of action, isolated and even doubled a pawns are seldom worthwhile targets in the opening. Their vulnerability shows itself more in the endgame. John Watson, Mastering The Chess Openings - Volume 1

The first principle of opening play is rapid development of all the pieces. Artur Yusupov, Build Up Your Chess: The Fundamentals

Patience is the chessplayer's best friend. James Rizzitano, Understanding Your Chess

When both players have both their bishops in a fairly open game, it is usually well worth a tempo to preserve one from exchange by a knight. Cecil Purdy, Chess World magazine

When one side owns a passed pawn, the most important square on the board, for both players, is usually the square directly in front of the passer. Jeremy Silman, The Reassess Your Chess Workbook

One effective way of forming a repertoire is simply to lift most of it from a leading player whose style you feel is close to your own. By following that player's games, you will be assured of a regular flow of fresh information on the lines concerned. Steve Giddins, How To Build Your Chess Opening Repertoire

In positions with mobile pawn-centres everything depends on the following question: can the defender prevent the attacker's pawns from advancing, and can he blockade them? Alexander Kotov, The Art Of The Middlegame

Many books have been written about positional play. Not all of them are worth looking at, but some of them should be studied, above all My System - Aron Nimzowitsch's excellent book. Mark Dvoretsky, Positional Play