The Daily Position

The Daily Position

The Daily Position

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Here you will find training positions, and I will try to publish them three per week.

As you have read in “A fair warning” (the column at your right) , you won’t find easy positions; this section is conceived to grind your neurons. This is a great resource and you should take advantage of it, I haven’t found this concept in any part of the web.

Currently there are 73 positions.

A practical advice about this kind of chess training:

1. It’s recommended to use a chess clock programed to 20 minutes, minimum, and try to extract the position’s secrets, writing down everything you are able to spot. The studious player is almost certain to have heard of this training method; who didn’t, it doesn’t matter: is in this site’s nature to explain about different training methods in Chess. Meanwhile, you only need a clock, a pen and a paper (and of course a board with its pieces). You only need that because is all what you get when you are in a chess tournament.
2. Due to this chess positions are chosen from the grandmasters’ daily practice, maybe in some (or in many!) of them you won’t be able to get the whole solution. if that is the case, you can click in the links provided below of every diagram. Gradually I will publish links to downloadable PDFs documents with the whole lesson and more visually pleasing, and a better organization than the Facebook page of ChessForReal/AjedrezDeEntrenamiento has… This way you will can have it with the whole explanation, the why and the how. (Please, notice if you are not a “fan”, it would greatly appreciated you “like it”) These PDFs will be optimized for printing and the idea is for you to study in front of a real board.
3. I advise you to prepare a binder where you should save the printings and consult them often… because as the time passes your understanding of chess will grow and you will observe these positions with another eyes and you will learn new things that in the beginning you couldn’t see. This is valid in the case you understood the lesson, or you just got lost the first time. If this happens, do not worry, is very normal.

I can´t wish you luck, because in Chess there is no luck, but Bon Appetit!

Ad Majorem Caissa Gloriam!

Rating: +2 (from 2 votes)

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Position 73

Posted by Carlos on Aug 11, 2011 in The Daily Position | 0 comments

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Posición 72

Posted by Carlos on Aug 9, 2011 in The Daily Position | 0 comments

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Position 71

Posted by Carlos on Aug 2, 2011 in The Daily Position | 0 comments

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Position 70

Posted by Carlos on Jul 31, 2011 in The Daily Position | 0 comments

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Position 69

Posted by Carlos on Jul 21, 2011 in The Daily Position | 2 comments

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Position 68

Posted by Carlos on Jul 18, 2011 in The Daily Position | 4 comments

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Position 67

Posted by Carlos on Jul 12, 2011 in The Daily Position | 0 comments

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Position 66

Posted by Carlos on Jul 8, 2011 in The Daily Position | 0 comments

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Position 65

Posted by Carlos on Jul 6, 2011 in The Daily Position | 0 comments

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Position 64

Posted by Carlos on Jul 4, 2011 in The Daily Position | 0 comments

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When Should One Resign? - Chess.com

When Should One Resign? - Chess.com

When Should One Resign?

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Submitted by WGM Natalia_Pogonina

No one likes to resign, but we are all happy to accept the opponent’s capitulation. So, when is it the perfect time to wave the white flag?

Of course, you have heard the cliché 'it’s never too late to resign' and 'no one has ever won a game by resigning'. However, one shouldn’t keep playing in totally hopeless positions. This is both disrespectful toward your opponent and a way of squandering your own resources, such as energy and time, which you may need in later rounds. If it’s dead certain that you will lose, why keep suffering instead of going home and spending the evening with your family, relaxing, and preparing for the next game?

Now, let’s try to come to an agreement on a critical concept: which positions are dead lost? Of course, we could rely on computer engines’ evaluations, but this is not very good for humans. Indeed, sometimes the machine sees an incredibly sophisticated path to victory, while the players don’t. These very positions can be drawn or lost, not only by you, but by top players, if the player in question does not see that one path to victory. Let’s try a different approach: if the position is simple and technical, and your opponent has an obvious way to a win without any possible blunders, you may resign.

The “golden rule” can be formulated in the following way: 'you should resign when the weaker of the two opponents understands that the position is winning and knows how to convert the advantage'. If you are stronger than your opponent, you should make sure he also understands what’s going on. Let’s say you are rated 2000, and your opponent is 1600. Somehow you ended up in a king vs king + B+N endgame. Who knows whether your opponent is familiar with this checkmating technique? Why not test and find out?

