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A.J.'s Opening School, Page # 1
This is a page that was very old and was posted on one of my very first chess web sites. Previously, you could only reach this page through a link on my "Beginner's Chess Course." I have received literally DOZENS of e-mails about this page, so I decided to update it and add it here.
(I plan on eventually having dozens of pages like this.)
Each move is explained, move-by-move.
All the relevant ideas are both discussed and expounded. I think this is a very good way to learn the opening. (This page was originally available ONLY as pure text.)
(This page is PRIMARILY targeted at the "bare-bones" beginner ... and players who are rated well BELOW 1600, USCF.)
( A glossary of opening terms.) ( NEW - July, 2004: My System in Chess. [more] ) (A page that deals solely with the B-sack on h7.)
November 14th, 2003: In the beginning of Chapter Five of his new book, ("My Great Predecessors," Part I.); GM Garry Kasparov makes the following statement, (See Page # 340.):
"According to my theory, the game of chess consists of three components: material, time, and quality of position."
Of course this is clearly incorrect!
If
you consult the classic - and by now a landmark - book of chess: "The Ideas Behind The Chess Openings,"
you will see a list of nearly 20 items ...
things GM Reuben Fine states are ELEMENTS of
chess.
This also is clearly and completely wrong! (Dead wrong!)
*******
I remember attending a lecture given by GM Alex Yermolinsky - shortly after he won a U.S. Championship - where he gave a list of like 11 items that he said were fundamental to chess. I disagreed with this list as well ... it was simply too long to be precise.
*******
In
his now classic series of books, ("Winning Chess");
GM Yasser Seirawan gives the four following PRINCIPLES:
#
1.) FORCE; # 2.) TIME; #
3.) SPACE; and also #
4.) PAWN STRUCTURE.
While much closer to the mark, this too is not entirely accurate.
******
It seems amazing to me that with so much chess theory, the {seeming} 'authorities' cannot even agree on the basics!!! {A.J.G.}
Click here to see an explanation of the symbols I commonly use.
(A glossary of opening terms.)
Greco - anonymous
[C00]
Sacrifice on h7 (Greek Gift) by the Bishop
Spain, 1792.
[A.J.G.]
This game illustrates two very important points:
#1.) Sometimes castling can be wrong, early or premature;
#2.) An open file on a King's castled position can be DEADLY.
(There are few diagrams, you will need a chess board.)
*****************************************************************************************************
The ELEMENTS Of Chess
(Added:
Friday; November 14th, 2003.)
Before we begin, I would like to take a moment to outline CLEARLY the four basic ELEMENTS of chess. I think the order
they come in are also the most important. The first thing you take out, when you are getting ready to play a game, is the chess BOARD, not the
pieces.
*******
The following terms and their definitions are fundamental before we can proceed any further. They - by logic - define the three dimensions that are always present in physical space and the idea of 'flow in the time stream.' (Plus one nearly intangible idea.)
#
1.) SPACE
- The squares of the chessboard. Mathematically
speaking,
this is a system of boundaries. It provides the arena
for the
pieces and is where the game will take place.
ONLY ONE unit
of force can occupy one unit of space ...
at any
time.
***
#
2.) TIME
- The idea of: "You move, then I move." This concept
of time and
alternating turns, ("x" moves - per person); is built
into nearly
all board games, including those played with dice.
Time ... and
the correct way of utilizing it ... is still not completely
understood,
even today! (Tempo.)
***
#
3.) FORCE
- The term force is NOT clearly understood. In Averbakh's
book of
tactics, the author spends three pages defining force. I am
not even sure
we are any clearer - or understand the concept any better -
at the end of
this diatribe, as compared to before he began!
Therefore, my definition of this
term/principle ...
which is
revolutionary because of its sheer simplicity ...
is as
follows:
Force
is defined (plainly) as -
"Any
time a piece exerts capturing power on any square."
PERIOD.
This ... AND NOTHING ELSE!! ... is force.
