Improve your middlegame skills

Almost every chess player would have come across this question – “What to do in a middlegame?”. While the question is very short and simple, the answer is not. But let’s try to figure it out!

Middlegame positions are unique in each game and, therefore, memorization of theoretical variations is not possible as it is in the opening stage. Likewise, there are too many pieces on the board for theoretical positions to be analyzed completely.
About three months ago, we created a survey to understand your needs and suggestions for our next course. Almost all of you have stated that your chess goal is to become a Grandmaster and/or World Champion. First, I’d like to congratulate you on that and wish you the best! 

Second, many of you have asked for a course on middlegame and pawn structures. As promised, we’re meeting your needs and wishes, and have decided to create a course. Thus, is born “Winning the Middlegame”, our forthcoming course.

We’re in the final stages of completing the course and it will be launched soon. Meanwhile, I would like to help you be prepared for that course. Therefore, I recommend you to study our two existing middlegame courses, “Your Winning Plan” and “Calculate Till Mate”, so that you can truly master the middlegame.

But that’s not all – I’m providing you with a massive 30% discount on these two courses!  Simply use the coupon “middlegame” when making your purchase. This is a limited-period offer – it is valid from today (27 July) until Sunday, 31 July (inclusive).

Note: if you don’t know how to use a discount code, please see the FAQ here.

Additionally, I’d like to inform you that our RCA Shop had some issues during the beginning of this month, due to which purchasing our courses was not possible. We’ve also mentioned this issue on our Facebook page recently. We apologize for the inconvenience caused – nevertheless, as compensation, we are now providing you with this huge 30% discount on the two middlegame courses.

This discount applies to the following middlegame courses:

• Calculate Till Mate

• Your Winning Plan

I assure you that studying these two courses will help you understand the middlegame scenario. They will help you build a strong foundation and this will make it easier for you to study the upcoming course “Winning the Middlegame” and digest its ideas.

P.S. Don’t miss this unique opportunity – if you’ve always wanted to be a PRO in middlegame chess, this is the right time for you. Good luck! 

Chess Tactics – Knight Fork

The knight fork is nothing more than a simultaneous attack on two or more pieces. The fork also occurs as frequently as the pin. One should force the enemy pieces to move in such a way that a fork is possible. A good chess player would be able to recognize immediately whether or not a fork could happen.

Below, the knight forks the king and the queen:

Diagram – 1

 

Diagram – 2

White to play

 
This is a position where a knight fork occurs with the help of a pin. 1.Nxf6+ and White wins the rook. The knight attacks the king and the rook simultaneously.

Suggested: you may like to study all RCA lessons related to “tactics” here.

Now let’s see a few illustrative examples.

Example – 1

White to play

As said, a good player can recognize the knight fork easily, and White does it by bringing the knight fork pattern by playing1.Rxh4 and Black has to take the rook or end up with losing the knight 1…Qxh4 and now 2.Ng6 fork is a mistake because after 2…Qd8 3.Qxf8+ Qxf8 4.Nxf8 Kxf8,

everything becomes equal. White makes a better move here with 2.Qxf8+ and after 2…Kxf8 3.Ng6+..it is a FORK now, and White is winning a piece after 3…Kf7 4.Nxh4

Example – 2

White to play

White’s knight is under attack and he moves it by making an attack, and a fork threat with 1. Nd6. Therefore, the bishop has to guard the f5 square with 1…Bd7 and now 2. Re7+ wins the bishop.

Example – 3

White to play

Can you find the winning move? Yes, White makes the fork with 1. Nxf6+ and after 1…gxf6 White wins the queen with 2. Rxd4+

Example – 4

White to play

White starts his mating attack with 1.Nf6+ and now forces Black to open his g-file with 1…gxf6 2. Qg3+ Bg7 and now comes another threat with 3.Bxf6 – an unavoidable mate.

Example – 5

White to play

White recognizes the fork with 1.Rxd4 and after forcing 1…exd4 2.Bxd4 attacking the queen. And again Black is forced to play2…Qxd4 and then comes the FORK with 3.Nxf5+

Now that you would have understood the different patterns of the knight fork, let me test your skills with a few exercises. 

Exercise – 1

White to play

Exercise – 2

White to play

Exercise – 3

Black to play

 
After calculating all possible variations, you may check the solution here.