If you are a lower-rated player, don’t resign because your opponent looks formidable or impatient. For example, let’s say you are down a pawn. Ask yourself: would you play this position against someone of equal skill? If the answer is 'yes', i.e. you are still interested in the game, then keep playing even if your opponent is much stronger. This will allow you to avoid premature resignations and, even more importantly, improve in chess. For instance, you might be playing a rook vs rook + pawn endgame and consider your position to be lost. But you are not sure exactly how you would win it if colors were reversed. Even if your opponent is a grandmaster, let him teach you how to win. He may make a mistake; the position may objectively be a draw. If you play out the game, you will learn by doing, and that is more efficient than trying to grasp the same technique by reading a book. Your memories and experience will prove extremely helpful in the future.

Sometimes top players are so confident about their opponents’ abilities that they resign in drawn or winning positions. Let’s review a few classical examples:

Chigorin vs. Tarrasch

1896 | 0-1

1. Kg4! Ke4 2. g6 h6 ( 2... hxg6 3. fxg6 f5+ 4. Kg5 f4 5. h5 f3 6. h6 gxh6+ 7. Kxh6 ) 3. Kh5 Kxf5

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Chigorin resigned against his bitter rival Tarrasch, but he could have saved the game by playing

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Capablanaca vs. Thomas

1919 | 1-0

1... Rxa2! ( 1... Rc1+?! 2. Rxc1 ( 2. Kf2?! Rc2+ 3. Ke3 Rxa2 ) 2... Rxb8 3. Qc6 ) 2. Qxa2 ( 2. Qb7 Rxb8 3. Qxb8 Ra8 4. Qxc7 Qe8 ) 2... Rxb8 3. Rxb8 Qxb8

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Clearly intimidated by the opponent, Black resigned instead of playing

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Kramnik vs. Svidler

2004 | 1-0

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It seems like White is winning another pawn, but this is not enough for overall victory in the opposite-colored bishop endgame. Luckily for Vladimir, Peter Svidler has overestimated White's position and resigned on the spot!

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Playing for a team is a different story. Losses affect the mood of your colleagues in a negative way; so one should try to play safely and avoid letting one’s teammates down. Even if you have lost, you should keep playing for moral support because sometimes having a 'shoulder' next to you is very important. For instance, at the recent World Team Chess Championship, Judit Polgar kept walking around the playing hall instead of resigning in a hopeless position against Ian Nepomniatchi. It could have been the result of disappointment, or an attempt to postpone the loss and thus ease the situation for other members of the Hungarian team. As long as the clocks are ticking, the game is still going. Also, sometimes the situation might change: your opponent will relax, start following other boards, and may get shocked or disappointed by what is happening there. This may make him nervous or cause him to play too adventurously. If you have some time left on your clock, don’t hurry. Ponder the situation for some time and either keep playing, or resign.

Summing it up, don’t resign too early or too late. Give up only when you are dead certain you have lost and are confident in your opponent’s ability to convert the advantage. Don’t waste both players' time by having your opponent checkmate you with an extra queen (unless you are a complete beginner). Remember, if you find the position unclear, you should always keep playing.

Finally, let me show you my most recent loss, which happened at the Polugaevsky Memorial against GM Pavel Maletin.

Pogonina, N. (2442) vs. Maletin, P. (2575)

