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Chess forum by Grandmasters
Beginner aiming for 1000 Elo
Hi all,
I've just started my chess journey (I was taught how the pieces move, but no tactics, many years ago) in the last couple of weeks. In terms of progressing my chess learning, I thought that I would set myself a target of 1000 Elo (or whatever the equivalent is on Chess.com where I'm playing).
Is that reasonable for a beginner?
What sort of time period should I target for reaching this target? (I'm employed so it's a case of study/play/review in my spare time).
PS: I know that in Avi's ‘Improvement roadmap’ article he suggests a split of Study 25%, Practice 65%, and Fix 10%. At the moment, as I know nothing about tactics, my split is probably more like 65%, 25%, and 10%. Is that OK until I've learned some basics?
Replies
For the improvement plan, stick to the study plan. You should be playing most of the time, to lose the first 100 games as fast as possible. You need to try and make connections in your brain. As for tactics, 25-30% of the time is a reasonable goal. You don't want to overdue it though.
I don't know how much time for your goal, I got to 1000 really fast, it wasn't hard for me, and that was like 2 years ago. My tips is to simply play as much as you can and analyze. Tactics are good too as most of your games will be decided by them. Good Luck! Let me know how it goes. Hope this helps.
Keep getting your mind stronger, and work on puzzles.
play more games, anillize your games to learn more.
Try to find out what your opponent's threats and intentions are before you make your moves, solve puzzles and review your games. And learn important endgames (K vs KP, Lucena etc). Play with longer timecontrols.
Then you stop hanging your pieces you will get to 1000+ in no time.
Do puzzles daily. This will help with your tactical vision.
Czech Pirc
Please add the Advanced section of Czech pirc as c5 looks very tough move. Thanks you.
Replies
Dear friend,
We might have more updates in the opening courses, in a meanwhile if you can post an exact position or move sequence I will try to help :-)
New Success Story: From Lost Momentum to National Champion: Zoubaier's Comeback Story
No coach. 10 years of struggle. And still, he came back as National Champion. 🏆
Huge congratulations to our student, FM Zoubaier Amdouni🎉
A story of quiet resilience and a comeback no one saw coming. Here’s how he did it 👇
https://chessmood.com/success-stories/zoubaier-amdouni
Replies
Wow, bravo!
Yes sir!!!
Inspiring, amazing work, wish you a bright future.
Awesome. Great to see the ChessMood repertoire in action OTB.
small centre/passive
how to play really really agressivly in gambit style against passive defenses like e4 e6 d4 c6 it's really anoying and black has plan of d5 how to crush it hardly
Replies
Grand Prix Attack
I am studying the starter courses and had a game in the Grand Prix Attack and lost horribly, I reviewed the content again, checked my file, “fixed” the issue.
I jumped into another game, and to my surprise, it was another Grand Prix Attack opportunity! This time, I smashed my opponent with 2x “brilliant” moves.
Thought I'd share, haha! Thank you!
https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/143419111404/review?move=28&move=28&tab=review&classification=greatfind&autorun=true
Replies
I have a question, do you think it's worth playing correct openings like the open Sicilian defense, just book moves, or just trying with a grand prix attack?
Question on Happy Pieces
In this position in the course "Happy Pieces" - section - "queen in the mopening - why not after 1.Qd6 Re8 next move Qe7
Replies
Sorry, this video does not exist.
I was watching an opening course and when I wanted to go to the next video this error popped up.
This also shows up with every course I tried/checked.
Is there something I can do or is this behind the scenes on the server?
Replies
Hi Gabriel. There is nothing you need to do on your end. This was a server-side issue with our video provider experiencing a temporary glitch. It has now been fully fixed. Just refresh the page and everything will work as expected.
Can't see any video
When trying to open any video course I get a "Sorry
Because of its privacy settings, this video cannot be played here."?
Replies
Hi Iulian.
This specific error message comes directly from our video hosting provider. They have privacy and regional restrictions that trigger in certain countries. To troubleshoot this, please try the following:
Test the video on a completely different browser.
If it still doesn't work, try using a VPN.
Sometimes this provider restriction resolves itself after a while, but checking a different browser or VPN usually bypasses it immediately. Let me know if that works.
Learning the evan's gambit!
Hello! I have been trying to learn the Evan's gambit and since I get mixed up on the lines, I was wondering if chess mood could make a course about it or if anybody has any tips about the Evan's gambit.
Replies
What is the recommended move in the Exchange Caro after 7...Qb6
In the Exchange Caro-Kann course, the Qb6 chapter recommends 8.QxQb6, but in the first Model Endgame example, GM Grigoryan suggests 8.Na3 “Which I like even more”. Which line does ChessMood recommend?
Replies
Dutch Attack Advanced
Dear ChessMood students ♥️
You love Dutch attack, but have questions in some variations?
I’m going to record an advanced Dutch course, but before that, let's get your questions answered during the live event!
Also, we’ll go a little bit deeper and into some nuances, so you can enjoy Dutch even more!
Please, post your questions here, and see you during the live event!
Love,
GM Avetik (or Avo, as my friends call me)
P. S. Usually, our live events are for PRO Members only.
This one is open for Essential students as well.
See you on Dec 5? 😊
Replies
between November 20-30, Essential Members have access too. how it opend for us ?
or it will be for pro member only?
Awesome we’ve been waiting for this!!