P.S. Have you ever “crushed” your opponent(s) with a stunning knight fork? I’d be glad to see the tactics you used in your games. Feel free to write below. 

Recommended

Get a COMPLETE and UNIQUE 3-in-1 training system that will sharpen your tactics, calculation, and visualization skills like no other chess book, DVD, or training program could.

Get “Calculate Till Mate” HERE!

Best chess openings and how to pick one for you [Infographic]

Picking the right chess opening is important if you want to be successful in your chess career. Due to the vast amount of openings and defences out there, choosing the right opening may seem very difficult. Studying an opening is a major commitment, which is why it is important to look at all different openings and find which one suits you best.

How can you pick the perfect opening for you?

• Make sure that you enjoy playing that opening. If you’re a strategic player, you will probably not enjoy playing the King’s Gambit. At the same time, your chess will be stronger if you play positions you can dominate.
• Understand the positions that arise from your opening. Is your opening sharp? What kind of positions emerge from this opening and how comfortable are you at playing these positions?
• Understand how much time you can devote to studying openings. If you possess a limited amount of time you can devote to studying openings, it would not be the best idea for you to delve into openings with heavy amounts of theory (for example the Najdorf variation). Study systems or openings that don’t require a lot of preparation or memorization. If you are willing to spend more time studying openings, and you possess a great memory, a more complicated opening will be beneficial for you because it will allow you to outplay opponents in the opening phase.
• Don’t study unsound openings. The Orangutan Opening may surprise your online blitz opponents, but a strong player will know how to play against it and will punish you.
• Look at games by strong players. For example, have you always admired or identified with Kramnik’s style of play? Then analyse his games and look at the openings he plays. If you don’t have a lot of time to study openings, this is an effective technique, since you can “steal” a strong player’s repertoire.

 
 

Best chess openings for you

As you already know, the chess game has three stages – the opening, the middlegame and the endgame. Of course, all stages of the game are very important, but if you don’t play correctly in the opening you may lose immediately and won’t be able to demonstrate your middlegame and endgame abilities.

So you may wonder what the best chess opening for you is?

It’s no surprise that it can be very hard to pick the best opening for you, while, by contrast, in the middlegame and endgame, things are pretty straightforward.

• For example, in the case of an isolated pawn, we have to blockade it, then attack it and win in the endgame.

Hochgraefe, Markus (2300) – Pelletier, Yannick (2515) [D32]

Hamburg-ch int Hamburg (3), 31.05.1998

1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 c5 3.Nf3 e6 4.e3 Nc6 5.d4 d5 6.cxd5 exd5 7.Be2 Be7 8.dxc5 Bxc5 9.0–0 0–0 10.b3 Bg4 11.Bb2 Rc8 12.Rc1 Bd6

White to play

Can you find White’s plan in this position?

Actually, it’s very easy because White can follow a simple path:

1. White has blockaded the isolated d5-pawn

2. Now it is time to exchange some pieces

3. When some pieces are off the board, White will start the attack on the d5-pawn and will win it. In fact, the game finished more quickly due to Black’s tactical errors.

13.Nd4 Ne5 14.Bxg4 Nexg4 15.h3 Ne5 16.Nf5 Nc6 17.Nxd5[17.Nxd5 Nxd5 18.Qg4 g6 19.Nh6#] 1–0

Note: you can download the PGNs of all the games here.

• For example, in the endgame if we have a rook and pawns and the opponent has a bishop and pawns, at the appropriate moment we will capture the bishop with our rook, i.e. using the Capablanca rule, and we will win.

Morphy, Paul – Loewenthal, Johann Jacob [B21]

New Orleans New Orleans, 1850

1.e4 c5 2.f4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 4.exd5 exd5 5.d4 Bg4 6.Be2 Bxf3 7.Bxf3 Nf6 8.0–0 Be7 9.Be3 cxd4 10.Bxd4 0–0 11.Nc3 Nc6 12.Bxf6 Bxf6 13.Nxd5 Bxb2 14.Rb1 Bd4+ 15.Kh1 Rb8 16.c3 Bc5 17.f5 Qh4 18.g3 Qg5 19.f6 Ne5 20.fxg7 Rfd8 21.Be4 Qxg7 22.Qh5 Rd6 23.Bxh7+ Kf8 24.Be4 Rh6 25.Qf5 Qxg3 26.Rb2 Re8 27.Nf6 Re6 28.Rg2 Qxg2+ 29.Bxg2 Rhxf6 30.Qxf6 Rxf6 31.Rxf6 Ng4 32.Rf5 b6 33.Bd5 Nh6 34.Rf6 Kg7 35.Rc6 a5 36.Rc7 Kg6 37.Kg2 f6 38.Kf3 Nf5 39.Be4 Kg5 40.Bxf5 Kxf5 41.h4 Kg6 42.Rc6 Kh5 43.Kg3 f5 44.Rf6 f4+ 45.Kxf4 Bf2 46.Ke4 Bc5 47.Rf5+ Kxh4