(Note the
relationship! A piece - a unit of FORCE - must exert
influence over another element, a square - a unit of SPACE.)
Note too the importance that the SQUARE a piece must occupy ...
will
distinctly affect how much force a piece generates!!!
***
#
4.) MATERIAL
- By now you must be saying, "HUH?" Isn't material
the
exact, same thing as force? DOZENS of well-known players
-
including several U.S. Champions - have said the same thing when
I
elaborated this point. And I understand their confusion. Even the
much
vaunted RUSSIAN SCHOOL OF CHESS does NOT
make
this
particular distinction.
But consider this: A Rook in the corner - suffocated by its own
Pawns and
pieces - is NOT a factor early in the opening. Yet the
Rook is the the
second most powerful piece on the chess-board.
It is often the
middle-game, (Or even the ending!); before this piece
begins to really
make its presence felt on the chess board. And to
really attempt
to understand the basic ELEMENTS of chess, you
MUST ask
yourself why this is true!
I give the following - extremely precise - definition of
MATERIAL:
"The relationship of POTENTIAL ENERGY, that is contained
within the pieces, (as compared to their actual effectiveness),
as defined by the TABLE of MATERIAL VALUE."
In other words, a piece's TRUE WORTH or BENEFIT is measured
by the
post it holds ... AND THE NUMBER OF SQUARES IT
ACTUALLY CONTROLS!!! This equation of the POWER of any
piece,
and its exact numerical WORTH is HIGHLY RELATIONAL!
To put
it simply, we measure a Pawn as one point, and all the
other
pieces in a point total ... based on that pieces' ability to
control the
greatest number of squares.
*******
Other factors - such as Pawn Structure - can be seen as a mathematical SUB-SET of our highest or prime set of the main "integers of value."
Other factors like piece activity, open lines, King safety, etc. - while all these things are very important - they are NOT basic, fundamental elements.
The first (starting) position, and the final position, (only two kings left on an otherwise empty chess board); both have ALL the fundamental elements. (Two pieces taking up space on the board, moving in turn, and both control a certain number of squares.) We also see that each pieces worth is TRULY relational, e.g. what the pieces are valued at is tied directly to what is both off ... AND ON ... the chessboard!
*************************************
One player wrote me repeated e-mails ... he (or she) did not
understand the real difference between material and force ... thinking
{& arguing} that they were one and the same. In the end, this person only
came to a real understanding only after I told them ... rather sarcastically:
<< "Think of it this way: {superior} FORCE is why you were checkmated
...
MATERIAL is all that garbage you had in
your hand at the end of
that same game." (In your hand = extra
Pawns, pieces, etc.) >>
1.e4, {Diagram?}
White immediately strikes at the most important part
of the chess
board. His Queen and King's Bishop are released, and the road
is
paved for a very rapid deployment of (all of) White's forces.
[ The move: 1.h3?, {Diagram?} accomplishes little. ]
1...e6;
Today we know this is a
French Defense ... and is absolutely OK,
IF it is followed up by the correct
moves.
In those days, this was considered to be an inept way of handling
the
beginning part of a chess game.
A modern master would have literally dozens of
ways of dealing with
White's opening of the game with his King's Pawn. The most
reliable
of these is 1... e5, which is the "Open Game," or 1...c5;
which is
known as, "The Sicilian Defense."
[ Probably the simplest
idea is for Black to echo White's ideas
and play: 1...e5; (!)
{Diagram?} with a
good game.
Now a simple opening, showing the basic idea of rapid and
consistent development, is: 2.Nf3 Nc6; 3.Bc4 Bc5; 4.0-0 Nf6;
5.Nc3 0-0; 6.d3 d6; "=" {Diagram?}
with an equal game. ]
2.d4, (Really - '!')
An
excellent move, whereby White immediately occupies and
controls the whole center
of the chess board.
THIS CONCEPT OF OWNING AND EXERTING STRONG INFLUENCE
OVER
THE MIDDLE OF THE BOARD IS THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT
CONCEPT OR IDEA IN THE
WHOLE OF THE OPENING PHASE OF THE
GAME OF CHESS!!!
