Hi, just thought yall might like an update from me

I made it to the final round of a chess correspondence tournament that has been going on most of a year. First place is out of reach due to some blunders, but I will place at least 5th out of about 400-500 people.

This isn't the hugest achievement, but I'm very proud of it, because long-form chess is not my forte. I am far more at home in blitz and bullet where I can use my main weapons of sheer speed and dirty flagging. 

Just thought I would share, and big thanks to Avetik and Hovhannes for all their help.

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Congrats bro!

Excellent stuff.  Well done, you should be very proud 😎

Being in the 98th or 99th percentile of a variant that is not your strong suit is quite impressive!  Nice job.

Update: I was wrong, there's actually 5 and I got eliminated. Still proud of making it through 3 over most of a year.

Great

Bugzone is here

😀

Bugzone is here!

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When to give up bishop for doubled, isolated pawns?

I'm trying to understand the difference between the following two positions. Black to move and decide whether Bxc3 , giving up the bishop pair for doubled isolated pawns, is a good move or not.

Position A:

r1bqk2r/pppp2pp/2n2n2/1B2p1B1/1b2P3/2N2N2/PPP2PPP/R2QK2R b KQkq - 4 7

Position B:

r1bq1rk1/p1pp1pp1/2p2n1p/8/1b2P2B/2NB4/PPP2PPP/R2QK2R b KQ - 1 9

I know the answers, because the engine told me what to do. But I'd like to understand why, in position A, Bxc3 is the best move while, in position B, it's a mistake.

So what makes Bxc3 good in position A while it's bad in position B?

(I know that there's another factor - in position A, it's important to eliminate the knight because otherwise it can pressure the pinned piece in a few moves. However, the engine still wants to take it immediately to ensure that the pawns get doubled).

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Dear Lukasz,

I couldn't open the positions - can you please post the pictures?

rossolimo line

Hi. In one of my games I played as black and the game went e4 c5 Nf3 Nc6 Bb5 g6 0-0 Bg7 Re1 Nf6 and then my opponent played Nc3. now after 5.Nc3 before Re1 we play e5, but now we can't because the pawn is unprotected. and if we play 0-0 after e5 it transposes to a different theory we are not playing as black. so what to do there for black?

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Dear Eliya,

In that position, Black castles and if e5 - Ne8 - Nc7 - when White captures on c6, we recapture with the d pawn.

amazing game crushing the caro kann

😀

One of my best games. 

Eli Se vs Ray Fergerson US Amateur Team West 1700 board 9:

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. Bd3 Nc6 5. c3 Nf6 6. Bf4 e6 7. Qe2 Bd6 8. Bxd6 Qxd6 9. Nf3 O-O 10. Ne5 Bd7 11. f4 Rab8 12. O-O a6 13. Rf3 b5 14. Rh3 h6 15. Nd2 b4 16. g4 bxc3 17. bxc3 Rb2 18. g5 Nh7 19. gxh6 g6 20. Bxg6 fxg6 21. Nxg6 Re8 22. Qg4 Kf7 23. Ne5 Ke7 24. Qg7 Kd8 25. Nf7 Kc7 26. Nxd6 Kxd6 27. Qxh7 Rxd2 28. Qg7 Re7 29. Qg3 Rh7 30. f5 e5 31. Qg6 Be6 32. Qxe6 Kc7 33. Qg6 Rh8 34. Qg7 Kd6 35. Qxh8 1-0 black resigns

https://lichess.org/study/OaXlI2Mu/P3sFKYp4

for explanation on moves

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Very nice game! Congratulations!

Indeed, a nice one!

NEW ARTICLE: Analyzing Blitz Chess Games: Why? And How to Do it!

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What an article! 

Agree completely but not bullet games. As a senior 5+3 is enough :)

Excellent Article !!

Great article.  I've never looked at my blitz games before but I will start now!    

I remember I used to play 3 min on Chesscube, save the instructive ones on Chessbase, analyze them, noting the big mistakes (tactical or strategical), saving the games to my phone, and looking at them from time to time. 

It really helped in winning my next tournament!