Always have trouble with f3 variations
Excellent course, as usual. Could you elaborate a bit if white plays Bf4 before castling in the g3 variation? (1.d4 e6 2.c4 f5 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 d5 5.Nf3 c6 6.Bf4). Thanks in advance!
https://www.chess.com/game/live/145832339546
a disaster out of the opening
I have trouble when they play e4
😢
The date literally collides with my exams!
https://www.chess.com/game/145910921480
Dutch problem for me
I have some trouble with the nimzo-dutch variation (after 2. c4 f5 3.Nc3 Bb4) in my classical games.
In a recent game my Stonewall was destroyed in the opening after a few moves. I won the game!
Will this be recorded for those of us that cannot attend?
I face the position after White's move 8 with some frequency. Both players have three attackers of the e5 square. If I play 8…Ne5, it looks like I'd be a pawn down. 8…d6, which I played in this particular game (https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/146004380620/analysis?move=14) , just seems to delay the inevitable regarding the e5 square. How should Black continue here? (I have no idea why the uploaded PGN, which has the whole game, is only showing the first seven moves here.)
😍
1. d4 e6 2. Bf4 f5 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nf3 b6 5. h3 Bb7 6. Be2 Be7 7. O-O Ne4 8. Nbd2 here if i play 0-0 or d6 he will thak Nxe4 and after Bxe4 a lot play Nd2 after Bb7 they play bf3 and the important B gone can you explain this position
Great dutch attack course! I'm using it in my games, but have couple questions from my practice.
1.Nf3 e6 2.g3 f5 what if white doesn't go for d4, but tries d3 KIA setup to blast our stonewall with e4 later. This is quite a dangerous setup for white (I even play it vs dutch) and hope you'll give some weapons in advanced dutch 👍
Against London you recommend the sneaky line where black can later attack white on the k-side 1.d4 e6 2.Bf4 f5 3.e3 Nf6 4.Nf3 b6 5.Be2 Bb7 6.0-0 d6 not revealing our cards we intend Nbd7,Qe7,Ne4+g5 and k-side storm, but if white goes aggressive with his own q-side play 7.c4! Nbd7 8.Nc3 imo white is better, any improvements here?
Thank you.
I enjoy playing your Dutch systems. In some games, I am passive with black – especially in the main variation with c4/g3/Bg2/Nf3. Can you give me some more strategic ideas on when to play b6/Bb7 or Ba6/c5 or dc4 in the centre?
Thank you
After white trades their bishop with f6 knight, then brings in their knight to e5 and white queen enters with h5+ or with a4+ (if I've played d6 trying to kick the knight). Perhaps I need revisit the course, but could use insight into how to proceed.
Thank you, Avo!!
https://www.chess.com/game/live/145713432912?move=19
https://www.chess.com/game/live/146127399592?move=25
Dear Chessmood Family,
by playing the Stonewall Dutch I've faced an early Lf4 for some times now where I couldn't find an antidote yet, so I want to ask the Chessmood Family how to encounter it. It was not playing often in the database but the engine loves this idea for white with +0,8 already. So I would like to have some tips or plans playing against it.
For example: 1.d4 e6 2.c4 f5 3.Sf3 Sf6 4.g3 d5 5. Sc3 c6 and now not 6.Lg2 as usual but 6.Lf4! (best engine move) restricting us playing 6…Ld6 as we don't want to change the dark square bishop. If I continue with normal Le7 and 0-0, white will play e3 and h4 and not even Lg2 then but Le2, Dc2 Kf1 and Kg2. When I saw this idea for white I was impressed and it restricts me from playing an attacking Dutch Stonewall. So I hope some of you guys have much experience and can help me. Thank you so much in advance!
Hello, my wife is dutch attack enjoyer and she recently played blitz game that follows: 1. d4 e6 2. c4 f5 3. a3 Nf6 4. Nc3 b6 5. Bf4 Bb7 6. e3 d6 7. Nf3 h6 8. h3 g5 9. Bh2 Nbd7 10. d5 e5 11. Be2 Nc5 12. b4 Nce4 13. Nxe4 Nxe4 14. Nd2 Nf6 15. Bh5+ Kd7 16. Bf7 … She got pretty bad position and my question is where is the exact moment she went wrong? I know that when you get check on h5 it is bad thing to allow, but where was her first mistake? She just wanted to push g5 in the spirit of dutch attack… Thanks and have a nice day
PS: (this a3 move is pretty anoying, it is just me or it is dutch attack harder to play when i cant put my bishop on b4?)
Hello Avo,
I am Kartikesh from INDIA,
I have certain doubt about its choosing of structure if white plays the late Catalan by not showing the cards early, as BlackMood players would be on crossroads because you only taught us the catalan struture when white shows their cards early…kindly clarify this in the session. :-)
See you in the session…
Hi Avetik,
I have a std. Fide rating of 1976 and most of my Dutch Attack games end up in a Stonewall. Sometimes I end up in trouble on the queen side. The following is a recent OTB game (90+30) in the League Championship, with a player ca. 200 pts lower rated than myself, where I ended up with a worse position:
1. d4 e6 2. c4 f5 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 d5 5. Nf3 c6 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. O-O O-O 8. b3 Qe7 9. a4 a5 10. Ba3 Bxa3 11. Nxa3 Bd7 12. Rfb1 Na6 13. Qd1 Be8 14. Nc2 Ne4 15. Qe1 Nb4 16. Rb2 f4 17. c5 fxg3 18. hxg3 Nxc2 19. Rxc2 Bh5 20. b4 g5 21. b5 Be8 22. e3 cxb5 23. axb5 Bxb5 24. Rxa5 Rxa5 25. Qxa5 Bc6 26. Ne5 Qf6 27. Qa2 Be8 28. Rb2 Nxc5 29. dxc5 Qxe5 30. Rxb7 Qc3 31. Qb2 Qxb2 32. Rxb2 Bc6 33. Rb6 Rc8.