White to play

Can you find the best move for White in this position? In the eyes of a strong or well-trained player, the move rook takes c5 is very natural. White isolates Black’s pawns and will soon collect them both with his very active king. Hence, White won easily.

48.Rxc5 bxc5 49.Kd5 1–0

My point is that there is ONE single rule for some positions or one plan divided into steps. On the other hand, in openings we can often see CHAOS.

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What is the KEY to understanding the categories of openings?

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We should categorize openings according to their pawn structures. The latter are the biggest chapter of chess knowledge and NO ONE in the world will tell you what exactly to do in each of them. There are a lot of materials, books, DVDs and articles about various pawn structures, like the minority attack or the isolated queen’s pawn (IQP), but the list of all possible pawn structures is really big.
Someone who can understand these pawn structures could be at the master level, i.e. 2300 rated players and above. Don’t worry about that because of RCA’s chess courses:

1. “Your Winning Plan” and

2. “Winning the Middlegame” (the forthcoming course)

They are suitable for you and can help you understand a lot of this complicated middlegame approach.

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A trainer’s typical mistakes

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Some trainers suggest the Cole or Trompowsky opening systems to beginners. These are similar openings, with the main difference being the location of the dark-squared bishop.

Please take a look at the pawn structures that can emerge from them:

Black to play

• IQP

From this complicated pawn structure, IQP can develop, as we see in Diagram 2. It can happen after the moves: 4…Nf6 5.dxc5 Bxc5 6.c4 0–0 7.cxd5 exd5– andBlack has IQP.

White can also get the IQP, for example: 4…cxd4 5.exd4 Nf6 6.c4 dxc4 7.Bxc4

• 2. e5 change

White can advance the e-pawn and develop the e5-chain. For example: 4…Nf6 5.Nbd2 Be7 6.Bd3 O–O 7.O–O b6 8.e4 Bb7 9. e5 Nfd7

White to play

• 3. 4-2 v 3-3

After some central pawn exchanges, we can have this particular pawn structure. For example:4… Nf6 5.dxc5 Bxc5 6.Nbd2 0–0 7.Bd3 Nc6 8.0–0 a6 9.e4 dxe4 10.Nxe4

Black to play

From IQP only, we may see the following pawn centres:

• Fixed centre, i.e. isolated pawns on d4 and d5.

• Kingside majority, i.e. White will have four pawns on the kingside and Black three.

• Hanging pawns, i.e. the two isolated pawns on d4 and c4.

• Open centre, i.e. without any central pawns.

The conclusion is that these systems are very advanced. The person who uses them should know a lot of middlegame theory, seek to trick his opponent or play very passively in the first three ranks with his pieces, in order not to lose immediately.

I hope that I’ve not disappointed you already. Now we are coming to the sweetest part!
 

Best openings according to ELO

We have done all the hard work for you and divided ALL opening into the following categories:

• Category-1 (800 – 1200)

The main goal is control of the centre, i.e. e4-e5 and d4-d5.

• Category-2 (1200 – 1500)

The main goal is an open centre and active pieces.

• Category-3 (1500 – 2000)

The main goal is to play gambits.

• Category-4 (2000 – 2300)

The main goal is to achieve a stable centre.

• Category-5 (2300 – 2500)

The main goal is to be better prepared than your opponent.

• Category-6 (2600 – 2800)

The main goal here is to be a “chess alien”!

Let’s see some examples of openings.

