Feb 24, 2013 IM Valeri Lilov The Buildup (Intemediate, Strategy, Middlegame)
What is the secret behind a successful plan in the game of chess? The answer to this question is definitely complicated as there are many factors that matter.We have consistency, evaluation, calculation and many others which are key. Nevertheless, the most critical one is the Buildup. Understanding how to get the right buildup to our plan is often vital for its ultimate success.
Feb 25, 2013 LM Dana Mackenzie Double Vision: When Two Knights are Better than Two Bishops (Intermediate, Middlegame, Strategy)
Because bishops tend to be a little better than knights in a lot of positions, it’s natural to assume that two bishops would be much better than two knights. But this is not the case — in fact, two knights can sometimes dance circles around the bishops. Here, a bitterly fought game pits two knights against two bishops, in a position that first favored the knights, then favored the bishops, and then turned back in favor of the knights. I discuss the factors involved in evaluating such positions, such as outpost squares, forks (for the knights) and pins (for the bishops), and targets (for both pieces).
Feb 26, 2013 FM Dennis Monokroussos A Brilliancy vs. the Kan (Intermediate, Middlegame, Tactics)
Young Dutch star Benjamin Bok obtained his final grandmaster norm in this year’s Wijk aan Zee Challengers tournament, and with games like this it’s easy to see why. He unleashes a fearsome attacking masterpiece against the elite young Chinese GM Yu Yangyi, and in addition to the game’s being spectacular we can “borrow” Bok’s anti-Kan line for our own play.
Feb 27, 2013 GM Leonid Kritz Rare but Tricky Line in Spanish (Intermediate, Openings, Endgame)
The line chosen by my opponent surprised me a bit in this game. It looks like Black is doing a lot of strange moves, but surprisingly at the end all of them come together and make sense in an interesting variation. Also, the endgame is worth analyzing since it has many sub-variations that stayed behind the scene.
Feb 28, 2013 IM David Vigorito A Modern Miniature (Intermediate, Opening, Tactics)
Bartel plays an unusual but interesting move order as early as move 2 (!) and Giri chooses plays in romantic style sacrificing pawns left and right for an unstoppable initiative.
