Chess forum by Grandmasters

right or wrong sacrifice (first posicion )?

[Event "El Rey Inca Arena"] [Site "https://lichess.org/bxygYAiZ"] [Date "2020.07.19"] [White "MagicIrair"] [Black "silvio23"] [Result "0-1"] [UTCDate "2020.07.19"] [UTCTime "23:48:49"] [WhiteElo "1535"] [BlackElo "1872"] [WhiteRatingDiff "-2"] [BlackRatingDiff "+2"] [Variant "Standard"] [TimeControl "180+0"] [ECO "B21"] [Opening "Sicilian Defense: McDonnell Attack"] [Termination "Time forfeit"] [Annotator "lichess.org"] 1. e4 c5 2. f4 { B21 Sicilian Defense: McDonnell Attack } g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. Bc4 a6 5. a4 e6 6. O-O?! { (0.06 → -0.66) Inaccuracy. Be2 was best. } (6. Be2 Ne7) 6... Ne7? { (-0.66 → 0.39) Mistake. d5 was best. } (6... d5) 7. Nc3?! { (0.39 → -0.50) Inaccuracy. Be2 was best. } (7. Be2) 7... O-O 8. d3 Nbc6 9. Be3? { (-0.40 → -1.85) Mistake. Bb3 was best. } (9. Bb3) 9... b6? { (-1.85 → -0.44) Mistake. d5 was best. } (9... d5 10. Bxc5 dxc4 11. dxc4 Qa5 12. b4 Nxb4 13. Bxe7 Re8 14. Bxb4 Qxb4 15. Na2 Qxc4 16. e5) 10. Qe1?? { (-0.44 → -3.46) Blunder. Bf2 was best. } (10. Bf2 Bb7) 10... Bb7?? { (-3.46 → -0.60) Blunder. d5 was best. } (10... d5 11. Ba2) 11. h4?? { (-0.60 → -3.70) Blunder. Bb3 was best. } (11. Bb3 Qc7 12. Rd1 Na5 13. d4 Nxb3 14. cxb3 d6 15. Qh4 Rad8 16. g4 h6 17. Rd2 f6) 11... h5?? { (-3.70 → -1.18) Blunder. d5 was best. } (11... d5 12. Ba2 d4 13. Bd2 dxc3 14. bxc3 h5 15. Qg3 Bc8 16. Rfb1 Ra7 17. Re1 Bd7 18. Rab1) 12. Ng5?! { (-1.18 → -1.75) Inaccuracy. Bb3 was best. } (12. Bb3) 12... Nb4?! { (-1.75 → -1.02) Inaccuracy. Nd4 was best. } (12... Nd4 13. Bxd4 Bxd4+ 14. Kh2 Bg7 15. Bb3 d5 16. Rd1 Qc7 17. Ne2 b5 18. axb5 axb5 19. c3) 13. f5?? { (-1.02 → -5.47) Blunder. Qe2 was best. } (13. Qe2) 13... Nxc2 14. Qg3?! { (-5.22 → -6.98) Inaccuracy. Qe2 was best. } (14. Qe2) 14... Bxc3?? { (-6.98 → -1.04) Blunder. Nxe3 was best. } (14... Nxe3) 15. bxc3 Nxa1 16. fxg6 Nxg6?? { (-0.56 → 3.43) Blunder. fxg6 was best. } (16... fxg6 17. Rxa1 Qb8 18. Qxb8 Raxb8 19. a5 b5 20. Bxc5 bxc4 21. Bxe7 Bc6 22. dxc4 Rb3 23. Bxf8) 17. Nxf7 Rxf7 18. Qxg6+ Rg7 19. Bxe6+ dxe6 20. Qxe6+ Kh8 21. Qh6+ Rh7 22. Qg6 Qg8 23. Qxb6 Rf8 24. Rxf8 Qxf8 25. Bxc5 Qg8?? { (-2.27 → 2.23) Blunder. Qe8 was best. } (25... Qe8 26. Qb1 Rf7 27. Qxa1 Bc8 28. Qc1 Kh7 29. Qg5 Rg7 30. Qf6 Bh3 31. Qf3 Bxg2 32. Qf5+) 26. Bd4+ Rg7 27. Qh6+? { (2.51 → 0.98) Mistake. Qxb7 was best. } (27. Qxb7 Nc2) 27... Qh7 { Black wins on time. } 0-1

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Bonus Event Simul

I am ready to participate in the simul. How do I challenge the maestro? I don't see a link to any live stream?