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Category-1 (800 – 1200): Scholar’s Mate
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White:

At this level, the most famous way to win with the White pieces is by the Scholar’s Mate. It happens for the first time in this game:

Amillano, Jesus – Loeffler, Arthur G [C20]

Mar del Plata op Mar del Plata (6), 1972

1.e4 e5 2.Qh5 Nc6 3.Bc4 g6 4.Qf3 Nd4 5.Qxf7# 1–0

Checkmate

This system is still active and some of the TOP Grandmasters implement it in their repertoire from time for time. For example:

Nakamura, Hikaru (2657) – Filippov, Anton (2466) [C20]

Champions Challenge 92nd playchess.com INT (5.3), 30.04.2005

1.e4 e5 2.Qh5 Nc6 3.Bc4 g6 4.Qf3 Nf6 5.Ne2 Bg7 6.d3 d5 7.exd5 Nb4 8.Bb3 Nbxd5 9.h3 0–0 10.Bg5 c6 11.Nbc3 h6 12.Nxd5 hxg5 13.Ndc3 a5 14.a4 Qe7 15.Qe3 Nh5 16.g4 Nf4 17.Nxf4 gxf4 18.Qe2 Qh4 19.Ne4 Kh8 20.Nd2 e4 21.0–0–0 exd3 22.Qxd3 Qxf2 23.Ne4 Qe3+ 24.Kb1 Qxd3 25.Rxd3 Be5 26.Re1 f6 27.Nd2 g5 28.Nf3 Re8 29.Bf7 Re7 30.Rd8+ Kg7 31.Bb3 b5 32.Nd4 Rb7 33.axb5 Bxd4 34.Rxd4 Rxb5 35.Re7+ Kh6 36.Rd6 Kg6 37.Bc4 Rb7 38.Bd3+ 1–0

Black:

The most normal moves for White are: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4. A lot of players will try to use these moves at the beginning of their games as White. Therefore, here I have an interesting system for you with the Black pieces:

Muehlock – Kostic, Boris [C50]

Cologne Cologne, 1912

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4

White to play

4.Nxe5 Qg5 5.Nxf7 Qxg2 6.Rf1 Qxe4+ 7.Be2 Nf3# 0–1

This system was played for the first time in 1912, but after 100+ years it is still very popular and Black can win games with it. For example:

Dang, Minh Anh (1443) – Nguyen, Ngoc Phuong Quyen (1427) [C50]

VIE-ch U07 Girls Ho Chi Minh City (7), 17.07.2014

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Nxe5 Qg5 5.Nxf7 Qxg2 6.Rf1 Qxe4+ 7.Be2 Nf3# 0–1

Advantages:

• You will not spend much time studying it

• You can understand it easily

• You can win fast!

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Category-2 (1200 – 1500): Scotch Opening
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White:

The Scotch Opening begins with the moves: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4.

Ercole del Rio, in his 1750 work “On the game of Chess”, was the first author to refer to this system as a “Scotch Opening”. Later, the opening received its name from a correspondence match in 1824 between Edinburgh and London.

It gained popularity in the 19th century, but a little later it lost favour among top players because it was releasing the central tension too early.

Nepomniachtchi, Ian (2721) – Ivanchuk, Vassily (2731) [C45]

Beijing Sportaccord Basque Beijing (1.1), 17.12.2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nxd4 Qf6 5.Nb3 Qg6 6.f3 Bb4+ 7.Bd2 a5 8.Nc3 Nge7 9.Nb5 Bxd2+ 10.Qxd2 Kd8 11.0–0–0 d6 12.Kb1 Rf8 13.g4 Qf6 14.g5 Qxf3 15.Bg2 Qg4

White to play

16.e5 Nxe5 17.Nxd6 cxd6 18.Qxd6+ Nd7 19.Rhe1 Qxg5 20.Nc5 1–0

But a great Grandmaster is always searching for novelties, i.e. doing all the hard work for us, and in the 20^thcentury Garry Kasparov popularized the Scotch Opening once more. When he stopped playing professional chess in 2005, step by step this opening went out of favour.