Hi, I am wondering How do i go about the Golden Rule and Anlayzing my Blitz Games? Do I play my 9 games an then I do start analyzing them, or do I start doing it as soon as I finish a game? Then What about if I follow the advice of taking a 15 minute break betwewen two 9 rounds? Should I analyze the first 9 games before moving on?

Hi everyone! Excelent article! The concepto of unconcius competence, etc, were very interesting. I'd start using them in my next Blitz analisys! Congrats GM and lets keep all cogrowing!

wow i will start doing it now

🤩

This is awesame! I am going to do it right now!!!!!

Helpful article, on my way to improving!

Hi, I like analyzing games especially combining with the 9-blitz game per session. I started to know playing on and on without a limit, and with 9 blitz games per session I can focus better, and after the session, I will download the game pngs and analyze to see what went wrong. Really like the approach =)

Quite proud of finding this tactic in a bullet game.

I kind of accepted that the bishop would take my new queen, then realized I could blockade off that square with a pawn…

Malaki0218 vs. syntheticadrenaline | Analysis - Chess.com

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Artistic Queen Trap

Hello All!

I havent posted in a while, so here is a little something from me.

I was just casually playing some chess, when I trapped my opponent's queen in the middle of the board.

Its been a while since I've trapped a queen, and I believe my first time trapping it in one of the central squares.

Just feast your eyes I guess :D

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Nice!  Feels good, huh?

Very good!  How did your opponent respond?

video does not exist

Hi,

is there any problem on server? The video unexpectecly stopped with “Sorry, this video does not exist”. No courses are available now.

Thanks

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I have the same problem

i just got the same error, except for me the message didnt show!

yess server issue. i think!

solved

Why not a ChessMood app in iOs and Android?

Why not a ChessMOOD app in iOs and Android through which we can access everything on the website?

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I appreciate platforms that provide convenient mobile access because I am a student who frequently uses Assignment Help Brighton on my phone. I therefore questioned why there isn't an iOS and Android ChessMood app. Platforms like ChessMood should be accessible, just like academic support. It would be revolutionary to have all of the strategies and lessons in one app. Students who are balancing their studies and personal development require flexibility, and learning chess and education should be equally accessible.

You can access the website on the phone (it's responsive), so the tradeoff is:

 - how much more utility users get from the native experience, vs

 - how much more it costs to build three apps than one app

Web/iOS/Android follow different rules and use different tech stacks so the extra cost is non-trivial (often time, you'd need to maintain a dev team per platform).

It may make sense to build those apps, but it also may make sense to use the resources to build other features (e.g., spaced repetition would be nice).

Do I have a neurological problem?!

I have had a week off chess. I am still forgetting utterly basic things like checking for threats. ???

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I hope you don't.

Could be a lack of concentration. Maybe these techniques are not yet deeply in your mind.

( I don't know how long you've played chess ) It will improve with time. But believe me:

Even after many years you will never be completely free of these elementary mistakes 😉

Try playing slow games and using the time.

The Blunderproof course will help you.

Don't worry, it happens when you take a long break. 

Maybe do some simple tactics and watch the Blunderproof and Tactic Ninja courses? A bit of practice should help clean the rust ヾ(≧▽≦*)o

Okay its fine Just do an hour of meditation per day

New article: 7Q Method: Your Roadmap to Formulating Chess Plans in Any Position

Do you ever look at your position, feel clueless, and not know what to play next or how to think? By asking these 7 questions, you can find a solid plan in almost any position 😊

Discover how in today’s article:
https://chessmood.com/blog/7q-method-chess-planning

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sir to me this article was really helpful but when i was going through the example i found out that i was just checking candidates moves and calculating variation for justifying the weakness of pawn or attack which i do naturally which hinder the process and make it difficult to had more precise positional solution to the question for ex in many position you said that the opponent can use this or that weak square for their knight but i can't simply think of it easily as it is not the part of my candidate moves. making all the calculation blurry so how to avoid it.

On question 7 on the board that says white to play the pawn is supposed to be on h2 but it's on h4

Edit: I see the black dot in the corner, and you wrote that it's white to move. I think you accidentally made a move while taking the picture

Would you recommend playing slower time controls, such as 15+10, while we are learning the 7Q Method? My thinking is that the extra time would allow us to really apply the method during our games and get comfortable with it. Then, once we have mastered the 7Q Method, we can transition back to faster time controls.

