Learn Chess from the Greats (Dover Chess) - Softcover

Tamburro, Peter J., Jr.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 048641373X ISBN 13: 9780486413730

Verlag: Dover Publications Inc., 2000

Inhaltsangabe

Beginning students of the game as well as veterans of the board will find this chess guide offers a wealth of inspiration, enjoyment, and practical chess advice. In providing valuable instruction for players at all levels, noted chess writer and teacher Peter Tamburro initially presents elementary ideas that can be used immediately by beginners.
The attack section features the tactics of such great masters of the assault as Fischer, Keres, Alekhine, Larsen, and Rubinstein — all demonstrating how to win the middle game. A survey of endgame concepts follows, along with a selection of challenging chess problems and 60 complete games by Blackburne, Marshall, Tartakower, Polgar, and other champion players. An accessible, enjoyable guide, Learn Chess from the Greats allows readers to learn the fundamentals and improve their game in an informal, user-friendly way.

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Peter J. Tamburro, Jr., is a syndicated chess columnist.

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Learn Chess from the Greats

By Peter J. Tamburro Jr.

Dover Publications, Inc.

Copyright © 2000 Peter J. Tamburro, Jr.
All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-0-486-41373-0

Contents

Introduction, ix, 
Chapter 1. For Students and Coaches, 1, 
Chapter 2. How to Attack, 26, 
Chapter 3. You Must Learn Endgames, 47, 
Chapter 4. The Artists of Chess, 80, 
Chapter 5. Exciting Miniatures!, 88, 
Chapter 6. Games by the Greats, 103, 
Chapter 7. For the Fun of It!, 138, 
Index, 153, 

CHAPTER 1

For Students and Coaches Ta'bi'a

There is an old Islamic phrase in the ancient version of chess — shatranj — which describes a set-up, a kind of opening formation for all the troops before you mix it up in actual battle. In the older, slower form of chess these ta'bi'as were quite common and useful.

Although understanding the principles of opening theory is far better than uselessly memorizing columns of moves without comprehending why they are being made, there is still room for a compromise using the ancient principles.

After all, kids like to be able to get out of the opening when they play in tournaments. The solution? Give them a map. For example, as White give them (notice no Black moves given) 1. d4 2. Nf3 3. e3 4. Bd3 5. c3 6. 0–0 7. Nbd2 8. Qe2 9. Rel 10. e4, known to many of you as the Colle System. You can play this with minor variations against anything. It gives you something to hang onto while you learn the game.

With Black, it's tougher. In this game the player of the Black pieces was 13 years old. His adult opponent had played 1. d4 in earlier rounds and a concerned son sought out his dad to get some advice. Dad gave him 11 straight moves to remember.

Jan Kopleau–Peter J. Tamburro III Somerset, 1993 1. d4 f5 2. c4

Here Dad breathed a sigh of relief. What if White played the dangerous Staunton Gambit 2.e4?

2. ... Nf6 3. Nc3 e6 4. Nf3 Be7 5. Bg5?! 0–0 6. e3 d6 7. Bd3 b6 8. 0–0 Bb7 9. Nd2! Nbd7 10. Rel Qe8(see diagram)11. e4! Qf7?!

He forgot the 11th move, which was 11. ... Qg6, but at least he's in a middle game where anything can happen and does!

12. exf5 exf5 13. Bxf5 Qe8? 14. Qa4?

This gives Black his chance to recover from the hesitancy of his last move.

14. ... Qh5! 15. Bxd7 Qxg5 16. Nf3 Bxf3 17. g3 Qh5 18. Bc6

This seemed to be the saving idea behind 16. Nf3, but Black comes up with a great move for a beginner's game.

18. ... d5!! 19. Re3 Ng4! 20. Rxf3 Rxf3 21. Bxd5+ Kh8 22. Bxf3 Qxh2+ 23. Kf1 Qxf2 mate.

Seeing Combinations

Rudolf Spielmann, the Viennese grandmaster who wrote an entire book on chess sacrifice, wrote in emotional prose how the chess masses loved games with combinations over the technical, positional chess, which took greater effort to understand. This populist disregard for positional chess is the reason why Morphy, Chigorin, Marshall, Alekhine and Tal maintain their attraction.

There is something in their play and their moves that flaunts natural law, and we are amused and fascinated and awed by it.

In the 1940s, Irving Chernev and Kenneth Harkness wrote a delightful little book called An Invitation to Chess, and, frankly, no book published today of a similar size and nature can claim to be better. In one of their chapters, they show you how to see combinations. Using the two diagrams you see today, they demonstrate the fundamental truth behind all combinations. You must look at the board differently, indeed, more elementally.