Often openings do not stop being playing because they lead to losses but simply because of the prevailing fashion! For example, one year blue clothing can be in fashion, the next white. Similarly, in chess one opening can be popular today and not tomorrow. Garry again shocked the word and the top Grandmasters in 2016. Let’s see some of his games:

Kasparov, Garry (2812) – So, Wesley (2773) [C45]

Ultimate Blitz Challenge Saint Louis USA (1.2), 28.04.2016

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nxc6 bxc6 6.e5 Qe7 7.Qe2 Nd5 8.c4 Ba6 9.b3 g6 10.Ba3 c5 11.g3 Bg7 12.f4 Nb4 13.Bg2 Rd8 14.Nc3 0–0 15.Bb2 d5 16.a3 d4 17.axb4 dxc3 18.Bxc3 cxb4 19.Bb2 Bc8 20.0–0 f6 21.Bd5+ Rxd5 22.cxd5 Qc5+ 23.Rf2 fxe5 24.Bxe5 Bxe5 25.Qxe5 Rd8 26.Rd1 Bg4 27.Qd4 Qa5 28.Rdd2 Re8 29.Kg2 Qb5 30.h3 Bf5 31.g4 Be4+ 32.Kh2 c5 33.Qf6 c4 34.d6 Bc6 35.f5 Rf8 36.Qe6+ Kg7 37.d7 Qc5 38.Qd6 1–0

Kasparov, Garry (2812) – Nakamura, Hikaru (2787) [C45]

Ultimate Blitz Challenge Saint Louis USA (5.2), 28.04.2016

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nxd4 Bc5 5.Be3 Qf6 6.c3 Nge7 7.Bc4 Ne5 8.Bb3 d6 9.0–0 0–0 10.f3 N7c6 11.Kh1 Bb6 12.Na3 Kh8 13.Qd2 Na5 14.Ndb5 Bxe3 15.Qxe3 Qe7 16.Bc2 a6 17.Nd4 c5 18.Ne2 Nac4 19.Nxc4 Nxc4 20.Qc1 f5 21.b3 Nb6 22.c4 fxe4 23.Bxe4 Bf5 24.Ng3 Bxe4 25.Nxe4 Rad8 26.Re1 Rfe8 27.Qd2 Qf8 28.Ng5 Qf6 29.Rxe8+ Rxe8 30.Re1 Rxe1+ 31.Qxe1 Nd7 32.Qe8+ Nf8 33.h3 Kg8 34.Ne4 Qf4 35.Qe7 Qc1+ 36.Kh2 Qf4+ 37.Kg1 Qc1+ 38.Kf2 Qb2+ 39.Kg3 h5 40.Nxd6 h4+ 41.Qxh4 Ng6 42.Qe4 Qf6 43.Nf5 Qg5+ 44.Kh2 Nf4 45.g3 Nh5 46.f4 Qd8 47.Qd5+ Qxd5 48.Ne7+ Kf7 49.Nxd5 1–0

Black:

The Albin Countergambit begins with the moves: 1.d4 d5 2. c4 e5 3.dxe5 d4.

This is a very interesting defence against d4 openings. Morozevich (2770), Kasimdzhanov (2690) and other strong Grandmasters are fond of this opening and use it often.

Black sacrifices one central pawn in order to gain central control with the d4 pawn and with his pieces.

One very famous trap is the following:

Biever, Roger – Cassidy, Raymond [D08]

Wch U20 fin-C Muenchenstein/Basel (1.3), 29.07.1959

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 d4 4.e3 Bb4+ 5.Bd2 dxe3 6.Bxb4

Black to play

6…exf2+ 7.Ke2 fxg1N+ 8.Ke1 Qh4+ 9.Kd2 Nc6 10.Bc3 Bg4 0–1

Advantages:

• You will learn how to attack

• You can handle dynamic positions

• You should invest a little more time in the opening but you will be rewarded for it!

• Very flexible and able to be played in almost every game.

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Category-3 (1500 – 2000): Sicilian Defence
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The Sicilian begins with these moves: 1. e4 c5

The Sicilian is the most popular and best-scoring response to White’s first move 1.e4.

17% of all games between Grandmasters, and 25% of games in the Chess Informant database, begin with the Sicilian.

This is the chess opening that you will love for your entire life, because Black is playing not just for equality but for the advantage.

The drawback is that White often obtains an early initiative, so Black has to take care not to fall victim to a quick attack.

White:

Smith-Morra

The Smith-Morra Gambit, or simply Morra Gambit, is distinguished by the moves: 1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.c3.

White sacrifices a pawn to develop quickly and create attacking chances. In exchange for the gambit pawn, White has a piece developed after 4.Nxc3 and a pawn in the centre, while Black has an extra pawn and a central pawn majority.

The plan for White is straightforward and consists of placing the bishop on c4, to attack the f7-square, and controlling both the c- and d-files with rooks, taking advantage of the fact that Black can hardly find any suitable place to post his queen.

