Low profile
As you may or may not have noticed, my choice of chess problems I solve is pretty low profile lately. As user Slowtempo I do 1300 - rated problems at CTS and at PCT I did 535 problems today, which is an indication of the level of the problems.
That hasn't been the case in the past. As you could read in my discussion with J'adoube problems that took my an hour to solve weren't uncommon in the past.
It is not that I want to take away the mystic of chess, nor do I think low of the capabilities of grandmasters.
But when I lose from a higher rated player, I always try to find out after the game what they were thinking. Why they are better than me.
Time and again I noticed that they are much quicker with simple moves. Both tactical and positional, analysing with a better player make you feel terribly slow.
That gave me the conviction that I have to focus on learning to do these simple moves fast too. With this I don't want to say that there isn't something more to chess, but AT LEAST this must be learned.
I have chosen to read the book of Yasser Seirawan "Winning chess strategies".
I had read it in the past untill chapter 6, so today I continued with chapter 7.
Nice stuff.
That hasn't been the case in the past. As you could read in my discussion with J'adoube problems that took my an hour to solve weren't uncommon in the past.
It is not that I want to take away the mystic of chess, nor do I think low of the capabilities of grandmasters.
But when I lose from a higher rated player, I always try to find out after the game what they were thinking. Why they are better than me.
Time and again I noticed that they are much quicker with simple moves. Both tactical and positional, analysing with a better player make you feel terribly slow.
That gave me the conviction that I have to focus on learning to do these simple moves fast too. With this I don't want to say that there isn't something more to chess, but AT LEAST this must be learned.
I have chosen to read the book of Yasser Seirawan "Winning chess strategies".
I had read it in the past untill chapter 6, so today I continued with chapter 7.
Nice stuff.
Good choice on the Seraiwan book.
ReplyDeleteOut of curiousity, Do you have strategy issues with openings you play as white such as KGA or do the strategic ideas common to those openings come easy to you?
ReplyDeleteTak,
ReplyDeleteThe openings repertoire I play was developed when I started with tactics. In order to be able to use the tactics. I didn't understand every opening I tried, but I changed that rapidly by adopting another opening. For the KGA the essence was immediate clear to me. But for some openings I seem to mis a gene. For instance for the French defence, the KID, The SMA, the Sicilian, the Pirc. But the openings I DO play, I understand very well. Most of them I play for 4 years now.