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In the given position I do agree that ..Kh8 etc is too slow, and White will quickly develop a Q-side initiative by preparing c5. However, I think that OP is to be commended for responding to the spiri …

I don't think that White should expect to increase his (already large) advantage very quickly. You say there are no immediate tactics, and I don't see any either. But simple moves here are very strong …

Generally speaking strong pieces limit the opponents freedom. Think of the effect of your opponents strong pieces. There are important lines that you cannot challenge. There are squares you would like …

There are many aspects of positional play that are always mentioned. Put Rooks on open files, put knights on outpost squares, keep your pawns neat and tidy. But that is not enough to win if your oppon …

I think that this opinion has varied over time. In the nineteenth century, players in the gambit style generally preferred Knights. Tarrasch strongly preferred Bishops. I think he once humorously said …

Don't try to play like Tal unless you really understand how Tal played. For every brilliancy that gets regularly published there are many fine victories that are less spectacular and less well-known. …

Bad bishops and doubled pawns are both commonly misunderstood. The advice to avoid them is usually based on very superficial observations. If you were to focus your efforts on properly understanding t …

You are asking what to do when the opening is over, which implies that you think you know what to do while still in the opening. Im not sure that you do. Every move in every opening is motivated by t …

White needs to find a way to make use of his extra pawn, because it is hard to see any other plan. His dream would be to play d4-d5-d6, but this is not yet possible because a) d5 is under Blacks contr …

I just want to remark that it is not always necessary to have a definite plan. If you do have a single, obviously best plan, it is because your opponent has played badly. Here, even though Black has p …

I think that quite possibly we have here a case where the computer gives too high a numerical value to its assessment. Computers sometimes give high evaluations that they cannot translate into winning …

Bent Larsen explained it like this. If you want to win as Black you must unbalance the position, and this involves giving something to get something. Giving your opponent the two Bishops is something …

By way of analogy, suppose you had read an article by an art critic titled "How to Look at a Painting" The critic would use words like "color", "tone", "hue", "mood", "composition", "balance", "foregr …

As in music, harmony is difficult to define, but two things come to mind. One is the advice given "Talk to your pieces". Ask them if they feel like they belong to a team. If one of them says, "No I d …

I may be a heretic, but I think planning is over-rated. Textbooks like to give examples where one player exploits control over a weak square to force an endgame that wins after 90 moves. Play through …