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Chess forum by Grandmasters

Daily chess (correspondence on chess.com)

Apparently Paul Keres was playing hundreds of correspondence games at a time and it really helped him out. 

 

There's obviously been a lot of debate of blitz and bullet and how bullet doen't help with improvement (although GM Amon Hambleton did write an article about his experiences which sort of challenges this - https://saintlouischessclub.org/blog/speed-chess-bad-you), but what about Daily Chess (time control of at least 1 day per move), where you're allowed to consult chess databases and chess books, but no engines and tablebases?

 

 In a way this seems a bit similar to Classical chess, except that you can move pieces around and stuff.

 

I'm curious about some opinions on how to use Daily Chess to improve.

 

(Btw, a big Daily Chess tournament with prizes is beginning in a few days on Chess.com - https://www.chess.com/news/view/2024-daily-chess-championship-registration)

Replies

We are not very keen on correspondence chess because at the end it becomes a battle between engines and even if they are not allowed, the books and databases until which move are ok? It is not clear but it is very difficult to check any real improvement when only consulting exisiting materials (made with engine help all the way) to play, no matter the memory of the player, etc… 

😅We prefer focusing on games played with real long time controls for an overall improvement than correspondence… But if you like it, why not, it is not our preference for sure…😄

Hi Inguh,

If being sure engines are not allowed it can be interesting to play such a game, however I don't think it's very practical as the game will take a lot of time. And in order to train something and gain experience such a long game can be too much time-consuming, I would rather prefer some rapid games like 15+10.

Of course, if you are enjoying the format, you are welcome to do so 🙂
Good luck!

Thoughts on the Trompowsky?

What are your thoughts on the Trompowsky? 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5

Replies

Hello !

I played it many years, what do you want to know ? I choose to change for GM Avetik repertoire who suits my style, and i like his recommandations. But I still love the Trump !

Trompowsky was one of my favorite weapons... But then I stopped because of 2...d5 
Today in the morning I recorded a video how to play against Trompowsky for black, need to edit it and will upload it soon. 

I played the Tromp with white for almost 20 years. I had chose it because not many knew how to really play well against it. However, I dropped it for the openings taught here. 

https://chessmood.com/course/crushing-d4-sidelines/episode/418 

Here you have the link to Trompovksy attack :) 
Right Mood - Right Move! 

The Sideline Course is still great. But I miss after the suggested 2. … d5 the answer 3. Nc3 (transposing to Veresov). It happens regulary and having no repertoire after move 2 is not funny.

Chessmood Membership start date

Im thinking of buying Chessmood Membership for a year, and my current yearly lasts untill Feb 23, and if I now buy the yearly, will it start now, or when my old one is up, the 23rd?

Replies

Hi Armandas,

Regarding personal membership matters, please get in contact with our Customer Happiness Department and they will see what you can do and find the best way for everyone. This is the best way: 

https://chessmood.com/contact

Thanks,😃

How to buy a course?

How to buy a course with mood coins (that one that I get when solve the problem)?

Replies

In some courses, Get lifetime access is shown.

Click on that and choose moodcoins as the mode of payment. If you have the required moodcoins, you can buy the course. 

Thank you!

New success story: The One Course that Transformed Anthony's Chess

From struggling with chess books to winning his first-ever tournament, this adult improver transformed his game.
 

You’ll discover many valuable lessons from his journey, including:

🟢 The one habit he eliminated to increase focus over the board

🟢 How he detached his mind from the final result

🟢 The problem with playing too many blitz games

🟢 The Chessmood course that changed his mindset and more!
 

Read the full story here:

https://chessmood.com/success-stories/anthony-giles

Replies

The biggest thing I liked in this article is his satisfied face when he was standing after winning the event. I wish him good luck for his future chess events!

Chessmood is superb website especially for adult improvers . Because adults have time issues so chessmood shares all the checked material in video form so even without books anyone can improve!

Super inspiring story ! I’m glad you got good  results while working with ChessMood . Congrats ! 

Nice work and great progress, congrats! I see you're playing the weekender at Hastings on the 6th. Will be gone by then, but both Witcher and I are playing in the masters. If you can get over then, will see you there.

