In the line of fire

5/23/2016 – Tactics can seem deceptively simple, particularly when seeing an engine analysing grandmaster games. Strange, however, how difficult it is to find the right move and to calculate variations properly when playing yourself. It is easier if you solve tactical puzzles regularly. In the ChessBase Magazine and his tactics column Oliver Reeh helps you to do so.

Visiting Hamburg and ChessBase

5/23/2016 – Ever wondered what it was like to come and visit the ChessBase headquarters in Hamburg, Germany? Accompanying her husband, GM Erwin L'Ami, who came to record another excellent DVD (stay tuned for its release!), chess writer, traveler, and photographer extraordinaire Alina L'Ami shares her look at the vibrant city and office where ChessBase and Fritz were born in this photographic tour.

The wrong bishop – part two

5/22/2016 – Last Monday we explained the endgame bishop and edge pawn vs a lone king, and how volatile it becomes when the bishop does not control the promotion square of its pawn. Today we will tell you how some famous people fared with the study we gave you to solve. We also explain didactically how to solve such endings and give you two more studies to hone your skills in a vital area of chess.

2016 Euro Ch. Rd9: Inarkiev activates 'god mode'

5/22/2016 – In a number of video games, such as classics like Doom 2 and many others, there is a secret cheat code that unlocks "God Mode". Once unlocked and active, this usually makes player-characters invulnerable. Ernesto Inarkiev seems to have stumbled on that code as he won a second straight game with black to grab sole lead, a full point ahead.

Grand Chess Tour Rapid and Blitz in Paris

5/21/2016 – In just over two weeks the first event of the 2016 Grand Chess Tour will be inaugurated in Paris, France. The best players in the world will duke it out over four days in rapid and blitz chess, including Magnus Carlsen, Hikaru Nakamura, Vladimir Kramnik and more. The games will be broadcast via Dailymotion Games, a company specializing in broadcasting video games live. Press Release.

2016 Euro Ch. Rd8: Inarkiev continues to steamroll

5/21/2016 – Going into round eight, two players lead ahead of the rest. To say this is crunch time is an understatement. Ernesto Inarkiev scored a powerful win over co-leader David Navara taking sole lead, followed by a dozen others, all with chances to steal the gold at the first slip. In the meantime, Pavel Eljanov called Dubov's win a masterpiece reminiscent of Torre-Lasker.

Chess Progress: making the big leap

5/21/2016 – Contrary to some fields where controlled steady progress is the norm, chess is dominated more often than not by timely bursts forward preceded by periods of seeming stagnation. It can be tricky knowing when it is one or the other. Here is the tale of just such a leap forward, as well as tips and recommendations to help you make your big leap.

Young Stars Success

5/20/2016 – It is clear that chess in on the rise in many countries. Talents are popping up everywhere, from Armenia to India, from China to South America. However, it seems that the combined program between the Kasparov Chess Foundation and the Saint Louis Chess Club, named the Young Stars, has a key to success. They currently have the two strongest players born in the year 2000, and they only keep going up!

Why Hou Yifan has dropped out of the cycle

5/20/2016 – At fourteen she was the youngest female player ever to gain the title of grandmaster, and at sixteen she became the youngest Women's World Champion in history. She has won the title four times and is the reigning champion. Now Hou Yifan, 100 points stronger than any of her colleagues, has abandoned the Women's Championship cycle. She tells us why and calls for a reform of the system. Her proposal is amazingly simple.

Gjakova, Rd. 7: Inarkiev and Navara lead

5/20/2016 – Ivan Saric, after six rounds sole leader at the European Championship in Gjakova, suffered a setback in round seven and lost against Ernesto Inarkiev. After this win Inarkiev has 6.0/7 and shares the lead with top seed David Navara, who won a rook ending against Baadur Jobava. Half-a-point behind the leaders follows a group of six players with 5.5/7 each.

New: Nigel Davies: The Accelerated London with 2.Bf4

5/19/2016 – Alexander Grischuk plays it, Ruslan Ponomariov plays it, and a lot of strong grandmasters play it: 1.d4 followed by 2.Bf4, the Accelerated London. For a long time this line has been underrated but it is more dangerous than many people believe. On his new ChessBase DVD Nigel Davies shows how White can make life difficult and dangerous for Black. More...

Chess town St Louis

5/19/2016 – The US Congress has declared St Louis the chess capital of the nation. For the BBC, British journalist Dave Edmonds, chess enthusiast and co-author of the book "Bobby Fischer Goes to War", visited the town, blitzed and trash-talked outside the St Louis chess club, talked to sponsor Rex Sinquefield and checked out the chess scene to find out why chess in St Louis is so special.