Game ended in a draw on move 58.
I spent 40 min. on moves 15-19, but still ended up struggling.
Comments on how to best handle a position like this would be welcome. A specific question that I have is if b6, Bb7 is sometimes preferred to keep queenside expansion by White at bay, instead of the normal Bd7, Be8, Bh5 maneuver?
Hi Avo, I have a question regarding Dutch against the London system.
In the course and in the model games, the white knight chills on b1 for the entire opening phase. However, in practice, the opponents usually move it to d2 before I get to play Ne4 (in the Be7 setup), after which I'm no longer sure if the plan is still right.
Take the following sequence, for example, for which I've picked the most common moves for White, according to the Lichess database.
1. d4 e6 2. Bf4 f5 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nf3 b6 5. Bd3 Bb7 6. Nbd2 Be7 7. c3 O-O 8. Qc2
According to the course, the idea is to play 8…Ne4 before 9…d6 so that I can prevent White from playing Ng5 and attacking my otherwise weak d6 square. However, if I do play Ne4 in this situation, White can just trade my knight, and Ng5 is still possible, which will not allow me to play d6.
How should I deal with this or similar setups, where Nbd2 is played before I can play Ne4?
In one of the model games, Ne4 is played even before Be7 and O-O. This move order was not mentioned in the course, but is this the way to go to stay as flexible as possible?
Hi Avo,
One simple line i am not sure if it has been discussed.
1.d4 e6 2.c4 f5 3.a3? then how we play as black and where to put our black squared bishop?
Thank you in advance, lf for the course!!!!
😊
Just to say tt I quit playing french and dutch attacks when I reached 2000 rapid rating and moved on to the advanced courses but I like the material of these days so much tt I will start to play a bit of all for black!!
Thanks for these sessions and I noticed that even the parrot got quiet during the dutch attack session!!
Hey GM Avetik, I watched the lesson, great lesson, do you have any idea when the advance dutch course will be released?
please tell us if it will feature the stonewall. I'm thinking of getting the book "Playing the Stonewall Dutch" by Nikola Sedlak
The best games of March, 2026, and the prizes
Hello ChessMood family, hello champions and future champions!
Welcome to the "Best games of March, 2026" competition.
Under this post, we invite you to post the best games that you will play this month (up to 5 games per person accepted).
The Prize fund is 350K MoodCoins which is equal to 350$.
The 1st prize - 150K
The 2nd prize - 100K
The 3rd prize- 50K
The 4th prize- 30k
The 5th prize- 20k
Good luck with your games and keep the Right Mood!
#ChessMood
#Right Mood - Right Move
P. S.
Here are the winners of February, 2026:
Dmytro Shulzhenko
Jayden Kai Jie
Kamil Ch
Mogens N.
Glenn Turpin
Replies
anis_84 vs mononclejesus: Sicilian Defense: Closed, Traditional • lichess.org
Aggressive attack in the closed sicilian!!
my opponent gave me the center and I punished him badly https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/165483827486/analysis?move=36
https://www.chess.com/game/165484097104 nice dutch attack game.. I have been going back and rewatching the dutch videos and it's been helping me better understand the ideas.
After eleven moves Black was already in some sort of trouble:
https://lichess.org/hREny4vVqR6K
Congrats to february winners,
March, game I:
A refuted staunton gambit by the serious dutch attack:
March game II:
tribute to Thomas Maes with this game: his last game inspired me, I think:
https://www.chess.com/game/live/167019013955
managed to use the development lead
https://www.chess.com/game/live/165566810550
Great attack against almost 2300 player and then practical win
https://www.chess.com/game/165629751190
Keep attacking @ GM Hovhannes Gabuzyan
French
Booooom!
https://www.chess.com/game/165633044294 Caro kaan exchange Boom
positional destruction in grand prix with bxc6 https://www.chess.com/game/live/165662821224?move=0
https://lichess.org/wnNOtW7d/white
https://lichess.org/smGe6g8U/white#0
https://lichess.org/HY7RPCzQ/black
lichess_pgn_2026.03.08_Potato_are_dumb_vs_jean_valjean1967.cSjgSc6b.pgn
I am submitting this game because of the very interesting mate at the end. I actually move my piece into a fork to get the mate. I thought it was pretty cool.
Thanks
A typical French Attack: Grigoryan variation, as Avetik sir wanted to call it. I managed to pull it off properly after a long time, my opponent did blunder, but in the end i had 2 rooks, knight and queen vs 2 rooks and queen, I activated my knight as a diversion but my other rook was a bit free as well. My opponent couldnt move the pieces properly in peace and ended up blundering a fork which leads to a good exchange and then a rook. Also is this a model game?
https://lichess.org/nrQ5n3ua/black
https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/165713373448/analysis?move=52 chessmood theory leads to crushing position with a nice 96 accuracy
Fun win against the Polish ;-)
https://lichess.org/PBWgHSIx/white#55
https://www.chess.com/game/165740028076
another Caro killer thanks Avo
Quick cochrane gambit…
Win against Scandinavian Defense (trapping queen, didn't even think, cause variation was covered in the course):
https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/165756907470/analysis?move=32
https://www.chess.com/game/165783479052
An enjoyable win versus Grand Prix Attack.
https://www.chess.com/game/live/165776973072?move=2
Greed gets punished:
https://lichess.org/UsLH1AxjEG5n
Greed gets punished (2):
https://lichess.org/LvRtt2ckzMqU
https://www.chess.com/game/165802482930
another Caro victory with 2 brilliant moves
https://lichess.org/rthyZMJll4dQ
The punisher attacks
A blitz game with white!