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Play vs GM

Hello Champions! 

Celebrating the international chess day, we added a bonus event: A Simul game vs GM.

This time GM will be me :)
https://chessmood.com/event/bonus-event-simul-game-gm-avetik-vs-pro-members  

Looking forward to playing soon against you.

P.S 
The instructions are in the link above. 

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My usernames are: Giorgos_Kechagias on chess.com and giorgoskehagias509 on lichess.org. I am excited since it will be the 1st time I will play with a GM!

What is your lichess id?

Haque_30-m 

This is my lee chess id

Anyone knows how to follow the stream???

MY nick is ollydog

Duncan

Scotch

In Scotch after 1. e4 e5  2. Nf3  Nc6  3. d4 if black does not take the pawn and play 3. ...  d6, then how can I approach?

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I'm pretty  sure this line was covered in one of the Scotch updates. Did you double Check?

Postscript: Now that I think about it, the line you are looking for might be in the Philidor Course since the position is very transpositional.

I think the best line against 3. d6 is: 4. d5 Nce7 5. c4 g6 6. Nc3 Bg7 7. c5 dxc5 8. Qb3 c6 9. dxc6 Nxc6 very playable position for both sides.

Webinar: Questions and Answers about ChessMood Openings

Dear friends, dear PRO Members, my champions! 
This gonna be an interactive webinar with our PRO team. 
You can send me your questions related to our openings in advance. 
You can ask me also about positions, that you feel uncomfortable with. 

I'm going to answer all of them even if it takes hours. 

See you soon!


https://chessmood.com/event/questions-and-answers-about-ChessMood-openings

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This endgame position is good for white as you explained but I don't think I can win this. So some tips needed. You know very well I am not good in endgames.

https://chessmood.com/forum/pro-members/plan-in-the-gp-endgame

Anthony, have you checked Kevin D's series about Scotch? 

Maestro Avetik, I missed today's webinar because of work obligations. I did watch the recording, though. I really liked the way you answered the questions. One discussion about chess improvement particularly I found very interesting. You said you went from 0 to 2000 yourself in about 3 years (from 1800 to 2000 in one year). I would like to ask you two follow-up questions: how long did it take you to get from 2000 to IM level? And, would it be possible for you to single out one or several key factors in your growth? Was it determination? Opening study? Postgame analysis? A good coach? A combination of all the aforementioned? etc. I would be very curious to read your comments.

Hi
I missed yesterday's webinar because of work obligations. I also watch the recording. Thanks for your high quality answer's.

Hi Anthony

I play the Scotch a lot. If you are interested we could play some training games on chess.com

Where can I find Kevin D's series about Scotch? 

Here https://chessmood.com/forum/main-channel/the-scotch-game-the-beginners-mind-part-01

Dear Unknown User,
during the webinar you gave me a deep and complicated question, which I couldn't answer right away. 
"Many people are playing the 2...Nc6 when I play the Closed Sicilian with white. What should I do if they play 4...a6 Bd3 g6 b4 cb4 Nd5 Nc6?" 

Well, I checked it, 7...Nc6 is really interesting move. 
I tried different moves for White, using both engines Stockfish and LCV, . 
There are few options for White, I would recommend to play 8.Rb1 a5 9.Bb2 Nf6 10.Bf6!? ef6 11.c3. 

The position is very unclear, but it should be much easier to play for White, because of Black's very ugly pawn structure. 

CAN'T DOWNLOAD PGN FILES!

Sir, why can't I download the PGN files after the openings??

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How to use engines (if at all)?

Maestro Avetik,

Recently you dissuaded me from using engine-guided study of chessmood openings, and I have turned my engine off ever since. However, there are several aspects of engines that I don't really understand.

Why should the engine be an exclusive grandmaster's ally? Why should the lower-rated chessplayer stay away from the engine? How exactly does the engine slow down or prevent rapid growth? What is 'a computer move'? Could there be exceptions, i..e situations in which engine use could be useful assistants to lower-rated players, or beneficial to their growth? Are there only cons, or are there any pros, too? And if so, what are the dos and don'ts of engine use?

Many authors and commentators have claimed that the use of engines has been one of the main reasons why today's grandmasters earn their titles at an ever-younger age, so surely, engines can't be that bad, can they?