[ One student suggested the
move: 2.a3!?, {Diagram?}
but this is really too slow. ('?')
(And it does nothing
about the center.) ].
2...Nf6; (Really - '?!')
While a developing move, the Knight can almost be immediately
displaced by e5. This kind of thoughtless development was common
in those days,
before Morphy and Steinitz had left their indelible
stamp upon chess.
[ The
move, 2...d5!; {Diagram?} is a French Defense, and
would have been MUCH better
than what was played in
the actual game here. ]
3.Bd3,
Possibly the simplest and best.
**************
This move has many key points to it:
# 1.) It
controls the center. (e4)
# 2.) It
develops a piece to a good square.
(Systematic and rapid development of your entire army is one
of the basic goals
in the opening phase of the game. Think of
it as a RACE!! The first one to get
all his pieces out wins!)
# 3.) It
prepares castling. (Protect the King! Castle
early!)
(King safety and early
castling is very important in the early
phases of a chess game.)
# 4.) It
maintains the material balance.
(Protects the pawn that Black was attacking.)
This idea of both developing and guarding the squares that your
opponent is
threatening is a hallmark of good chess. It is also
fundamentally the same idea
as Nimzovich's concept of ...
<< SQUARE CONTROL. >>
Take ANY modern
opening manual and play through one of the
lines. At the end of the line, ask
yourself did the opening feature
ALL of the above concepts. The answer will be a
resounding,
"YES!!!!!," ... ... ... ... 95% (or more!) of the time.
(The above four ideas are the BASIC PRINCIPLES ...
of the chess opening.)
***
Some other pieces of advice I could give are:
- - Never lose control of a square in your half of
the board!
(While common knowledge at the master level, this is a
sage piece of advice that most beginners today are NOT
taught early in their development - but it should be.) - - Study as MANY different openings as
possible. (Even the
lines that you may not ever play!) When you have a good
FEEL for what constitutes a good opening, you will play
better moves yourself. - - Try to understand the PLAN behind the
opening.
(If you have no clue, you will need a good teacher, or at least
a good book to acquaint you with the basics of a given
opening structure.) - - When you are confronted with a new move, or at least a very
unexpected move ... stop and think!! See if you cannot divine
the idea behind the move that your opponent just played.
(While many of my students consider this a nearly impossible
job here, you will never get better unless you at least try.)
{A good book to help with the above two points is the
very excellent treatise by GM R. Fine. "The Ideas
Behind The Openings." While a bit dated, this is still
maybe the only book that systematically tries to teach you
some of the basic ideas behind the different opening lines.}
**************
[ White
could also play: 3.e5!?, {Diagram?}
with a (very) small advantage. ]
3...Nc6!?;
More simple development ... without a thought or a care to as to
what
might happen later. (Really - '?!' or '?')
While this may look like a somewhat silly opening by
modern
standards, we must also realize this game was played over 200
years ago
... long before players like Nimzovich had a chance to
expound their theories of
the proper way to handle a mobile pawn
center. (The purely Nimzovichian concept
of the correct way of
handling long pawn chains - which arise from the French Defense
- had yet to be set forth as well.)
[ By playing the moves: 3...d5!;
4.e5 Nfd7; 5.c3 c5; 6.Nf3 Nc6;
we arrive at a very modern line of the French
Defense.
(Which, - of course! - had not even been discovered or
mapped out in
detail yet.) ]
4.Nf3,
Simple straight forward development.
(And there is certainly nothing wrong with this approach, at least
in my way of
thinking.)
[ A modern player might prefer to play: 4.c3, {Diagram?} so
as to
avoid any unpleasantries or dealings with the Black
cavalry that occurs after an
eventual Knight sally to the
b4-square. ]
4...Be7;
Black develops simply and quickly. But in positions where your
opponent has a mobile pawn center ... ... ...