Afromeev, Vladimir (2573) – Smolskiy, Mikhail (2076) [B21]

Tula Rassadnev Memorial Tula (11), 17.02.2006

1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.c3 dxc3 4.Nxc3 Nc6 5.Nf3 d6 6.Bc4 Nf6 7.e5 dxe5 8.Qxd8+ Nxd8 9.Nb5 Rb8 10.Nxe5 Ne6 11.Be3 Bd7 12.Bxe6 fxe6 13.Nc7+ Kd8 14.Rc1 Bc6 15.Nxe6+ Kc8 16.0–0 Ne8 17.Bg5 Nf6 18.Rfd1 Nd7 19.Rxd7 1–0

Schmidt, W. (2475) – Roeder, Frank (2250) [B21]

Krumbach op Krumbach, 1985

1.e4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.c3 dxc3 4.Nxc3 d6 5.Bc4 Nc6 6.Nf3 e6 7.0–0 Be7 8.Qe2 a6 9.Rd1 Qc7

White to play

10.Bf4 Ne5 11.Bxe5 dxe5 12.Rac1 Qb8 13.Bb5+ axb5 14.Nxb5 Kf8 15.Nc7 Ra7 16.Qb5 Nf6 17.Qxe5 Kg8 18.Nd5 Qxe5 19.Rxc8+ Bf8 20.Ne7# 1–0

Black:

Nepomniachtchi, Ian (2718) – Wang, Yue (2697) [B22]

RUS-CHN Summit 8th Rapid St Petersburg (4), 07.07.2012

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.c3 d5 4.exd5 Qxd5 5.d4 Bf5 6.Na3 cxd4 7.Nb5 0–0–0 8.cxd4 e5 9.Qa4 Bb4+

White to play

10.Bd2 Bxd2+ 11.Kxd2 Kb8 12.Bc4 Qe4 13.Rhe1 Qf4+ 14.Ke2 a6 15.Kf1 axb5 16.Bxb5 Nxd4 17.Rxe5 Nf6 18.Re7 Be4 19.Rd1 Nxb5 20.Rxb7+ Kxb7 21.Qxb5+ Kc8 0–1

Advantages:

• You will learn the role of time in chess

• You will learn the role of material in chess

• You will develop your pieces faster. Better development means a faster attack. A faster attack means a WIN!

• It clears the kingside pieces for castling

• Black has a lot of options going into the middlegame.

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Category-4 (2000 – 2300): Spanish Opening
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The Ruy Lopez is named after 16th-century Spanish priest Ruy López de Segura. It is one of the most popular openings, with such a vast number of variations that in the Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings (ECO), all codes from C60 to C99 are assigned to them.

White:

Anand, Viswanathan (2779) – Svidler, Peter (2728) [C88]

Corus Wijk aan Zee (5), 18.01.2007

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0–0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0–0 8.h3 Bb7 9.d3 Re8 10.a4 h6 11.c3 b4 12.Nbd2 d5 13.a5 dxe4 14.dxe4 Bc5 15.Qe2 Qe7 16.Nh4 Nd7 17.Nf5 Qf6

White to play

18.Qg4 Ne7 19.Nxh6+ Qxh6 20.Qxd7 Red8 21.Qxc7 1–0

Black:

Marshall Attack

The Marshall Gambit is an attacking system in the Spanish Opening, named after the American chess master Frank Marshall, who discovered this opening but kept it top secret for 10 years, in order to play it against the great Capablanca.

Capablanca won the first game with White, but this gambit is very popular today.

Vojinovic, Goran (2445) – Lazic, Miroljub (2470) [C89]

YUG-ch op Nis (10), 1998

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.0–0 Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 0–0 8.c3 d5 9.exd5 e4 10.dxc6 exf3 11.Qxf3 Bg4 12.Qg3

Black to play

12…Bd6 13.Qh4 Re8 14.Rxe8+ Qxe8 15.f3 Qe2 16.d4 Bh3 17.gxh3 Qxh2+ 18.Kf1 Bg3 0–1

Advantages:

• You will create a solid opening repertoire

• You will not be facing any surprises in this opening

• Healthier pawn structure

• Great flexibility in steering the game.

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Category-5 (2300 – 2500): Novelty in Opening
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Novelty is a very common chess word. Derived from the Latin word novus, “new”, it is the quality of being new or, following on from that, of being striking, original or unusual.