1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Qxd5 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Be2 Bg4 5. h3 Bh5 6. d4 e6 7. c4 Qd8 8. Qb3
Qc8 9. Nc3 Be7 10. Bf4 c6 11. g4 Bg6 12. Ne5 Nbd7 13. h4 h5 14. Nxg6 fxg6 15. g5
Nh7 16. Bd3 Nhf8 17. Qc2 Kf7 18. O-O-O Bb4 19. Rh3 Bxc3 20. Qxc3 Ke7 21. Qc2 Qe8
22. Rf3 Kd8 23. Be5 Rg8 24. Be4 Kc8 25. Bg3 Nb8 26. d5 exd5 27. cxd5 b6 28. dxc6
Ne6 29. Kb1 Nc5 30. Bxg6 Qxc6 31. Rc3 Rd8 32. b4 Rxd1+ 33. Qxd1 Qxg6+ 34. Kb2
Kb7 35. bxc5 bxc5 36. Qd5+ Qc6 37. Rb3+ Kc8 38. Qg8+ Kd7 39. Rxb8 Rxb8+ 40. Qxb8
Qb6+ 41. Qxb6 axb6 42. Kc3 Ke6 43. Kc4 Kf5 44. Bc7 Kg4 45. Bg3 Kf5 46. a4 Ke4
47. a5 bxa5 48. Kxc5 a4 49. Kb4 Kf3 50. Kxa4 Ke4 51. Kb4 g6 52. Kc4 Kf5 53. Kd5
Kg4 54. Ke6 Kh3 55. Kf6 Kg4 56. Kxg6 Kf3 57. Kxh5 1-0
Great defence, checkmate nonetheless:
https://lichess.org/cSMsaDtt4hZY
https://lichess.org/msTAgFXl/white#24
https://www.chess.com/game/165921691532 a typical kings indian attack
English defense vs English https://www.chess.com/game/165941430192
Check out this #chess game: studlyhunglow vs Edorin97 - https://www.chess.com/live/game/165951178026
Crossed 2100 for the first time in my life today! 😀 Sharing how I did it, loved this game.
Nice caro kann
https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/165981645942/analysis?move=18 very tactical game
Scotch with interesting edgame: https://www.chess.com/game/live/165983469078
https://lichess.org/6sBKUKLR/white#49
https://lichess.org/tb0gygsV/white#27
https://www.chess.com/game/166038609210
https://www.chess.com/game/live/166040657038
https://www.chess.com/game/166044034082
https://www.chess.com/game/166044474726
Clean positional victory:
https://lichess.org/tpXcRM8sTqGd
Knightmare checkmate:
https://lichess.org/V9eSfx8A3aTA
March game III
https://www.chess.com/game/166075038512
�😛�
March game IV
A nice win with an advanced DUTCH ATTACK against the white strong pawn break on e4
I played be7 like adviced by avo in his webinar and then did not remember any line.
Happy as black is around 2400 on lichess
Unusual checkmate:
https://lichess.org/0lgE1zBF/black#40
A very stable game where I sacrificed my queen, got advantage and never gave a look back
https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/166137978848/analysis
This game was played by 6 years old who stared to learn Benko, and watches Tactic ninja course
Hello,
French, getting rook up with double check:
https://www.chess.com/game/live/166198078114
Iam white and a 3min game. I lern this attack thanks to chessmood.
1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. Bd3 Nf6 5. c3 Nc6 6. Bf4 Bg4 7. Qb3 Qd7 8. Nd2
e6 9. Ngf3 Bd6 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. O-O O-O 12. Rae1 Rab8 13. Ne5 Bh5 14. Qc2 Bg6
15. Bxg6 hxg6 16. f4 Rfc8 17. Qd3 b5 18. Qh3 a5 19. Qh8+ Kxh8 20. Nxf7+ Kg8 21.
Nxd6 Rd8 22. Rxe6 b4 23. Nb3 bxc3 24. bxc3 a4 25. Nc5 Rb2 26. Nxa4 Rxa2 27. Nc5
Na5 28. f5 gxf5 29. Nxf5 Nc4 30. Re7 Kf8 31. Ne6+ Kg8 1-0
Interesting copy of Gabuzyan style mating attempts with some non Gabuzyan mistakes thrown in case some actually thinks its his game.
https://lichess.org/FuYSAL6B/white#0
https://lichess.org/Zr1VAhG41yyJ
I was able to play a good mating attack with the Sicilian Grand Prix. Probably, a6 was a loss of time.
https://lichess.org/ZIPPzethEvdH
Black, French exchange.
This should be banned!
White, against Willow, the Apertura Chess Cup holder; definitely not 1 of her best games though.