The diagram with the White bishop and knight and Black king and queen clearly shows a basic possibility. Then, White has to figure out how to get the d4 pawn, the e5 knight and the f6 knight out of the way in the right order to achieve the objective. This approach makes it easier to understand a good many positional moves which put rooks opposite opposing queens even though there are five pieces and pawns in between.

In this position, Alekhine sees that he must play 1. c5 bxc5

3. dxc5 (1st goal accomplished) Bxc5+ 3. Rxc5! Rxc5 4. g5 Nd7 (2nd goal) 5. Nc6+ (all done!).

Death Ray Attack

In Star Wars, Darth Vader unleashes an awesome weapon — a death ray which destroys the Princess's planet. The unsuspecting planet couldn't see it coming, but the terrible explosion was such that even "the force" shuddered.

Chess can simulate that! Our Darth Vader for today is Anatoly Ufimtsev, champion of Kazakhstan, who took the "dark forces" (Black pieces) fifty years ago against grandmaster Isaak Boleslavsky to demonstrate the power of concentrating on a single point.

In our diagram, Black is threatened with b4 followed by c5 and general havoc around his monarch. However, watch as Ufimtsev lines up on g2 from the diagonal and the file.

1. ... Ne4! 2. Qa5

White cannot afford to fall for 2. Bxb6? Nxd2 3. Nxd2 Rxg2+ 4. Kh1 Rxh2+ 5. Kg1 Rh1 mate. So he figures Black will have to do something with the queen after Qa5. And then again ...

2. ... Rhg8! 3. Ne1

The GM still cannot take the queen! 3. Bxb6 Rxg2+ 4. Kh1 Rxh2+ 5. Nxh2 Nxf2 mate!! And

3. g3 doesn't help either because of 3. ... Nxg3 4. hxg3 Rxg3+! 5. fxg3 Qxe3+ 6. Kh1 Qh6+ 7. Kg2 Rxg3+ 8. Kf2 Rg2+! with mate in two, according to Reuben Fine.

At least the knight at el protects g2, right? Wrong!

3. ... Rxg2+ 4. Nxg2 Nd2!!

The unveiling of the death ray. White is helpless. And, of course, White still cannot take the queen. Also, 5. f3 loses to Qxe3+.

5. Qd5 Bxd5

The Princess must be sacrificed to save the King from checkmate, but it is a lost cause in any event.

6. cxd5 Qxb2 7. Bxd2 Qxa1 8. Bf3 Bxh2+, White resigns.

An object lesson on focusing in on one point.

Getting Better

Some years ago, at New Jersey's Westfield Chess Club, FIDE Master Steve Stoyko gave a little talk on how to improve at chess.

He strongly favored one suggestion above the rest in terms of improvement of your mental faculties for tournament play. Stoyko told his audience to set up a middle game position on a board with a chess clock ticking away. Give yourself 15 minutes or a half hour or even an hour and really study the position.

Don't move anything. Treat it like a tournament game. Wring every last secret out of the position. If you like, write down notes of key alternative lines you looked at.

Now, put yourself in White's shoes. We even give you some hints.

You might find it helpful to know that moves 27 through 38 are all checks! White, an 18-year-old playing in the 1946 US Championship found the moves. Can you?

Cover all the moves below, set up the board and the position. Chess players, start your clocks! (and good luck!)

Now compare your thoughts with what actually happened and with the alternatives that were possible:

Kramer-Drexel(see diagram)27. Ng6+! hxg6 If 27. ... Kg8 28. Nfxe7+ 28. Bxg7+! Kh7

If 28. ... Kg8 29. Nh6+ Kxg7 30. Qxg6+ or 28. ... Nxg7 29. Qh6+

29. Qh6+ Kg8 30. Nxe7+ Qxe7

If 30. ... Kf7 31. Bxg6+ Kxe7 32. d6+

31. Qh8+ Kf7 32. Rxf8+ Nf6 33. Bxg6+!!

If you got this far and saw this, pat yourself on the back. If you played 33. Rxf6+, Qxf6 wins for Black!

33. ... Kxg6 34. Qh6+ Kf7 35. Rxf6+ Ke8 36. Rxf8+ Kd7 37. Qe6+ ...

No credit for 37. Rxa8?? Qe1 mate.

37. ... Qxe6 38. dxe6+ Kxe6 39. Rxa8, Black...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Dover Publications Inc.
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2000
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 048641373X
• ISBN 13: 9780486413730
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 156
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Dover; info@galileo-mc.de; ; Dachauer Str. 5-7; F�rstenfeldbruck; 82256; Deutschland