Let's talk about Chess baby

46,570 Views | 313 Replies | Last: 9 days ago by Agristotle
powerbelly
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AG
I learned the basics of chess as a kid and really haven't played much since then. I would like to pick it back up, but am basically a blank slate at this point.
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Star Wars Memes Only
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YouTube is certainly another viable option. My favorite tuber is John Bartholomew. But Silman's books really are gems. Personally, I do better with books and a physical board where I work through the ideas. I'm sure you can improve using either medium, though.
Agristotle
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AG
I like Bartholomew, but he openly states he's a fan of just getting to a winning endgame, and that style can be kind of dry sometimes. The opposite end of the spectrum is Simon Williams, (the Ginger GM) who is a very aggressive GM who disdains endgames, is always looking to attack and sometimes drinks while he plays. Simon will also bring a good puzzle or cover a classic attacking game. I watch them both, depends on the mood I'm in.
Star Wars Memes Only
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Obviously Caruana winning is very exciting, but is anyone keeping up with TCEC? I almost feel bad for Houdini. Stockfish is just crushing it. I wonder how this iteration of the program would fair against alpha zero. I also wonder how long it's going to be before classical chess engines start incorporating elements of machine learning into their code. With Google's proof of concept, I feel like we might be entering a new era of Chess.
Rongagin71
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AG
The "real" Stockfish would win:

Rongagin71
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AG
Rongagin71 said:

TxTech gives chess scholarships:
https://www.facebook.com/TexasChess/posts/10156019089664706

Turns out UTRG also made final four...I remember back in the '70's when they were PanAmerican and the SID, Jim McKone, was very interested in chess:

http://www.utrgv.edu/en-us/about-utrgv/news/press-releases/2018/january-05-utrgv-chess-teams-expert-moves-lead-to-final-four/index.htm


Final result was that UT-Rio Grande nudged Webster by 1/2 pt to win chess championship.
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Agristotle
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AG
Lots of schools give chess scholarships now. It actually creates some pressure at tournaments for the kids and the droves of hovering parents. Leads to some cheating concerns sometimes.
AggieRain
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AG
How do you cheat at chess? I play the game (badly), but I'm not sure how you could cheat...
Star Wars Memes Only
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In these tournaments surreptitiously using a computer is the usual way. People have devised many ingenious ways of doing it, and accusations go all the way up to world championship games.

On the other hand, if you're playing blitz some of the hustlers have been known to use sleight of hand. There was one video where grandmaster Maurice Ashley went to Washington Square Park and played a game with a guy who tried to take two pieces in one move. Ashley caught and called him on it.
Agristotle
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AG
I have run across allegations of smartphones in the bathroom stalls and parents using computers in the parking lot and relaying the correct move into the tournament area.
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Rongagin71
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AG
The USCF wants tournament directors to take a certification test and pay a fee nowadays...means lots fewer tournaments now but well run compared to some absolute fiasco's back in the '70's.
Only definite cheater I ever played was at the Sherwood Forest Faire (near Smithville, TX) where one of the exhibits is a giant chess board with giant chess pieces that you can play for $10. The guy you play against pulls every naughty trick he can think of - such as substituting his friends for pieces so you have to remember which face matches which piece. And those friends are NOISEY.
It's all in good fun, but do not expect fair play.
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Star Wars Memes Only
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Wow, I can't believe Sarah Jessica Parker looks so good for her age.
Agristotle
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AG
No I play in an occasional tournament and have a good friend who is a TD. The parents are a big problem.
Sapper Redux
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Agristotle said:

No I play in an occasional tournament and have a good friend who is a TD. The parents are a big problem.


What's the age range on these tournaments? Is it all kids? Is it age segregated?
Agristotle
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AG
The tournaments are generally broken down by rating class, not age. If you play in big tournaments you will get beaten by a 12 year old, guaranteed. They just concluded a big tournament in Europe this week with 49 grandmasters! None of them won, the champion was a 13 year old.
Sapper Redux
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Agristotle said:

The tournaments are generally broken down by rating class, not age. If you play in big tournaments you will get beaten by a 12 year old, guaranteed. They just concluded a big tournament in Europe this week with 49 grandmasters! None of them won, the champion was a 13 year old.


Man, that seems so strange. Makes sense, but it's got to be a bit of an ego blow for the adults.
Agristotle
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AG
The pieces aren't very heavy.
Sapper Redux
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Agristotle said:

The pieces aren't very heavy.


And yet they cause so much pain
Agristotle
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AG
So true!
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Agristotle
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AG
Saw an article on chess and neurogenesis just the other day.
Star Wars Memes Only
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Welp, I got more or less scholar's mated this morning. It was a bullet game, but still, I didn't think I was going to ever fall for a quick f7 mate again.

I think that's enough chess for me for a while.
Rongagin71
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AG
U.S. Championship started at 1:00 CST.
Watch live for free on "Follow Chess".
Carauna is favored but has legit challengers.
Texas State Champion, Jeffrey Xiong, is playing.
Rongagin71
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AG
Chess politics is world politics:
https://www.chess.com/news/view/fake-name-on-ilyumzhinovs-ticket
Star Wars Memes Only
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What I've found is that generally speaking people are pretty polite unless you're playing folks around 1000 rated or so. However, today I was playing a blitz (3/2) game where I butchered the opening pretty bad, and because of it my kingside had crumbled and I was about to go down a piece. My opponent then sent me the following messages "noob" "very weak." Before that I was on the verge of resigning but I decided I was going to make him work for the win and do everything I could to complicate things for him. Anyway, I'm managing my time better. He is up a piece and two pawns but throws it away. Because of some bad play on his part he has to give up his knight, and then, probably from having only twelve seconds on his clock, he hangs his rook. I'm now a rook and pawn against three (not advanced) pawns. Easy win for me. He plays on a couple of moves, and then I decide to troll him by finally replying to his earlier messages with an "rofl." At that point he rage quit.

I know this was only an online blitz game, but it's the most satisying victory I've had in a while.
dds08
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AG
My handle on chess.com is knightRival....

If anyone is up for a game.
Star Wars Memes Only
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I might take you up on that dds.

Does anyone here play the Scandinavian?
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dds08
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AG
knightRival
 
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