[Event "CAM League 2026.CMT"]
[Site ""]
[Date "2026.3.22"]
[Round "1, Game 19"]
[White "Mark"]
[Black "Willow"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "oft"]
1. e4 e6
2. e5 Bc5
3. d4 Bb4+
4. c3 Nc6
5. cxb4 Nxb4
6. Bc4 h5
7. Nf3 Nf6
8. exf6 Nd3+
9. Qxd3 gxf6
10. O-O Qe7
11. Bf4 d5
12. Bb5+ Bd7
13. Bxc7 Rc8
14. Bg3 a6
15. Bxd7+ Qxd7
16. Nc3 Qc6
17. h3 Qb6
18. b3 Qa5
19. Rac1 Qd8
20. Rc2 h4
21. Nxh4 Rc6
22. Rfc1 Qa5
23. Ne2 Qb6
24. Nf3 f5
25. Ne5 Rxc2
26. Rxc2 Qa5
27. Rc8+ Ke7
28. Rxh8 f6
29. Rh7+ Ke8
30. Nd7 Kd8
31. a4 Qb4
32. Nxf6 b5
33. Rd7+ Kc8
I've forced her to play Kc8, and now my next move leaves her with no choice but to give up her queen
34. Qc2+ Qc4
35. bxc4 dxc4
36. Rc7+ Kd8
37. Qb2
pinning the pawn; if bxa4, Qb8 is checkmate
37 ……. e5
38. Bxe5 a5
39. Qxb5 c3
40. Qe8# 1-0
ChessMood_BestGamesMarch 2 games here, these aren't from lichess.com I imported them from my notations.
March game V:
I missed the tactic where white can win the d5 pawn but got a good game.
A ruthless french attack:
https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/166366461026/review?move=51
1. https://www.chess.com/game/live/165477694924?move=0 S P A C E EATer (Principles model setup)
2. https://www.chess.com/game/live/165521086718?move=0 Capablanca Half-Open Files (Benko)
3. https://www.chess.com/game/live/165551164524?move=0 Blunder sacrifice opponent believed - Rooks on open file (Petrov->Pirc)
4. https://www.chess.com/game/live/165590043542?move=0 Weak pawns hate Rooks (Scotch 3..d5?)
5. https://www.chess.com/game/live/165780371942?move=0 Opponent offers Queen for Rook, no need thanks (Caro-Kann improved)
https://www.chess.com/game/166389548534
Two OTB games:
March game Vbis (exceptionnally due to this win with the dutch attack against FM Jakob Leon Pajeken)
[Event "OTB classic game"]
[Site "My Club"]
[Date "2026.03.19"]
My first OTB game with GP Attack
I studied all the parts of the course and after 24 OTB games I eventually had the opportunity to play GP Attack.
----------------------------Game
[Round "5"]
[White "Bonferroni, Carlo"]
[Black "na"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B23"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[GameId "2266852832367829"]
[EventDate "2026.01.15"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
{[%evp 0,59,23,25,18,15,25,0,0,7,5,0,4,9,31,33,37,27,42,25,91,74,161,91,71,92,94,57,80,90,49,74,34,19,108,110,449,435,526,392,357,320,421,271,294,306,245,287,271,289,292,240,246,197,500,513,652,671,579,638,29997,29998]} 1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nd4 4. Nf3 Nxb5 5. Nxb5 d6 6. d4 cxd4 7. Qxd4 a6 8. Nc3 e6 9. Bg5 Qc7 10. O-O-O h6 11. Bh4 f6 12. Bg3 e5 13. Qd5 Bd7 14. Nh4 Ne7 15. Qxd6 Qxd6 16. Rxd6 g5 17. Nf3 Ng6 18. Rxf6 Nf4 19. Bxf4 exf4 20. Rd1 Be7 21. Rb6 Bc6 22. Ne5 Bc5 23. Rb3 Bxf2 24. Nxc6 bxc6 25. Rb7 O-O 26. Rdd7 Rf6 27. e5 Re6 28. Ne4 Be3+ 29. Kd1 Rxe5 30. Nf6+ 1-0
After having studied all the course about Scotch I had the opportunity to play it 3 times and this is my first win with it.
-------------Game
[Event "Swiss team cahmpionship"]
[Site "At home"]
[Date "2026.03.14"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Bonferroni, Carlo"]
[Black "na"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "C45"]
[WhiteFideId "-1"]
[BlackFideId "-1"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[GameId "2287643605133935"]
[EventDate "2026.03.14"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[WhiteTeam "Ouest 3"]
[BlackTeam "Lausanne"]
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nxd4 Bc5 5. Nb3 Bb6 6. Nc3 a6 7. Qe2 d6 8. Be3 Bxe3 9. Qxe3 Nge7 10. O-O-O O-O 11. h4 b5 12. f3 Re8 13. Qd2 Be6 14. Nd5 Bxd5 15. exd5 Ne5 16. f4 Ng4 17. Be2 Nf2 18. Bxb5 axb5 19. Qxf2 Rxa2 20. Rhe1 Nc8 21. Kb1 Ra4 22. Rxe8+ Qxe8 23. Re1 Qd7 24. Qe3 Kf8 25. Qd3 g6 26. Qc3 Kg8 27. Qf6 Ra8 28. Nd4 Nb6 29. Re7 Rf8 30. Rxd7 Nxd7 31. Qe7 Nb6 32. Qxc7 Nxd5 33. Qxd6 Ne3 34. Nxb5 Nf5 35. Qf6 Re8 36. g4 Re1+ 37. Ka2 Nh6 38. Nd6 Re6 39. Qd8+ Kg7 40. Ne8+ Rxe8 41. Qxe8 Nxg4 42. b4 Nh6 43. b5 Nf5 44. Qe1 f6 45. b6 Nd4 46. c4 Nc6 47. b7 Kf7 48. c5 h6 49. Qe4 Nb8 50. c6 f5 51. Qd5+ Ke7 52. c7 Na6 53. Qd8+ Kf7 54. b8=Q 1-0
Anti sicilian part 2 advanced
Demolition
https://lichess.org/6vDMGH8E
https://www.chess.com/game/live/166434579536
https://lichess.org/kKd6FAfFgcTD
Play Camelotdreams • lichess.org
https://lichess.org/vTg0KARG/black#34
https://www.chess.com/game/live/166403009118?move=0
https://www.chess.com/game/live/166373253482?move=0
https://www.chess.com/game/live/166359633780
https://www.chess.com/game/live/166355155358
https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/166486167592/review
1900 still sacs for no reason
https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/166491373148/review?move=0
A nice double check and mate to win the game, which is funny because that's the section im re-watching in the tactic ninja course 😎 https://lichess.org/L44syQsP/white
Played a perfect Double Exchange Sac game ! Mesmerizing & Fascinating !