HOW TO GET PGN FROM CHESS MOOD

amazing success story 

Caro-Kann Main Line 7.Qd7-12.Bxf3

I have a doubt in the Exchange Caro-Kann variation where black plays main line 7.Qd7 and after some moves, black is playing 12.Bxf3 and after 13.Nxf3, the course does not include 13.Qc7. My opponent played this move and the plan of Ne5-Re3-Rh3 did not work as he simply traded knights and the attack failed. If you can suggest a remedy in this line, that would be great! Thank you

Replies

Hi, have you tried looking into databases to see if this move has already been played?

I know very well the Caro Kann. Did you play the Caro Kann or just facing the Caro Kann?

Can you post all the moves just to be sure of the variation that you mean? 😅 Thanks!

In your given line the e6 move is missing. I guess you've meant the line

1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.cxd5 cxd5 4.Bd3 Nc6 5.c3 Nf6 6.Bf4 Bg4 7.Qb3 Qd7 8.Nd2 e6 
9.Ngf3 Bd6 9.Bxd6 Qxd6 10.0-0 0-0 11.Rae1 Bxf3 12.Nxf3 Qc7!?

I think objectively the position is equal but in practical terms white has an edge because black has to go for counterplay on the queenside with the minority attack (rooks to b/c file, pawns b5, a5, b4 ...)
while white plays against the black king due to the control of e5 square and the open lines for all his pieces on the kingside.

However if black finds the right moves there is no standard plan for white how to organize the attack.
Bxf3 followed by Qc7 are certainly good black moves. One white plan could be to get the white queen over to the kingside first, play Ne5 to exchange the knight and then try to open the kingside with the pawns.

For example

13.Qc2 Rab8 14.Ne5 Rfc8 15.Qe2 Nxe5 16.fxe5 Nd7 17.f4 g6 18.h4 b4 19.h5

But again black has many options here to react in a different way and his counterplay on the queenside is also progressing.

This was covered

👇

How to end this line once and for all!

And in case you are not a pro-member 

After Qc7 you can go for Qc2-Qe2 which brings the Queen closer and also makes difficult the main b5 idea for the opponent.
After you can try to play on Kingside g3-h4 or another advancing option. That of course depends on the opponent's strategies as well.

Good luck.

Cheers!

Question on 7Q Method and the 3 key questions from Tactic Ninja course

Hello ChessMood family,

 

First, thanks for all the great answers to my questions in the forum so far. They helped a lot to raise my rating. I have another question on the 7Q Method and the 3 key questions from the tactic ninja course. Are you supposed to ask these questions every move otb (except for forced moves and opening prep) because that would be very time-consuming and I cannot do this on every move without getting into time trouble. Do you just do this a lot and gain experience so it comes naturally or do you do it on some moves and not on other moves? Thanks for the help in advance!

Replies

Forwarded from GM_Avetik Grigoryan:

Thank you my friend! Good question! As the pawn structure and the dynamics of the position doesn't change after every move, you don't need to ask those question after every move. Asking when things aren't obvious - this is where you should start with.😀

Create pgn database....

🤔

 

Hi everybody !

I would like to create a pgn database and export it to a chess friend. Unfortunately when I try to export it from CB17 it's transformed 

automatically into CBV format. Anyone has idea(s) solve this problem ?

Thanks to all ; merry christmas and happy new year 

Replies

Easy one!

😀Select all the games, right click, output as pgn and that's it…😀

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you too!😄

about the SLP course

1)I think that you fotget another case not to resign.
Some techincal endgame that you may know to win against everybody but there is a reason to believe there is a chance that your opponent does not know.

For example even if you know to win KBN vs K it is better not to resign if you are the weaker side because you know that even stronger players than you could fail to win.

2)I think that one way of saving lost positions is not mentioned and it is generating passed pawns.

Looking at my blitz games I saved many lost positions by this.
I think that I save lost positions in this way more often relative to saving lost positions by some mate attack. 

first example:
https://lichess.org/5ctab3Vh7wNb

I was a piece down for a pawn but won in the endgame thanks to my passed pawns.

second example
https://lichess.org/4SUieSTdYW13

I played 51.Nf4 that was the best practical chance in a lost position and of course did not go to a lost pawn endgame by capturing the rook.
The passed pawn later made a fork so I won the game

Third example:
https://lichess.org/E985FlhWJ7iW


I had a clearly lost endgame but pushed my passed pawn forward and in the final position that my opponent lost on time objectively he had no more than a draw.

