Monday, November 3 IM Valeri Lilov Speed vs. Quality (openings, middlegame)
Which one is more important? Quick or quality development? This is a question that many people always ask themselves when it comes to preparing their attack or just completing the development. Find out the answer in IM Lilov’s new lecture!
Tuesday, November 4 IM Bill Paschall Ponomariov Gets Trendy against the Najdorf (middlegame)
In this game from the Bilbao 2014 tournament in Spain, GM Ruslan Ponomariov plays the super-trendy 6.h3 in the Najdorf.GM Paco Vallejo, perhaps trying to defend too actively, breaks with classical principles by opening on the kingside and leaving his king in the center. Black has problems with both his king and his king’s rook, which becomes active but exposed early. Ponomariov plays brilliantly to exploit the position for tactics based on the exposed positioning of the enemy king and rook. )
Wednesday, November 5 FM Dennis Monokroussos Carlsen and the Cambridge Springs, Part 1 Carlsen wins with Black (openings, tactics)
At first glance the Cambridge Springs Variation looks like it should be fantastic for White, thanks to his potential for a big center and kingside attacking play. But Black has his trumps too, less obvious though they may be, and in this game we see Magnus Carlsen show the effectiveness of Black’s queenside counterplay. Boris Gelfand’s kingside attack never got started, and in the end all he could do was try to scrap for a draw – a hope that went by the wayside on the last move of the time control.
Thursday, November 6 LM Dana Mackenzie Winning With Jedi Mind Tricks, Episode 2 (strategy)
It is very difficult for humans to defend a closed position where their opponent has all the attacking chances, even if the computer says that the position is OK. The pressure of constantly having to defend can lead to psychological mistakes, such as: getting into time trouble, getting locked into a defensive mindset, overlooking opportunities for counterplay, and impatiently opening the position just to get the torture over with. All of these “Jedi mind tricks” come into play into today’s game.
Friday, November 7 GM Eugene Perelshteyn Learning Strategy and Prophylactic Thinking from the Best! Part 1: Learn from Dvoretsky (strategy, openings)
Learn from the best! Enjoy this strategic masterpiece from Dvoretsky and pay attention on how White uses “prophylactic thinking” to execute his plan while stopping his opponent’s plan. White makes it look easy!