1/6/2018 – The road to becoming a better player passes through many stages. One of these is predicting the future endgame in which one will enter. This is the true mastery, not memorising 25 moves of the Najdorf, but knowing which pieces will be advantageous to keep on the board, and which are better to let go. Through many painful losses, one can discover how difficult the game becomes when, for instance, the dust settles on the board and we find ourselves facing a good bishop with a bad knight. Now thanks to this DVD one can develop into a better player through many practical examples which guide the player through the maze of decisions we need to make when choosing what to exchange, or not, in a tournament game.

1/5/2018 – A solid tactical understanding is sure to help any chess player in critical situations. Whether it is a simple exchange or a mating attack, tactics are ubiquitous. Take advantage of the opportunity to develop your tactical understanding in this series with IM Oliver Reeh and Pascal Simon! Thursday at 15:30 CET (9:30 AM EDT) it's all about the Sicilian Exchange Sacrifice!

1/5/2018 – The XLVII Rilton Cup in Stockholm (Sweden) was down to two leaders after eight rounds setting up a dramatic final round showdown. GMs Johan Salomon and Kirill Alekseenko held a half point lead over six GMs going into Friday. And rather than make a quick draw, they played a full game, until Salomon blundered an exchange and was forced to resign on the spot, leaving Alekseenko the sole winner. Commentary by GM Harry Schüssler & FM Martin Lokander. | Photos: Lars OA Hedlund

1/5/2018 – Only a few chess enthusiasts will remember the name of Paul Felix Schmidt thought Schmidt was one of the world's best players in the 1930s and 1940s, and equal to his Estonian countryman Paul Keres. A new biography by Eva Regina Magacs and Michael Negele invites you to get to know Paul Felix Schmidt and chess in his time.

1/5/2018 – Since October, GM Pontus Carlsson has been experimenting with a relatively unexploited form of online coaching: group webinars. If you're looking for a low-cost way to access professional insights from someone with more than 20 years on the international chess scene as player and coach, the next one is starting on Saturday, January 6th, and is half price!

1/5/2018 – Do you remember this game from the London Chess Classic last year? By playing 43...Rh7 in the diagram position Anand could have completed the line-up of kings and rooks on the h-file, creating the deadly threat ...Kg7+. Do you see the reason why he dismissed this?

1/5/2018 – For decades Vlastimil Hort, born in 1944, was one of the world's best players. He played countless tournaments and matches, where he saw chess history in the making and met many chess legends. No wonder he has lots of short stories to share. Here are some more... | Photo: André Schulz

1/4/2018 – The very first junior U-20 international open chess tournament in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates is being held from December 29th to January 7th, 2018. Under the auspices of Abu Dhabi Sports Council, Al Ain Chess & Culture Club the tournament has attracted top young talent from Armenia, India, Iran, and Uzbekistan. | Pictured: The ceremonial first move made by H.E Sheikh Salem BalRakkad AlAmeri | Photo: Enkhtuul Altan-Ulzii

1/4/2018 – The Kasparov Chess Foundation (KCF) program to train young American talents, is expanding to include top prospects from around the world. Here's the info on how you can join. | Pictured: 2016 Under-10 World Champion Rochelle Wu | Photos: Derrick Bryant, kasparovchessfoundation.org

1/4/2018 – William James Joseph 'Bill' Lombardy, who died suddenly in mid-October at the age of 79, has to go down in the annals of U.S. chess — and arguably perhaps the world chess scene — as 'the one who got away', a huge teenage talent equally as gifted as Bobby Fischer, but who gave up the chance to become an elite chess professional at the peak of his career, opting instead to pursue a personal calling to his faith by becoming a priest in the Roman Catholic Church. | Photo: Macauley Peterson

1/4/2018 – Openings teach us the value of the pieces as well as tactics, patterns, and of course most important of all: pawn structures. They are really the backbone of a player's knowledge, because they open our minds to different middlegame structures, which in turn brings us into different endgames. Openings teach us how to play with different pawn structures — things like when one needs to open the game, and when it is better to keep it closed. The Veresov as taught by IM Andrew Martin can become a good weapon in everyone's repertoire, while helping the player to improve! Davide Nastasio has the review

1/3/2018 – Tuesdays at 5pm UK time Lawrence Trent goes on air on Playchess.com. In his show Lawrence Trent will be dealing with the latest trends, games and combinations from the elite chess tournaments. This week features games from World Rapid and Blitz Championship recently concluded in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.