Most strong amateur players that I know use engines a lot, for different purposes, especially for post-game analysis (finding tactical mistakes and missed opportunities) and opening preparation (consulting databases, finding reliable antidotes against opponents' known opening repertoire, etc.). By strong amateur players I mean, broadly speaking, players in the 1900-2300 ELO range. Players clearly below your own level, but whom I still look up to (and often feel rather intimidated by, especially the 2100+ ones).

I would love to read an article of yours in which you address these issues.

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Hey Ramon! 
Nice question. 
I'm writting an article about it, as I see, this is really a confusing topic for many chess players. 

Error on chess.com Sunday Tournament page

I see a notification in chess.com that there is a tournament on Sunday. Clicking on it I get the following error. Any idea what's going on?

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Hunan jan, I just asked our girls to check, it seems okay. 
Can you check it again? 
Is there still the same problem? 

Champions, do we have someone else who has the same issue? 

Opening Choices

Hello Chess mood Team

My current rating is 1628

I want to improve my chess to its peak performance but I am facing a crossroad problem whether I should switch my openings according to your courses or not

I play open Sicilian with white and kings indian with black

If I change my openings, will I get better results in the long run as well

Please answer my query

Thank you

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Hello Devansh, I believe your opening repertoire is good, but the main downside of these openings is that not only do they require a huge theoretical knowledge, but you should also be able to play in very complicated positions. Your openings will be very useful after 2200 level. The recommended openings here in chessmood are the best to develop your chess skills especially in 1600-2200 levels. Personally, I am 1 and a half year a chessmood member and I have raised my rating around 275 points. In addition, the openings here in chessmood are very easy to learn and plat, but there is another advantage: they match together. You can meet middlegame and opening positions, which can arise for 2 or even 3 chessmood openings, such as Maroczy bind, or have similar or inversed pawn structures. I hope you will do your best and improve your chess skills, with or without chessmood openings.

Devansh. 
Our openings are very aggressive and very practical. 
You should read this article: https://chessmood.com/blog/growth-hacking-in-chess-300-rating-points-in-six-month

Hey, the open sicilian requiers a lot of theory and also a lot of understand in different strucutres. the KI is one of the most complex openings. Its nothing wrong about playing them, but you should maybe first play something easier. Maybe rossolim and moscower, and later switch back 

have a nice day

Let's checkmate Covid-19

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Got mine!

Scandinavian 2.Nf6 - Caruana's b3

Dear GM Avetik,

Yesterday I had an OTB classical game and my opponent played the 2...Nf6 Scandinavian. I played the Chessmood's idea of 8.b3 with the improvement 9.Qe2.  The game went 9...Nfxd5 10.Nxd5 Nxd5 11.Bb2 and my opponent played 11....Nb6.  Here I decided to play 12.0-0-0 as I figured that I had a very big lead in development and his king is in the centre....good compensation for losing the bishop pair.

Was my reasoning good?  My opponent played 12...Bd7 13.Nh3 (not sure of this move) e6 14.Rhe1.
He managed to play Qe7 and 0-0-0 and somehow managed to get a good position but at the cost of severe time trouble.  I won the game after 5 hours.
What do you think is best after 11...Nb6.  Engine suggest 12.Bd3 but I don't like block the d pawn.

thank you,

Duncan

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Hey Duncan! 
I'm glad you won at the end. 
Well, your 12.0-0-0 looks very reasonable. Just instead of 14.Nh3 14.Ne2 would be better, so if anytime opponent plays Bc6, you would have Nd4! 

Engines 12.Bd3 I like more. Yeah it blocks the d2 pawn, but the next move is 13.Be4! (almost remove), where from the bishop it transforms to a monster! :) 
Bc8 hates him (No bd7,Bc6), and Black king will also hate him, if he goes 0-0. 

Today Puzzle

I  got  a winning position by Kxe2 but it is showing wrong

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Hey Varun! 
Yeah, you were right. 
The original solution of the puzzle is Rb8 with Bb7! idea. 
But Ke2 wins as well. 

We just removed the puzzle. 
Sorry about that. 

Scandinavian 3...Nf6/6....Qd7

Maestro Avetik,

In this variation, after 7. d5 Bxf3 8. gxf3!? Ne5 9. Qb3 0-0-0 10. Qe3, could you please comment on the move 10....Qf5, suggested by the engine? Should White take on a7 or not (the engine suggests Rg1!?)? Does White really have anything here?

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Ramon, I would worry about such engine move Qf5 if I would play on 2600 Grandmaster level. 
Qf5 is very engine move. For human - we stop to think after 0-0-0 Qe3. 