4th example
https://lichess.org/SsH32cMjFtc0

I had a lost rook endgame but planned to get a passed pawn.
My opponent promoted first but I promoted with check and forced mate but mate was not the original plan. 

Replies

misleading lines in the starter course white mood opening

I had a game that started 1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.f4 g6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Bc4 e6 when my opponent got a better position out of the opening.

The stater course recommend exactly this line for white in section 5 part 4 after 40 seconds(the queen joins the attack) when it does not mention e6 but only d6 so I looked at the more advanced course to see how to continue and found that in the anti-sicilian part 2 the suggestion is to play 3.Bb5 and not 3.f4

I do not like the fact that the starter line is not a subset of the more advanced course and I expect some basic course to include less lines but to include the same lines.  Note that my opponent who played with black has a fide rating of 1616 and I got a draw inspite of the bad position because I am the better player.with a very bad game(only after the game I understood that black saved a tempo by not playing d6 and playing immediately d5).

Here is my OTB game(not for fide rating but for local chess israeli rating)

https://lichess.org/P2ZUnhBU#59


After 9…Na5 I felt the position is very bad and thought for a long time.
I did not like a3 Nxb3 when I cannot open the a file and I was afraid that if I do not play a3 my bishop may get trapped  after c4 Ba4 and after some minutes of thinking I thought that I found a good solution and played 10.exd5 with the idea that I win a pawn after exd5 11.Nxd5 and in case of 10…Nxb3 axb3 I could at least open the a file.

I was surprised that the engine does not like white's position after 10…Nxb3 11.axb3 and prefer Bd2 when it seems that I can save the bishop.
In the game 12…Qxd5 gives advantage for black inspite being a pawn down(typical mistake of me to stop calculation too early when after some minutes of thinking I see that I win  material) but my opponent played 12…Re8 that is worse.  I did a mistake here when I played 13.Qd2 too quickly thinking it is forced because did not like to get into a pin with 13.Be4 and only few seconds after playing it I noticed that 13.Be4 f5 14.Bd5+ was an interesting option but of course did not calculate it because it was not relevant for the game after I missed it(the engine say 13.Be4 equalize when 13…Bf5 is the best for black).

14…Re2 was winning based on the engine(I considered 14…Re2 during the game but did not see the win of black after 15.Rf2 because I did not think 15…Bd4 that trade black's good bishop is a good idea for black).

The best for me was 17.Ne5 but I did not like to give back a pawn and I also did not like the opponent to trade at e1 because of the possible line c3 Rxe1 Qxe1 Qxd3.  I was also afraid from the threat Bd4+ when both Nxd4 Rxe1+ win and Kh1 Qxf3 are winning and I need to play Kf1 that I do not like.

My opponent offered a draw with the move 23…Qxf4 that I rejected because I hoped to win the endgame because I am the better player but had to force a perpetual check because my opponent did not want to go for an endgame.

 

Replies

After Na5, taking on d5 as you did is not a very good move. You can develop with Bd2 or play e5 closing the Bishop, typical of these structures. This way you would have a good structure and position. 

😅We told you on another post why we offer one simplified repertoire and one more complete and the reason here is the same one. 😀

If you are a more experienced player by all means study the advanced one, but please don't blame us for not winning games because of the opening. This is clearly not the case… 

You need to have a better feeling for the resulting positions and also I would recommend you to stop trusting elo differences. Everyone nowadays is underrated and everyone wants to win, having this feeling of being better than your opponent during a game can be very bad for your results.
So, keep on playing and studying, you started to play our repertoire very recently. Now in that line that already happened in your games, if I were you, I would study the advanced course and be completely prepared for the next time. 

Good luck Uri and keep on fighting with good mood always!😀

Benko against delayed c4?

I had a game (as black) that started 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.c4 c5 4.d5 b5 5.cb a6 6.Nc3 ab 7.Nxb5, transposing to regular Benko. But looking at the video on the Nc3 line, it seems black may be in trouble after 7.e4. What do you recommend against this move order?

