Monday, April 4 IM Valeri Lilov Aspects of Attack (strategy, middlegame)
The key aspects of attacking are quite clear. Having good development, strong coordination and opponent’s restriction are just a few of the important features one needs to possess in order to maintain a successful attack. Check out IM Lilov’s lecture to learn more!
Tuesday, April 5 IM Bill Paschall The Genius of Michael Adams Part 6 (endgame, strategy)
Black tries an alternative queen retreat with 6…Qd7 in an open variation of the French Tarrasch. In his favorite setup with white, Adams shows good preparation and plays into a long variation where White has chances against the Black king. Adams keeps black under constant pressure and despite Fridman throwing every defensive trick possible at White, Adams keeps pushing forward for the win. Even when a win seems impossible; down a pawn in a rook ending, Adams pushes black over the edge with his fantastic king position and virtually perfect technique. This game illustrates both Adams’ attacking prowess as well as his ability to transition between different phases of the game to maintain an advantage. Vintage Mickey Adams!
Wednesday, April 6 FM Dennis Monokroussos Not Flawless, But Brilliant (opening, strategy)
One of Hungarian great Lajos Portisch’s calling cards is his 1966 win over Svein Johannessen from the Havana Olympiad. Portisch found a very deep idea revolving around 18.Bxh6, and the result was a beautiful win. Yet there were some missed opportunities by both players, and it’s no discredit to them to see that the computer has only increased the aesthetic value of this game. It’s great fun to analyze, too – enjoy!
Thursday, April 7 GM Leonid Kritz A Strategic Jewel Ends With a Nice Tactical Trick (strategy, tactics)
A very strong performance of MVL against the former world champion. It seems that Anand messed up in the opening, which does not happen too often, and was completely overplayed in the strategic sense. He had some chances later, but failed to use them and, finally, fell to some tactical combinations of his opponent.
Friday, April 8 GM Eugene Perelshteyn How To Identify When Your Position Starts To Slip (middlegame, strategy)
How can a Grandmaster lose with White from a good position? Eugene tries to examine his painful loss to Shabba to answer this question. The lesson: pay attention to position factors such as center pawns, open files, bishop pair. Each concession of a positional factor adds up and eventually tips the game in Black’s favor.