2/11/2020 – A round-up of the recent action including the watch forfeit controversy. | Puzzle time: In the diagram, it's White to move! What would you think about playing Bd5 here? | Lawrence is live this week from 17:00 UTC (18:00 CET, 12 Noon EST) and free for a limited time, or forever on-demand with a ChessBase Basic Account. You can always register a free 90-day account to watch.

2/11/2020 – Nana Dzagnidze is still leading the second edition of the Cairns Cup after none of the chasers scored wins in round four. Ju Wenjun and Alexandra Kosteniuk (pictured) did get to join the players trailing a half point behind the Georgian though, after beating Valentina Gunina and Carissa Yip respectively. The rest of the games finished drawn, with Irina Krush missing a good chance to take down Harika Dronavalli. | Photo: Austin Fuller

2/11/2020 – Knights are tricky but sometimes that is not enough. In the diagram position, Black is able to win with the exchange and best play. Are you up to the task?

2/11/2020 – GM Nick Pert, a former World U18 chess champion and a member of the National English team, came up with an ingenious idea about helping the improving players. He composed three FritzTrainer DVDs in which he targets the "typical mistakes" committed by players in the lower rating brackets of 1000-1600, 1600-1900 and 1800-2000. DIANA MIHAJLOVA takes a look.

2/10/2020 – The 4NCL provides insiration for a new tactics-focus Simon Says. GM Simon Williams curates a selection of puzzles for your enjoyment and improvement. | Puzzle time: In the position below it's White to play and win! | Watch for free live and on-demand (for a limited time, or forever with a ChessBase Premium account) starting at the usual hour: 17:00 UTC (18:00 CET / 12 Noon EST).

2/10/2020 – Nana Dzagnidze became the first sole leader of the Cairns Cup after inflicting Carissa Yip's third straight loss in Saint Louis. Kateryna Lagno and Mariya Muzychuk are still a half point back after drawing their direct encounter, while Harika Dronavalli joined them in shared second place after beating Alexandra Kosteniuk. Valentina Gunina, in the meantime, got on the scoreboard with a win over Irina Krush. | Photo: Austin Fuller

2/10/2020 – Chess compositions have been around for over a thousand years, and composers aim to tap not only the practical but also the aesthetic sense of solvers. Recently AZLAN IQBAL has investigated the potential of fully-computer-generated chess problems, and here he presents some conclusions about what passes the threshold of beauty.

2/9/2020 – At the 40th National Team Open, a big shock in round three when GM Adhiban Baskaran was forfeited on board one for possessing an analogue watch after 16 moves against IM C R G Krishna. His team still won the match, thanks to wins on the lower boards. It's an unusual case, though evidently all according to the tournament rules. | Photo: IA Gopakumar Sudhakaran

2/9/2020 – An exciting day of chess left four players sharing the lead at the Cairns Cup in Saint Louis. Mariya Muzychuk showcased her attacking abilities to take down Humpy Koneru, Kateryna Lagno outplayed Carissa Yip with Black from a balanced yet dangerous endgame, while Valentina Gunina could not take advantage of Alexandra Kosteniuk's opening blunder and ended up losing for a second day in a row. Irina Krush missed a chance to beat world champion Ju Wenjun with the black pieces. | Photo: Crystal Fuller

2/9/2020 – Last weekend saw some record-breaking numbers in both the Greater New York Scholastic and the Greater Chicago Scholastic chess tournaments. Held opposite Super Bowl weekend, the events attracted over 2000 students to duel over the black and white squares. Garry Kasparov was a special guest. | Pictured: Kasparov making the opening move of the top board of the High School Championship for FM Vincent Tsay, Young Stars Program student and former U12 World Champion. In the yellow shirt, TD Andre Harding making sure everything goes smoothly. | Photos: Kasparov Chess Foundation

2/8/2020 – The second edition of the Cairns Cup kicked off Friday at the Saint Louis Chess Club. Humpy Koneru and Nana Dzagnidze (pictured) were the first ones to get full points, as they defeated Carissa Yip and Valentina Gunina respectively. Both won after their opponents employed risky strategies with the black pieces. World champion Ju Wenjun started with Black and got a comfortable draw against Mariya Muzychuk. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

2/8/2020 – Lauren Goodkind took some special education classes in high school and has had a speech impediment since she was two years old. Now, at age 36, her US Chess rating is 1878. Her twin sister Barbara's rating is 1818, putting both in the top 8% of all US Chess-rated players. As WIM ALEXEY ROOT reports, Lauren is also an author; her third book, Queen for a Day: The Girl’s Guide to Chess Mastery, was just published. | Pictured: Judit Polgar and Goodkind in London, December 2019