by scribe | Apr 27, 2020 | endings, positions, Uncategorized
Here’s a challenge of a kind I haven’t seen before. I’m going to show you three very similar positions. In the first, it’s Black to play and win. In the second, Black has to play exactly the same first two moves, and you have to show that the...
by scribe | Apr 24, 2020 | games, positions, PRO Chess League
During the Pro Chess League season this year (which still has not ended, by the way — the finals have been postponed until September) Robert Hess made a comment that jolted me awake. “When I’m evaluating a position,” he said, “The first...
by scribe | Apr 19, 2020 | chess clubs, games, openings, ruminations
There’s a saying that I’m really starting to like: “Long think, wrong think.” In game after game, both against the computer and in tournaments, it seems as if my weakest moves are the ones I take the longest on. A long think is usually a sign...
by scribe | Apr 12, 2020 | current news, games, off-topic, people, ruminations
Coronavirus check-in! It’s Easter Sunday of 2020, and here in the U.S. the coronavirus epidemic seems to be near its peak. That’s both good and bad. It’s good because “peak” means that the number of new cases and new deaths should start...
by scribe | Apr 6, 2020 | endings, literature, positions
With nothing much going on the world of chess, I’ve been playing against my computer a lot. It’s a bad habit, really. But one somewhat unexpected benefit is that I’ve gotten to play a few interesting endgames recently. When I play against Fritz, I...