Lev Polugaevsky Mem | Samara RUS | Round 6| 10 Jul 2011 | ECO: B43 | 0-1

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1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 a6 5. Nc3 Qc7 6. Be2 Bb4 7. O-O Nf6 ( 7... Bxc3 8. bxc3 Qxc3 9. Rb1 ) 8. Bd3 Bc5 9. Nb3 Be7 10. Qe2 d6 11. f4 Nc6 12. Bd2 ( 12. a4 ) 12... b5 13. Rae1 ( 13. a3 Bb7 14. Kh1 O-O 15. Rae1 b4 16. axb4 Nxb4 17. Nb5 axb5 18. Bxb4 ) 13... b4 14. Nd1 a5 15. e5 ( 15. c3 O-O ( 15... a4 16. Nd4 ) ( 15... e5 16. Ne3 ) 16. Nd4 Bb7 17. Nb5 Qd7 18. Nf2 ( 18. c4 d5 19. cxd5 exd5 20. e5 Ne4 21. Be3 Ba6 ( 21... Nc5 22. Bxc5 Bxc5+ 23. Kh1 ) 22. Nf2 Rab8 23. Nd4 Bxd3 24. Qxd3 Nc5 25. Qf5 Nxd4 26. Qxd7 Nxd7 27. Bxd4 b3 28. Nd3 ) ) 15... dxe5 16. fxe5 Nd7 17. Bf4 ( 17. Qg4 g6 18. Bh6 Ndxe5 19. Qf4 f5 20. Nf2 ( 20. Bg7 Bd6 21. Bxh8 Nxd3 ) 20... a4 21. Nd2 Qb8 ) 17... a4 18. Nd2 Nc5?! ( 18... O-O 19. Nf2 ( 19. Nc4 Ba6 20. Nde3 b3 ) 19... Bb7 20. Qg4!? Ncxe5 21. Qh3 f5 22. Nc4 Bf6 23. Qg3 Ra5 24. Nxa5 Qxa5 25. Re2 ) 19. Bc4?! ( 19. Qg4 g6 20. Nc4 O-O ( 20... Nxd3 21. cxd3 Ba6 22. Nd6+ Bxd6 23. exd6 Qa7+ 24. Nf2 O-O ( 24... Bxd3?? 25. Rxe6+ fxe6 26. Qxe6+ Ne7 27. Re1 Bf5 28. Qf6 ) 25. Rc1 Bb7 26. Bh6 ) 21. Bh6 Ba6 ( 21... Rd8 22. Qf3 Bf8 23. Bxf8 Rxf8 24. Nde3 ) 22. Bxf8 Bxf8 ) 19... Nd4 ( 19... O-O ) 20. Qg4 Nf5 21. Ne3 O-O 22. Rf3?! ( 22. Kh1 ) 22... g6 23. Rh3? ( 23. Qh3 Nxe3 24. Rfxe3 Rd8 25. Nf3 Bb7 26. Bg5 Bxf3 27. Bxe7 Qxe7 28. Qxf3 ) 23... Bb7 ( 23... Nxe3 24. Rhxe3 ( 24. Bxe3 Qxe5 25. Nf3 Qf5 26. Qg3 Ne4 27. Qc7 Bc5 ) 24... Rd8 25. Nf3 ) 24. Nf3? ( 24. Bg5 Rad8 25. Bxe7 ( 25. Nxf5 exf5 26. Qh4 h5 27. Nf3 Bxg5 28. Qxg5 Qb6 29. Qf6 Qxf6 30. exf6 Bd5 ) 25... Qxe7 26. Re2 ) 24... Ne4 25. Bd3 Qc5? ( 25... Rad8 26. Ng5 ( 26. Bh6 Nxh6 27. Rxh6 Nc5 28. Qh3 Bxf3 ) 26... h5 27. Rxh5 gxh5 28. Qxh5 Nxg5 29. Bxg5 Rxd3 30. cxd3 Rc8 ) 26. Ng5? ( 26. Bh6 b3! ( 26... Nxh6 27. Rxh6 Kg7 28. Rh3 a3 29. b3 ( 29. Bxe4 h5 30. Rxh5 ( 30. Qf4 Bxe4 31. Qxe4 axb2 32. Nd2 Rxa2 ) 30... Bxe4 31. Qxe4 gxh5 32. b3 f5 33. exf6+ Bxf6 34. Kh1 ) 29... Qc6 30. Bxe4 Qxe4 31. Qg3 ) 27. axb3 ( 27. Bxe4 bxc2 28. Bxc2 Nxe3 29. Bxe3 Qxc2 30. Qf4 f5 ) 27... axb3 28. Bxe4 bxc2 29. b4 Nxe3 30. Bxe3 Qxe3+ 31. Rxe3 c1=Q+ 32. Re1 Qc7 33. Kh1 h5 34. Qf4 Bxe4 35. Qxe4 Ra4 ) 26... h5 27. Rxh5 ( 27. Nxe4 hxg4 28. Nxc5 Bxc5 ) 27... gxh5 28. Qxh5 Bxg5 29. Bxg5 Ng7 30. Qh6 Nxg5 31. Qxg5 f5

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