Chess Tip Of The Day

An important way to improve is to understand why you make the mistakes you do. To address this I suggest that you create your own tournament reports. Analyse your games in detail and single out the mistakes. You will probably single out five or six different types of mistake that are common for you, and this gives you an opportunity to direct your training. Jacob Aagaard, Excelling At Chess

Instinct and inspiration can be trusted less in an endgame than at any other stage of the game. Technique is all-important here, and is the deciding factor. Eugene Znosko-Borovsky, How To Play Chess Endings

Michael Adams told me that his results improved considerably when he conquered his 'walkabout' problem, and that lots of players let themselves down by wandering around. I suggested that stretching legs, going to the toilet, or getting refreshments were essential for some players, to which he replied that he used to think that too, but one day he realised that he was deceiving himself, and his main motivation for leaving the board was actually to alleviate boredom! Jonathan Rowson, The Seven Deadly Chess Sins

As a general rule, it is not good policy to exchange in the early stages of a game the long-reaching bishop against the knight, whose power does not extend beyond a certain circle. Emanuel Lasker, Common Sense In Chess

3.Nd2 [against the French] leads to a small but lasting advantage for White - and I stress lasting. Anatoly Karpov, My Best Games

Before thinking of any particular move, examine all your possible moves that smite. And before making a move, examine all your opponent's possible smites in reply. Cecil Purdy, CJS Purdy's Fine Art Of Chess Annotation And Other Thoughts - Volume Two

The more pieces that are exchanged, the more important activating the king becomes. James Howell, Essential Chess Endings

Knights are usually the more valuable minor pieces in the opening. But the bishops have the future because they inevitably grow in range as pawns are traded. Andrew Soltis, The Wisest Things Ever Said About Chess

In a position where you have to look for a plan, think first about what kind of pawn-play you should be aiming for. If no pawn-play is in prospect, ask yourself what to undertake with your pieces. Vladimir Popov, Chess Lessons

In opposite-coloured bishop endings keep your pawns on 'your' colour if you want to draw; if you are playing for a win you should keep your pawns on the opposite colour from your own bishop. Lars Bo Hansen, How Chess Games Are Won And Lost

To be a strong positional player it is necessary to have a freer relationship with material matters than is the case with most average players. Material is merely another positional factor. It is as simple as that. Jacob Aagaard, Excelling At Positional Chess

A rook sometimes equals two knights. Such cases are rare when at least one of the minor pieces is a bishop. Esben Lund, Rook vs Two Minor Pieces

The golden rule of good technique is 'do not hurry'! In endings, the tempo is usually slower, and one should seize every little advantage, even if it is not obvious that the factor concerned will actually matter. Steve Giddins, 50 Essential Chess Lessons

Do not trust anyone, and check everything for yourself. Try to understand the ideas behind each move. Andreas Tzermiadianos, How To Beat The French Defence

Looking for stalemate opportunities is one of the major tools that the defender should employ in trying to save inferior endgames. Edmar Mednis, Practical Endgame Tips

One of the key ideas in chess is that for an attack to have much chance of succeeding, the attacker must have more pieces in the vicinity of the enemy king than there are pieces defending. In practice many doomed attacks are launched due to players ignoring this principle. Graham Burgess, The Mammoth Book Of Chess

Castling queenside usually occurs when the rook will be well-placed on the d file, and indeed the need for it to be placed there is often the prime reason for adopting long castling. Vladimir Vuković, The Art Of Attack In Chess

The Stonewall Attack is always good if Black has shut in his c bishop by ...e6. Cecil Purdy, CJS Purdy's Fine Art Of Chess Annotation And Other Thoughts - Volume Three

In an ending the king is a fighting piece, and should be centralised and used actively. Edmar Mednis, Rate Your Endgame

In the ending of queen and pawn versus queen the best pawn to have is a centre pawn or BP; then comes the NP, and worst of all is the RP. David Hooper, Practical Chess Endgames