https://lichess.org/lgpcgMZdgl7H
Check out this #chess game: Edorin97 vs qw3rrrty - https://www.chess.com/live/game/166545407908
Fun game with a lot of tempos that apparently the computer analysis approved
well at least one game i am satisfied with during march..
Fun win against the Alekhine. 60+10 OTB.
french mc cutcheon gambit -→ pawn+rook endgame nice technique.
in the final position even without the mate, white would be in zugzwang.
https://lichess.org/1pxFrxvJ/black
Game 1 (with the black pieces): Chasing White's king until it runs to its doom
https://www.chess.com/game/daily/938637059
Game 2 (with the black pieces): The queen looks great on h3! (35… Qh3)
https://www.chess.com/game/daily/941859789
Game 3 (with the white pieces): 28. Nh6!! Probably my personal move of the month.
https://www.chess.com/game/daily/935324631
Game 4 (with the white pieces): A rather early rook lift finishes the game rather swiftly
https://www.chess.com/game/daily/938637023
Game 5 (with the black pieces): Unfortunately (for the opponent), the square rule is not applicable here
https://www.chess.com/game/daily/934001275
Punished opponent's bad opening play and finished the game with a nice tactic
https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/166603800382/analysis
A fun navigating won position. 60+10 time control.
https://www.chess.com/game/live/166618477954?move=0
The following OTB game was played yesterday by me in the last round of a (local) team championship in my city. I played in the first board and won with the French Attack in the advance variation, after White played a4 to prevent Bb5. Although, I faced for the first time a gambit in this exact variation, the game went fine for me! Additionally at the last moves, I missed some simple tactics due to time pressure (classic time control) but overall I found very good moves!
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 Bd7 4.Nf3 a6 5.a4 c5 6.c3 Nc6 7.Bd3 cxd4 8.0-0 dxc3 9.bxc3 Nge7 10.Re1 Ng6 11.Bxg6 hxg6 12.Qd3 Na5 13.Nbd2 Rc8 14.Nd4 Qc7 15.Bb2 Nc4 16.Nxc4 Qxc4 17.Qg3 Be7 18.f4 Bh4 19.Qg4 Bxe1 20.Rxe1 Qc5 21.Kh1 Qe7 22.g3 Rc4 23.f5 exf5 24.Qf3 Be6 25.Ra1 Qd7 26.a5 Qc7 27.Qf4 Rh5 28.g4 fxg4 29.Qe3 Qxe5 30.Qf2 g3 31.Nf3 Qe4 32.Qxg3 Rh3 33.Qxh3 Bxh3 34.Re1 Qxe1+ 35.Nxe1 Re4 36.Nf3 Re2 37.Ba3 Bg2+ 0-1
This is a collection of games from a recent OTB 30+30 tournament
1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. g3 g6 4. Bg2 Bg7 5. a3 e6 6. Rb1 Nge7 7. Nge2 O-O 8. O-O d5 9. b4 d4 10. Na2 c4 11. Bb2 b5 12. c3 d3 13. Nf4 Ne5 14. a4 a6 15. Nc1 Bb7 16. Nh3 f5 17. f4 Ng4 18. e5 Qb6+ 19. Kh1 Bxg2+ 20. Kxg2 Qc6+ 21. Kg1 Rfc8 22. Ng5 Nh6 23. h3 Nf7 24. Nf3 h6 25. Nd4 Qd7 26. g4 Nc6 27. axb5 axb5 28. Nxb5 Ncxe5 29. Nd4 Nc6 30. Nf3 e5 31. Nh4 Kh7 32. fxe5 Bxe5 33. gxf5 gxf5 34. Rxf5 Rg8+ 35. Kf1 Ng5 36. Qh5 Raf8 37. Qg4 Bg3 38. Rxf8 Rxf8+ 39. Kg2 Qxg4 40. hxg4 Bxh4 41. Na2 Rf2+ 42. Kh1 Nf3 43. b5 Rh2# *
1. e4 c5 2. Be2 g6 3. f4 Bg7 4. Nf3 Nc6 5. c3 d5 6. d3 Nf6 7. e5 Ng8 8. d4 b6 9. O-O Nh6 10. a3 O-O 11. h3 Nf5 12. Bb5 Bb7 13. g4 Ng3 14. Rf2 Ne4 15. Rg2 cxd4 16. cxd4 a6 17. Ba4 b5 18. Bc2 Rc8 19. Be3 Na5 20. b3 Qc7 21. Ne1 f6 22. h4 fxe5 23. fxe5 Rf7 24. g5 Rcf8 25. Qe2 Bxe5 26. dxe5 Qxe5 27. Ra2 Ng3 28. Rxg3 Qxg3+ 29. Ng2 d4 30. Bd3 Bxg2 31. Qxg2 Qxe3+ * and my opponent resigned
Hello ChessMood family! Here are two games from the month of March I'd like to submit:
This first one is a Classical chess game in the Scotch with h4! I had the white pieces:
[Date "2026.03.04"]
[Variant "Standard"]
[Opening "Scotch Game: Mieses Variation"]
[UTCDate "2026.03.04"]
[UTCTime "02:12:56"]
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nxc6 bxc6 6. e5 Qe7 7. Qe2 Nd5 8. h4 d6 9. c4 Nb6 10. exd6 cxd6 11. Be3 Be6 12. Qc2 Qd7 13. Nd2 Be7 14. O-O-O Rb8 15. Ne4 Bf5 16. Bd3 Bxe4 17. Bxe4 Kf8 18. h5 h6 19. b3 Qe8 20. Bf5 a5 21. Rhe1 a4 22. Bf4 axb3 23. axb3 Qd8 24. Rxe7 Kxe7 25. Bxd6+ Qxd6 26. Qe4+ Qe6 27. Bxe6 fxe6 28. Qh4+ Kf7 29. Qf4+ Ke7 30. Qc7+ Kf6 31. Rd3 Rhc8 32. Rf3+ Kg5 33. Qxg7+ *