IT IS MUCH BETTER TO FIX THE OPPONENT'S PAWNS AND
PREVENT THEM FROM ADVANCING!!!
(Discuss
what is wrong with Black's development.)
MOSTLY ---> Black's pieces are easily
displaced by White's
mobile pawn center.
[ Better was 4...d6;
{Diagram?}
(or even ...d5), to prevent
what actually happens
in this game. ]
5.h4!?,
This move does not help with any of the 4 basic Opening Principles.
So why did White make it? {This is really an inferior move here.}
(White is basically setting a trap.)
Castling here, or pawn to c3 were much, much better than trying
the rather pointless h4.
(But we will allow it here to simply demonstrate a point.)
[ Now 5.c3, ('!') "+/=" {Diagram?} is very good.
Or even 5.0-0 , lead to a nice game for White. ]
5...0-0; {See the diagram just below.}
Black "Castles into it."
One of the few
times that castling is wrong.
(Really a mistake, or - '?')
|
|
IT IS FAIRLY RARE THAT CASTLING WILL BE BRANDED AN ERROR!
(A simple rule of thumb to remember is it is generally never good to
castle into a PRE-EXISTING OPEN LINE!)
[ Black still probably had to play: 5...d5!;
{Diagram?}
with a playable game. ]
Now White's play is very simple: he
plays by the numbers and
wins the game.
6.e5!, {Diagram?}
A very strong move.
Step #1: is to drive away the Black King's Knight.
This Knight on f6 is the absolute best defender
of Black's King
and his King-side.
After this piece is forced to flee, Black's
defenses have been
dramatically weakened.
[ By comparison 6.d5 exd5; 7.exd5 Nb4; {Diagram ?}
is probably OK for Black.
]
6...Nd5;
Black had to move his Knight
or suffer the loss of a piece with little
or no good reason.
The simplest
setting for the sacrifice - sometimes known as the
Greek Gift after El Greco's
pioneering analysis.
[ 6...Ne8!?; ]
7.Bxh7+!, (Maybe / probably - '!!')
{Diagram?}
To players that have never seen this idea before, this can
be a very shocking move!
Step #2: is to rip
Black's King open.
(Open lines or avenues of attack.)
Notice that Black's King is virtually defenseless.
Meanwhile, (prior
to White's 7th move); 5 of White's pieces, (counting the White
light-squared Bishop); are
pointing at the Black King, or are only
1 move away from attacking the Black
King!
[ 7.c4!? ]
7...Kxh7;
Black feels he has no choice. To
simply play ...Kh8; is allow the
White Bishop to retreat with the win of a whole
pawn.
(Additionally, Black's pawn cover in front of his King has been
drastically altered for the worse.)
[ Black is lost anyway after the
continuation:
7...Kh8!?; 8.Be4!, f5!?;
9.Bxd5, exd5; 10.Nc3!, Bb4!?;
11.Bd2!, Bxc3; 12.Bxc3!,
Qe8; 13.h5! "+/" {Diagram?}
(Probably "+/-") with
an overwhelming position. ]
8.Ng5+,
White must
expedite an attack on the exposed Black King.
Otherwise the sacrifice of Bxh7+
made no sense at all.
(Step # 3.) Attack, attack, attack!!
The exposed King must be IMMEDIATELY targeted
for an attack.)
[ The move 8.c3, {Diagram?} accomplishes little. ]
8...Kg8;
Black tries
[unsuccessfully] to keep lines closed to his King.
[ Losing is:
8...Kg6?!; 9.h5+
Kh6; (9...Kf5?; 10.g4#)
10.Nxf7+, {Diagram?}
This is a DOUBLE-check!
(10.Nxe6+!?, "+/-"
also wins for White.)
10...Kh7; 11.Qd3+ Kg8; 12.Nxd8
Nxd8; 13.c3, "+/-"
White has a decisive material advantage here.
(And Black's King is still not safe!)
***
Also losing is: 8...Bxg5?!; 9.hxg5+ Kg8;
{Diagram?}
This could be forced.