Replies

I think that you made a mistake in the move order, if instead of 7.Nxb5 you play 7.e4, after b4 they just lose the e4 pawn… Please check your move order…😅 

The difference is that with the inclusion of Ng1-f3 and …g7-g6, we are one step closer to castling (while Ng1-f3 doesn't immediately add too much to the threats/initiative).

After 1.d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. Nc3 axb5 6. e4 b4 7. Nb5 d6 8. Bf4 g6?! (Not a theoretical choice, played to illustrate the point), 9.e5 is the most likely follow-up, with some threats.  Playing 9.Nf3?! doesn't make too much sense here, as it doesn't greatly increase the initiative, meaning we can go 9…Bg7, likely followed by …0-0.

In the case of 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. c4 c5 4. d5 b5 5. cxb5 a6 6. Nc3 axb5 7. e4, notice that Ng1-f3 and …g7-g6 have already been played,   8…b4 8. Nb5 d6 9. Bf4 Bg7!, (9…Bg7 is in my opinion a strong practical choice, though Stockfish 16 slightly prefers 9…Nxe4) 10. e5 dxe5 11. Bxe5 O-O Now the threats are for the most part neutralized, and after 12. Bc4 Bb7 we gain the advantage.

Hope this helps!

My chess improvement journey: week 1

Hi everyone, I wanted to keep you updated about my chess studying journey, with the hope of inspiring other players to do the same.

So week one was kind of a test week. I've played blitz and rapid through the week (in an organized way ofc), analyzing games and collecting my blunders to see where my biggest weaknesses are. I've later come to the conclusion (and thank to who answered my post) that I shouldn't play blitz, rather building stronger chess and playing rapid to consolidate and improve. I've also started practicing some new openings, and I'm starting to get pretty comfortable with them.

For the study part, mainly focusing on tactics right now, as the chessmood study plan for 1000-1500 suggests. I'm not neglecting studying other things as well, and I want to say that the free opening principles course on this platform is very good and helpful (I'm studying it even with my rating because I want to strenght my foundation).

I've also played some game otb and I'm satisfied with how I played.
I'll keep you updated for next week, have a nice day!

Replies

Hey there,

Thanks for the update.  I'm impressed by your dedication and determination - keep up the good work!

Amazing story. I just want to say practice the Tactic Ninja on ChessMood. It would change your tactical view forever. I am just 1356 over the board in the USCF. Now I won 2 tournament in row. Just 3 round per tournament. Classical time control 1 hour and 30 minutes and 5 second delay. Here in USA this the default time control you see on local tournament. Now I am 1502. This website It Would help you alot. Keep Practicing 

I'm stuck!

I am a 2300 on lichess and i play OTB tournaments regularly. Now i have gotten stuck at this level and from 2350 i have reduced to 2270. I tried taking breaks for !-3 days and it is not helping me. I can't take a longer break as i have to prepare for my next tournament which is classical and it happening on Jan 18th. Can you offer me help? 

Thank You!

 

Replies

Hi Vikrant,

Have you read the following article?  The circumstances seem similar to your own:

https://chessmood.com/blog/crossing-the-plateau-and-reaching-3000-on-chess-com

Hello, I think the best way to progress is to analyse your games, find your weak points and work on them. You should also learn the right lessons from your mistakes. And if taking a longer break before a tournament doesn't change anything, you shouldn't do it.

Playing simplified blackmood french against b3 Bb2

I have been playing the blackmood openings and have been really enjoying them so thank you. 

 

I wanted to ask about the b3 Bb2 reply for white. I have actually faced this reply more than any other reply in over the board games at my local club (1400 -1600 classical ECF) . It would be really useful to understand the ideas / plans arising after this.

 

Thanks

Replies

Did you check section 20 of Blackmood openings?
 https://chessmood.com/course/blackmood-openings/episode/6177

New success story: Raising 700 elo with a Simple Mindshift

A fellow ChessMoodian raised 700 elo within 2 years! 

How did he do it? Learn from his journey as he shares:

🟢 The strong why he uses to fuel his journey.

🟢 What helped him dominate higher-rated opponents?

🟢 The approach he used to defeat an IM who was 900 elo higher.