When a player unveils a novelty in a chess game, usually he will win the game due to his better opening preparation. Normally, the opponent cannot manage to defend correctly against all new threats he will face.

If you would like to play well at this level, then you should have a lot of novelties in your opening repertoire and continue finding others.

In this category, you need to make the breakthrough! Hence, it is necessary to know all middlegame and endgame techniques. So you need to go really, really deep into opening knowledge. You can do that by personal training from the highest-rated ELO players and with the cooperation of other titled players.

Carlsen, Magnus (2853) – So, Wesley (2779) [B90]

Sinquefield Cup 3rd Saint Louis (5), 27.08.2015

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Be3 e5 7.Nb3 Be6 8.f3 Nbd7 9.Qd2 b5 10.0–0–0 Be7 11.g4 b4 12.Nd5 Bxd5 13.exd5 Nb6 14.Na5 Nbxd5 15.Nc4 Nxe3 16.Nxe3 0–0 17.Bc4

Black to play

In this position, White played a novelty, a new move, i.e. the bishop to c4. This new move helped him win the game.

17…Nd7 18.h4 a5 19.g5 Rc8 20.Bd5 Nb6 21.Kb1 Qc7 22.Rhf1 Nxd5 23.Nxd5 Qb7 24.f4 f5 25.Qe3 e4 26.h5 Rc5 27.h6 g6 28.Qb3 Rf7 29.a4 Bd8 30.Rd4 Kf8 31.Rfd1 Rc6 32.Ne3 Bb6 33.Nc4 Bxd4 34.Nxa5 Qb6 35.Nxc6 Bc5 36.Qd5 e3 37.a5 Qb5 38.Nd8 Ra7 39.Ne6+ Ke8 40.Nd4 Qxa5 41.Qg8+ Kd7 42.Qxh7+ Kc8 43.Qg8+ Kb7 44.c3 bxc3 45.Qb3+ Qb6 46.Qxb6+ Kxb6 47.bxc3 Bxd4 48.Rxd4 Kc6 49.Kc2 Ra2+ 50.Kd1 Rf2 51.Ke1 Kd7 52.Ra4 Ke6 53.Ra8 Rh2 54.c4 Kf7 55.Rb8 Ke6 56.Rg8 1–0

Note: you can download the PGNs of all the games here.

Advantages:

• You can have your ideas ready from your home, from your computer analysis

• In your games, you will be relaxed and will have more time on the clock.

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Category 6 (2600 – 2800)
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You simply need to know everything. In this category, players can play ALL openings perfectly. Perhaps these players have solved the chess riddle but haven’t shared it with us. 

Advantages:

• You will have followers. People will study and play your openings

• You can beat other Grandmasters only with your home preparation

• Your goal is to win the World Chess Championship title!

Conclusions

1. The most difficult question for trainers is: “What opening should I suggest to students”?

à. We can create opening courses and articles for kids, students and trainers, as per your requests. 

2. The opening should be provided according to the current rating level.

à. Some openings are specific to a particular player’s ELO, but you can use them any time you want.

3. The topic of chess openings is really HUGE and may require many years of study.

à. One life is not enough for chess and this is one of life’s weaknesses! But in RCA, you can find the best opening articles to help your progress. Any opening you like is provided in a pleasing, educational and entertaining way. 

4. Be smart and change your opening systems as you grow up, when you become a better chess player!

à. Understand the positions that arise from your openings. Then, at the appropriate moment, you can move on!

It is more important to understand the idea of the opening you’re playing rather than mindlessly memorizing variations. When you know what you should do in an opening, you can find the moves yourself. This is more entertaining and enjoyable, and you will have fun while playing.

5. Continue to develop your opening knowledge by studying strong players’ games.

6. Equalize your training

à. Don’t spend countless hours studying openings. You want your opening, middlegame and endgame skills to be at the same strength.

7. Practice!

à. Practise the same opening. Grandmasters spend many hours playing the same opening variations. If you want to master an opening, it is important to be patient and stick with it.

If you would like to deepen your knowledge, study the best opening lines and develop a powerful opening repertoire quickly – you should study our complete courses HERE.

P.S. Finally, let me ask you a question. What is your favourite opening? Tell us what you like the most about them and why you enjoy playing them?  I’d appreciate you to write your thoughts in the comments below.