This second one is a game in the Maroczy Bind where I barely had to think because of the ideas explained in the opening course 😅
https://lichess.org/0BpSxxVYXDL9
Here is a Sicilian that I played right after watching half of the WhiteMood Sicilian section. I just followed the main themes of after f4 castle kingside, f5 push, Qe1 then Qh4. Bishop controlling the long white diagonal was key as well. Although I did mix up the order of moves (13. Kn-g5!) the game still went smoothly just by following the main ideas as laid out in WhiteMood. Oh, there was a nice deflection tactic to deliver mate.
https://lichess.org/ybay8DIRaNtD
https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/166695276286/analysis
Scotch game with a nice ending.
Hello Champions!
A big thank you to everyone who shared their best games of the month.
You showed creative ideas, strong strategic understanding, and produced some really impressive wins. Your games were full of useful and instructive moments.
Great job, and now let’s get to the prizes! 🏆
1st Prize: Marius Cornee
Vikings would be proud!
From the very opening, you kept Black’s King on its toes, chased it throughout the entire game with an unstoppable growing initiative, and destroyed Black’s position without allowing the Rook on h8 to make even a single move.
Amazing!
https://lichess.org/6vDMGH8E#67
2nd Prize: Tyler Ferland
Good execution of the space advantage with the opponent’s King stuck in the middle.
You opened the position at exactly the right moment, when Black was not ready at all, and with a fierce attack, made their position collapse and led the game to a mate.
Super attacking game!
https://www.chess.com/analysis/game/live/165483827486/analysis?move=19
3rd Prize: Edvinas Volkovas
This game demonstrates so many attacking principles.
But the main highlight is the speed!
With a piece sacrifice, you gained the initiative and shut down your opponent’s pieces on the Queenside.
With quick tempo moves, you never allowed them to breathe and finished the game by crushing the King.
Proud of you!
https://www.chess.com/game/live/166545407908?move=41
4th Prize: Tina Vehl
Amazing French game.
While both sides had space on the board, you traded off your opponent’s space-making pawns, opened up your pieces, and headed straight for their King.
Everything was clear and powerful.
Good job!
https://lichess.org/vTg0KARG/black#25
5th Prize: Mark Tee
Beauty in the Scotch!
In the opening, with the doubled pawns, your opponent was brave enough to castle long.
And you followed a powerful principle: bring the pieces.
Qa6 followed by the rook lift was simple, yet incredibly strong at the same time.
Nice!
https://www.chess.com/game/daily/938637023?move=0
Congratulations to all of you!
Thank you once again to everyone for sharing your games.
All the best for next month’s contest!
Best time control to study/learn openings
I’ve read quite a few blog posts about time controls and I’m also a student of GM Noel Studer (The Simplified Chess Improvement Community).
That said, I keep hearing and reading a lot of different opinions about time controls and what “serious” chess should look like. I tend to be easily persuaded or at least start doubting my current approach.
For some context:
- I enjoy slower games (30+20 or longer).
- I’m currently in the top 15 in classical chess on Lichess.
- Right now, I’m working through step-by-step opening repertoires for both White and Black.
For the middlegame and endgame, I really value slower time controls because they give me time to think. However, this month my main focus is opening study, and that’s where I’m considering a change.
When studying openings, would it make sense to switch to a faster time control? More games would mean more repetition and more data to learn from.
What do you think? (I’m actually ready to commit to whatever time control you suggest and stick with it, without second-guessing it a week later 🙂)
Replies
Dear Gabriel,
Indeed yes!
I think something like 5+3 can be good, even though you enjoy the longer time controls.
