Monday, November 5
IM Bill Paschall – World Championship Warm-Up, Part 3 | Opening, Endgame
Magnus Carlsen is a definite favorite going into the 2018 World Championship. This battle is part three of our series, however, it is an example of what might happen if Magnus makes the mistake of playing into a position where the challenger is well prepared. The Berlin Defense of the Ruy Lopez might be a good choice for Magnus against most players, but Caruana has excelled with White in this topical endgame variation. Black should make no mistake! If Magnus is to the play the Berlin, he must be truly ready! But why should Magnus play the Berlin? He could do quite well with other lines in the Closed Ruy Lopez.
Tuesday, November 6
FM Dennis Monokroussos – Good and Bad Bishops in the Exchange French | Opening
I know, seeing “Exchange French” doesn’t get one’s spine tingling. But it’s an important structure that arises not only in the French but the Petroff and the Berlin as well, to name just two major openings. So it’s worth looking at because it’s a common structure, and it’s even more worth our while because we can see that the supposedly ultra-drawing structure really isn’t that drawish after all, as we’ll see.
Wednesday, November 7
GM Leonid Kritz – Another Crazy Game Where White Plays h4 Early | Opening, Strategy
Many classical ideas have became so well known today, that to get an advantage out of the opening you need to be creative. That’s why in many different lines White tries to activate his rooks by playing h4 or a4, in different openings. This is one such example, and as so often, when Nepo plays these ideas they become particularly dangerous. A very interesting game with a lot of creative ideas from White, and Bacrot is unable to react adequately.
Thursday, November 8
GM Nadya Kosintseva – Systems for White in the Spanish Game: Part 3 – Facing the Chigorin | Opening, Strategy
In this third lecture, we will speak about the Chigorin system that allows Black to advance the queen side pawns more quickly compared to the Breyer system. Black moves the knight to a5 rather than to b8, targeting White’s light-squared bishop and forcing him to move the bishop down to c2. On one hand, Black wins tempi, but on the other hand he often suffers from having the knight at the edge of the board. From White’s point of view, it should be important to stress the drawback of the Chigorin knight before it escapes.
Friday, November 9
IM Valeri Lilov – The Gurgenidze Line | Strategy, Middlegame
I bet you’ve never heard about this opening. It is because it is not very popular, however it can save you a lot of time if you’re playing as black. Many people want a universal opening system with the black pieces, unfortunately where they fail is an understanding how such a system can work. Tune in to learn more from this lecture!