Thanks for your input!

thanks for giving

😀

Thanks! I now learned how to plan especially in closed positions!

New course: In GM Akobian's mind

GM Varuzhan Akobian was one of the first Grandmasters to create online chess content.

His lectures, featuring in-depth analysis, became popular among players worldwide️ 😊

Today, we’re excited to launch “In GM Akobian’s mind”, where he breaks down his most memorable games 👇
https://chessmood.com/course/varuzhan-akobian-best-games

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Was the whole course supposed to be released for free??? for a while??

Question about ChessMood openings

In Step-by-step Black repertoire, there is no guide to anti the Catalan and Colle openings. So what should I do vs. these 2 openings? Also, when playing vs Sicilian as white, although I've watched all the courses but when black plays the correct lines, it will be very hard to attack and often black will be easier to play. Thank you!
With white, my winning percentage with the Scotch and Caro-Kann are the highest, while it's the lowest vs. the Sicilian.

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🙂

I know only one of your questions' answers I guess- They have provided Benko with d4 c5 so autumatically the lines arising from d4 d5 like you say Catalan and Colle gets cut

NEW ARTICLE: Stafford Gambit | The Refutation

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Thanks coach.Great article & analysis (better than my own! I had decided on 5.Nc3 but now will probably switch to 5.d3). Keep up the good work! Best wishes ;-)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhWyK5dAIAw

Nakamura refuted the gambit against Eric Rosen

I played against IM Eric Rosen and crushed his Stafford Gambit!! But I lost on time.. .. https://lichess.org/YhqROmyu/white

Such a good blog!

😀

Once I had white in lichess against the stafford and after I castled queenside she had no compensation and lost badly. 

Just trying to say thanks GM Grigoryan 

Chessiverse.com

Something I discovered recently from John Bartholomew streams: Chessiverse.com.

I bring your attention to it because I am finding it a great training resource for our openings here at Chessmood.  This is a site full of humanized bots.  

You can filter by opening and play players and different levels and different time controls.  For the most part it seems like human play to me, you're not getting crushed by crazy engine lines that squeeze you to death.  

John says their goal is to simulate a FIDE rating on the site, don't know if that's true would love to here coaches thoughts on this.  

Anyway, a nice resource to add to our arsenal to reinforce our Chessmood lines.  

Good luck everyone!

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This looks intriguing.  Perhaps I will actually enjoy playing a bot here?

Doubt In WhiteMood Opening Anti Sicillian

What if Black plays h5 here… avoiding the dangerous hxg6?

Taken from Section 1 of Anti Sicillian with 2.Nf3 d6

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And also in the draft file Avetik sir, you have given Bb5 but in the course there is Be3 (with the problem according to engine d5-d4) 
(Sorry forgot to include this doubt in the post itself😅)

Guidance on Advanced Black Openings

Hi,

My child has learned the simplified Black openings, French and Dutch defenses, and now he is interested in moving on to advanced openings. I noticed that the French and Dutch defenses are not listed under the advanced openings.

Could you please suggest which Black openings would be best for him to learn at the advanced level?

Thank you for your guidance and support in advance.

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Dear Neev,

At the moment we do have 1 repertoire for Black.
In the future, we might have advanced French and Dutch for the 2000 level.
What is the rating of your child? Going to advanced openings depends a lot on the level of the Player.

Chess training

I’ve done pretty well in chess knowledge, but my performance is never consistent. Is there a good way to train my chess mental?

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Hey there,

We have several articles on this topic - I am sure they will help :-)


 

UNLOCK THE COURSES

Hey can we unlock the courses again for international chess day please!!!!

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�🥺🥺�

Yeah exactly like last year… Chessmood unlocked their courses for like a really long time! Cmon they should really do it again

ChessMood is in another timezone, so normally the days start at 3 or 4  pm (I think) for gmt 2 for me. But in addition: has it been announced this would happen again? I certainly hope they will do it again, but I could also imagine that doing that every year would not be very feasible for them. We will have to wait and see :) Oh, and International Chess Day is on the 21st of July, so that would be tomorrow.

Edit: And it's all unlocked now ;)

Nicee! Your wish was granted..!!!
THANKS CHESSMOOD!! LOVE YOU