(9...Kg6?; 10.Qh5+!, Kf5; 11.Qh3+!,
11...Ke4[]; 12.Qd3#.) 10.Qh5 f5; 11.g6, "+/-" {Diagram?}
transposing into a result identical to that of the game. ]
9.Qh5,
Now White threatens a check-mate in ... one move!
Step # 4.) It is to bring the last of the reserves into the attack!
[ 9.c4!? ]
9...Bxg5;
Now this is forced, otherwise Black will be mated.
(Almost immediately.)
Notice how Black has been forced into ... OPENING LINES
TO HIS MOST IMPORTANT PIECE!!
[ Not:
9...Ndb4??; 10.Qh7#.
Or 9...Re8;
10.Qh7+ Kf8; 11.Qh8# ]
10.hxg5,
Part of the plan. Note that the King's Rook-file has been opened ...
with deadly effect.
One other thing I should note is that you probably do NOT
want
to exchange Queens when you are conducting an all-out attack
against your opponent's King!
[ 10.Qxg5? Qxg5;
11.hxg5 Nxd4; "-/+" {Diagram?}
winning for Black. ]
10...f5;
Black MUST try to give his King a flight square ...
or be mated in one move.
[ Slightly
worse is: 10...f6!?; 11.g6, Nxd4;
{Diagram?}
It appears there is little Black can
do here.
(11...Re8; 12. Qh8#) & now 12.Qh8#.
Or 10...Nxd4?;
11.Qh7#. {Diagram?}
(Qh8# works as well.) ].
11.g6!;
White cuts off
Black's flight square(s).
Black Resigns.
(Because he cannot stop mate.) [ If 11...Re8; then 12.Qh8#. ]
[ 11.g6 Re8; 12.Qh8# ]
1 - 0
If I am correct, and chess is a form "mental combat," then one of the greatest martial artists who ever lives gives the following sage advice:
<< Consider water. It is clear and pure. If you place water in a glass, it becomes the glass. If you place water in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Water can drip, water can flow. Water can drown, or offer a thirsty man hope. Water - in a great enough quantity - can crash on its opponents, and overwhelm any defense. This is the advice I would offer you. >>
"Be water, my friend ... be water." - BRUCE LEE (I may not have gotten this quote exactly right ... this was done from memory.)
I hate it when my students play a move, (that I object to - maybe on principle); ... and then they tell me that a good player also does this.
A
case in point. (September 23rd, 2005)
(This will be part of my download - for the October 2005, "Game
of The Month.")
***************************************
[Event "6th YM"]
[Site "Lausanne SUI"]
[Date "2005.09.19"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Nakamura, H."]
[Black "Volokitin, And"]
[Result "0-1"]
[WhiteElo "2660"]
[BlackElo "2671"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "2005.09.14"]
[Source "TWIC" (Mark Crowther)]
1. e4 c5;
2. Qh5? Nf6; 3. Qh4 Nc6; 4. Be2 e5; 5. d3 Be7; 6. Qg3 d5;
7. Nd2 O-O; 8. c3 b5; 9. Nh3 d4; 10. c4 Ne8; 11. cxb5 Bh4;
12. Qf3 Nb4;
13. Bd1 f5; 14. a3 Nd6; 15. axb4 fxe4; 16. Qh5 Bxh3; 17. g3 Qf6; 18. Bb3+ Kh8;
19. f3 exf3; 20. Kf2 Bg5; 21. Nxf3,
21...g6; 22. Bxg5 Qf5; 23. Qxh3 Qxf3+; 0-1
Monday; November 19th, 2011: A page that deals solely with the Bishop-sack on h7.
Copyright (c) A.J. Goldsby I
Copyright (©) A.J. Goldsby, 1985-2010.
Copyright (©) A.J. Goldsby, 2011. All rights reserved.
*******
Page
first generated in 1995. Updated and redone, July, 2000.
Last update: Saturday, July 14, 2012
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