🟢 The simple mindset shift that unlocked his potential and much more…

Full story here:
https://chessmood.com/success-stories/vedant-garg

Replies

Well done fantastic performance

Congrats vedant (Vivaan here)

All izz well vedant

Great job Vedant! I'll try to inspire myself from your words! Keep on like that!!

Congratulations for the nice performance . You deserve it all as you worked efficiently for it ! I hope I can get inspire by you ! 

Weii done Vedant. Hope to see you climbing the ladder to IM and after GM.

Good chess, that is better than good luck ;)

.

Congratulations Vedant! Very inspiring story! And I'm sure the best is yet to come.

Keep up the good work

Hello Chess Lovers. I join to this website the last month. I just start take the test and watch the tactical tutorial videos plus take seriously about ChessMood Repertoire for White and Black. I last 2 tournament I am questing to break the wall of 1300 ELO. I play United State Chess Federation USCF. My current ELO 1356, but taking the tactics tutorial here help me a lot. I won to tournament from 1260 I manage to up my rating to 1356. But last Saturday I play into a Swiss Tournament. I won all my games. Again players between 1600, 1500, 1400 me just only 1356. Now I am 1502 I am happy with my improvement. I am looking to improve more to reach my 2000 ELO over the board on USCF.  

Tactic trainer

Hi everyone, do you know if out there there's something (a software or a website) where you can train tactics by selecting the motifs you want? I don't want like lichess where you can select one motif at time, but more than one time. Thank you

Replies

You can try Chesstempo where you can select several motives at the same time. 😁

Worth of a queen

What is the worth of a queen? I learned that it is worth 10 pawns when I was learning chess, but about two years ago, when I started playing chess online, I saw it is worth 9 pawns!  I read that it is because when you have two rooks you will win against a queen, but is there any other reason? Also, when did it changed, or I just learned it wrong?

Replies

It would depend on the situation. 

For example, a trapped queen wouldn't really be worth anything, whereas an active queen would be worth a lot more. 

Also, two rooks won't always win against a queen, because if they aren't working together (eg. defending each other), then the queen would overpower them.

We normally teach at beginners and kids that it is worth 9 pawns. You did not learn this wrong, as engines got stronger, the value of the pieces changed a bit generally. Again as it has been said the theoretical value of pieces change depending on the positions.😃

Benko instead of Modern Benoni

Hi everyone,

 

several times somewhere here I read that for example

Avetik is a big Modern Benoni fan. Now I am wondering why

the Benko is proposed for 2000+ players.

Is it because it is (much) easier to learn? (This is at least my impression)

I like the Benko and the course here very much but I am interesed in how you made up your choice.

 

Of course I am interested in anybody's opinion.

 

Thank you!

Replies

I think it was based on complexity, but I think they underestimated the Benko complexity a lot, hence the reboot/additions in the pipeline.

Dear Coaches,

I am really curious 😉

Thank you!

Sorry Thomas, it skipped my mind! I thought I already replied to this one!

The Benoni is a very, very sharp defense where you need to walk a very thin line of only moves in a few variations. It is also very easy to get steamrolled by White if you do not have a clear positional sense and sharp eye for tactics and mostly for counterattack. In some lines you can even be a couple of pawns down with compensation with development. Still we cannot propose this since we think that it would be too complicated. It is a very good weapon in an must win game (if you have an attacking and sharp style of play) and it is very good for IM level or even for a good prepared FM. The understanding and feeling that you need to play it well is much deeper than with the Benko.
Also the Benko positionally speaking is very sound and the tactics and lines are not so difficult to remember, the patterns repeat a lot and it's much easier to get good positions fast. It also annoys a lot the d4 players, don't forget this point too! 😀

Ruy Lopez

Is there a course to learn the Ruy Lopez?

Replies

No, we offer the Scotch for White as a response against e5. 😃 Why don't you try it?😅

Sharp Positions

i always find it difficult to keep track of everything in sharp positions, i'm 1800 on chess.com and i've been stuck there for almost 7 months

 

i want to know how my thinking process should be to do well in this type of positions,

like what are the things i should check out first and the things that i should prevent

 

Replies

Did you check out our course 7Q Method - How to Find a Plan in Any Position?
https://chessmood.com/course/chess-planning-7q-method
This course should help you to find plans, check it out.😀

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