The reason is that in this way you will be able to test the desired positions in many more games, rather than if playing classical :-)
Mark's opening was used to defeat a World Champion
Has anyone here ever tried Mark's Opening? (1 d4 Nf6 2 Nc3 d5 3 Bf4)
What's your opinion of it?
Aleksandra Goryachkina played it at least once, in the 2020 Women's World Championship, and beat the World Champion Ju Wenjun. And other top players have played it too.
Replies
Anti Sicilian with 2...Nc6 and 3...d6
Hello,
In the model games in rock and roll with white game 6 after 3…d6 4.Bxc6 Avetik mentions that this was covered in the main course and also talks about Qd2 Novelty! Unfortunately, I can not find a course that this is described, can you please help me with this matter?
Thanks a lot for your great courses and help and best regards,
Armin
Replies
Hi Armin
Regarding the spam I guess it is some bot - auto-creating account and then spamming…
I think that if you cannot find something you need to search through all the 5 parts of anti-Sicilian courses as it was evaluating during years and some of the streams are old when they were recorded there was only 2-3 parts of the courses. And the are many transpositions - moves can happened in different order and can be in the other course.
I am still in part 1 - 2.Nc3 d6, but as far as I remember when watched before 4.Bxc6 was some advanced way of playing when we take the Knight and play GP attack without our light-squared Bishop. In many streams I can see that Gabu and other players they don't attack Knight with Bishop, but instead play standard f4 GP style move.
Main course for Avetik means the main part, not the Advance part which was for PRO members, not sure if it is still so.
Cheers,
Kamil
Question about Anti-Sicilian 2: 1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.Bb5 d6
Hi all regarding Antisicilian 1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 Nc6 3.Bb5, if Black plays a6/e6/g6 then we'll play Bxc6 doubling Black's pawns and then play on the kingside.
But when Black plays 3…d6, I noticed in Chessmood streaming games Bxc6 is not often played; instead f4 or Nf3 is played then Black will quickly play Bd7 and we can't double the pawns anymore. It seems if Black plays a6 then we'll just lose the bishop pair without spoiling Black's pawn structure. And Black can cover f5 square with e6 and g6. What is our strategy here?
Thanks,
Alex
Replies
Hi Alex,
I am still in part 1 - 2.Nc3 d6, but as far as I remember when watched before 4.Bxc6 was some advanced way of playing when we take the Knight and play GP attack without our light-squared Bishop. In many streams I can see that Gabu and other players they don't attack Knight with Bishop, but instead play standard f4 GP style move.
If Black plays a6 I think we play fianchetto g3, Bg2, for e6 it is similar to d6 so f4,Nf3,0-0 Bc4, but there each move matters. Sometimes opponent plays with both Knights, sometimes first Knight Bishop and d6 e6 pawns - there are different answers on our site. And many of the move d6,e6,g6 they later are transpositions to the same positions.
Cheers,
Kamil
Kamil feedback after our 1-1 call in November
Hi Gabu,
Just short info as I recently said I always attend events :-), there is a change.
I am reducing my attendance on Saturday events, so the weekend will be fully dedicated to my family or in some rarely cases to OTB tournaments which usually happens Saturday-Sunday.
As we discussed on 1-1 I am focused on combo: Silent Strategy+Classical Games. I have little less time for learning (with the full focus which is required), but step by step I have been gaining knowledge. For now I feel even a bit overwhelmed by different topics as I ask too many questions before a move :-) In result I started losing more games with simple tactics or blunders,
so had to switch to longer time control, to have more chances to practice the silent strategy topics. Btw. I saw you added last sections today. Good news!
I know it will take some time to get experience and effectively use it in the games, but let's say at least I started to see more of this big picture and know to look on more different resources when scanning the board and becoming a better detective.
What motivates me as well is that I am often able to properly answer when you ask for decision how to continue, even for some mind-blowing examples like Ivanchuk - Chekhov in space advantage...😉
Hope, it will work also during real games, I need only to find the right moment to ask the essential question from all the courses: pause your game and decide how to continue? 😀
I am playing a tournament this weekend, but as I don't feel fluent in silent strategy topics yet, I treat it more like training.
Anyway I will let you know about results.
Cheers,
Kamil
Replies
Thanks for the message, my friend!
As always, saying with an experience, everything will be easier.
Eager to hear about your tournament results. Good luck!
Dutch Attack - White exchanges their e pawn to expose our backward pawn on e6
Please see attached pgn file of the game.
I was playing Dutch Attack (black) against 1.d4 by white.
White played e4 in the 9th move which (after the exchange) created a half open file in front of my backward pawn on e6. Defending e6 resulted in me getting in to a very bad position and a loss of a pawn.
[I managed to win the game subsequently by using a tactic against a blunder made by the opponent]
Any advise on how to address issues arising from the backward pawn on e6 when the e-file is forced opened by white when playing Dutch Attack will be much appreciated.
Replies
A tricky opening choice
I have recently faced the Kholmov gambit (e4-e5-Nf3-Nf6-Nxe5-Nxe4?!-Qe2-Qe7-Qxe4-d6-d4-dxe5-dxe5 and struggled while playing against it. What will you recommend me to play in this situation?
Replies
I would advise playing with Qxe5 Qxe5 dxe5 Nc6 Nc3 Ne5 Bf4 Bd6 Bg3, and now we threaten Nb5 or Ne4 - Black is uncomfortable in that position.
Daily Puzzle Repeated
Today's Daily Puzzle is repeated, it was there this same week.