Afterall, yeah after Qf5 Rg1! white has big advantage. 
Once again, you're moving not the most productive way. 

Try fast finish all the courses without going very deep and analyzing with engine, as Grandamster should do. Finish fast the courses and start practice + watching the streams. 

Don't make the mistake that many others do and then wonder why they don't grow fast. 
Maybe I'll need to write a separate article of danger of working with engine wrongly. 

Scandinavian 3. ...Nf6 / 5...e6 and 8...Nc6

Maestro Avetik, in this variation, after 9. Qxb7 Nb4 10. Qb5+ c6 11. Qa4 Bg6, instead of your very logical suggestion 12. Na3, the computer actually suggests 12. 0-0!?? allowing Nc2, with a very big advantage for White. I don't understand that at all.

Does it make any sense to you? 

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Yeah possible. 
I just explained that pawn sacrifice doesn't work for a simple reason. 

Ramon, for taking the most value, you should really stop working with engine on your level.  

Is it possible to win games on high levels without calculations?

What do you think? :) 

Answer it before watching this game :)
 https://youtu.be/yipFqS7Kuvg 

And answer it after watching the game :) 
 

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Your thoughts on the Sveshnikov

i am interested in your thoughts on the Sveshnikov, as it is a opening, with a lot of dynamic play, deep strategical ideas and the player with the better understand can win very fighting positions. there also positional and attacking variations. 

What are your thoughts about that?

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Hi Master,

I give my answer comparing 2 Sicilian systems:

1- Accelerated Dragon:

Pros:

. Easy to play

. Very Logical

. Not much theory to learn

Cons:

. Maroczy Bind: Black has very low chances to win. (This is a fact, and not my opinion)

2- Sveshnikov Sicilian

Pros;

. Excellent chances for Black to fight for a win

. Very creative and dynamic chess

Cons;

.Too much theory to learn

My conclusion:

Accelerated Dragon is probably the best choice for lower rated players to start with.

I think it's better to start learning and playing the Accelerated Dragon, and then when we have a reliable system in hand, going to add another Sicilian system such as Sveshnikov  or Taimanov to our repertoire.

Please share your opinion with us as well, dear Christoph. 

Christopher, mostly I agree with Kourush. 
Sveshnikov is also okay. The problem is too much theory. 
And even for GM level, white has hundreds of make to make draw. 

Overall with Black pieces just play chess, don't think about draw or win. Just play. 
Below 2400,2500 level, with any openings is possible to win. 

Maroczy is drawish? Not at all... 
You see what happens during the streams, during Gabuzyans streams and you can see my results of my main nickname "Avetik_ChessMood". 
If you face 2600 players, yeah maybe it's tough to win. 
But don't worry about it now. 

Any complete the best chess schedule daily chess training?

Any complete chess schedule daily chess training?

What chess type study to train everyday?

When do to study? How many ours training every type study?

Thank you.

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Heri, it's a very personal question. 
It depends on ones time he has to invest in chess, his goals, his budget, his weak and strength points in chess, his level and many other factors. 

There is no such thing as 1 study plan for everyone. 

THat's the reason we have welcome 1-1 calls with all the PRO Members to give them personalized study plan. 

Benko Gambit vs GMs

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Swapnil is a Benko player?? 

Benko is a good weapon for beating all levels. My 2 openings against 1. d4 are Benko gambit and Modern benoni with e6. Although when I meet lower rated players, I prefer Nimzo indian defence, a flexible opening which allows me to win faster. Great games! In general, I believe a lot of players oversetimate the material advantage and thus is the reason why they don't kike Benko. I personally do not care about material advantage and that's why I may go for King's gambit against <1700 players.

Scandinavian 3. ...Nf6 / 6. ...Qf5

Maestro Avetik, in this variation, after 7. Nbd2 you give 7. ... Nb4 8. 0-0.

Why not 8. Qa4+ instead?

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Hey Ramon! 
You're correct :) 

July 14 Webinar

Jul 14 web.

I cannot get anything...anyone else connected?

20 minutes in and I cannot get online?  I had to pull some major strings to be here for this web-cast and I see nothing.  Very disappointed.

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Hi

You can see it here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKwuA8R_RBg

/KS

Hey friend! 
Sorry to hear that...

Any time, when you go to the website, at the top will be "Join the event" 10 minutes ago the event. 
You'll not just click "join the event".   

Sorry again about that. We're now redesigning the website and polishing all the technical issues making everything more comfortable.