Jon Speelman's Agony Column #2

5/18/2016 – In his second "Agony Column" Jon Speelman presents a mix of "Agony" and "Ecstasy", feelings that arguably are familiar to every serious chessplayer and sometimes occur side-by-side in one single game. The focus today is on tactics and calculation but Jon Speelman again offers lots of practical advice on how to think and make decsions in practical games.

Gjakova: Ivan Saric takes the lead

5/18/2016 – Ivan Saric was the only player from the top group who won in round six of the European Championship in Gjakova. The Croatian grandmaster showed himself to be well-prepared and came up with a new move in the Marshall. This led to an endgame which Saric won after two inaccurate moves of his opponents. With 5.5/6 Saric is now sole leader.

Wilhelm Steinitz: A short tribute

5/18/2016 – 180 years ago, on 17th May 1836, Wilhelm Steinitz was born in Prague. In 1886 Steinitz won the first official match for the World Championship in chess against Hermann Zukertort to become the first World Champion in chess history. Steinitz is also considered to be the founder of the scientific approach to chess. A short biography and three games.

Vishy Anand in Oman

5/18/2016 – Aiming to promote chess in the sultanate, Indian icon Vishy Anand was in Muscat, the capital city of Oman, participating in a series of activities—simultaneous exhibitions, lectures, and meetings. One of the leading news portals in Oman, the Times of Oman, covered this visit in great detail, and we bring you an overview of his visit plus an in-depth interview with Vishy.

Gjakova: No player with a 100 percent score

5/17/2016 – Five rounds are played at the European Championship in Gjakova and no player can boast of a clean score. Ernesto Inarkiev (photo) and Radoslaw Wojtaszek both started with 4.0/4 but drew an entertaining game while Baadur Jobava - who also started with 4.0/4 - played a less entertaining draw. After five rounds five players lead with 4.5/5. Results, games, highlights...

Taking the shorter route

5/17/2016 – Every week ChessBase magazine author and renowned endgame expert Karsten Müller presents a remarkable or particularly instructive endgame in his blog. A click on the diagram opens a larger board. Test your endgame skills, improve and have fun!

Play the openings like a GM!

5/17/2016 – On the night before his last round game Atul Dahale was faced with the eternal question: Which opening will me maximum winning chances? A victory would give him second place and US $600, a loss would mean taking home almost nothing. In this pressure filled situation a Romanian GM unexpectedly came to his rescue. Atul tells us how he was able to make one of the best opening preparations of his chess career.

ChessBase Account - Using cloud engines

5/16/2016 – It is no secret that top players are able to access powerful computers to run a chess engine from anywhere in the world using their laptops. The idea might sound complicated, requiring a technician at the very least to set up. Not so. With Fritz software you can easily set this up for yourself in a minute (really) with a minimum of know-how. Here is a video to teach you how.
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Gjakova: Three players lead with 4.0/4.

5/16/2016 – After four rounds three players lead the field at the European Championship with 4.0/4 each. Baadur Jobava played a fine game, in which he continually put pressure on his opponent. Ernesto Inarkiev was well-prepared and alert and Radoslaw Wojtaszek showed a lot of patience in a King's Indian structure which was rewarded when his opponent finally went wrong.

The wrong bishop

5/16/2016 – As you most certainly know, a bishop and a pawn will generally win against a lone king. However there is one important exception: when the pawn is on the edge of the board and the bishop does not control the promotion square. This has been known for over 500 years, but humans and especially early computers are wont to stumble in the execution. Stories, instructions and a puzzle to solve.

Developing chess for disabled children in Russia

5/16/2016 – "If you really want to do something good or change your life for the better, be determined - don’t hesitate and start to act! A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." With these words in mind, Polina Torochkova established the Russian charity foundation "Country of Talents". Since its inception it has been involved in pathbreaking work in the field of chess for disabled children. In this article you can see how top players like Kramnik, Karjakin, Nepo, and others are supporting this endeavour.

Nine leaders in Gjakova

5/15/2016 – After three rounds nine players share the lead with 3.0/3 at the European Championship in Gjakova and only two of them belong to the top ten of the starting list: Radoslav Wojtaszek and Maxim Matlakov. Nine of the 15 top encounters in round three were decided, six times the Elo-favorites won, but in three games the favorites failed to win.