Sep
20
Monday puzzle / game
White to play and win Thanks once again to Christian for sending a nice study, this one being by Rinck. As Christian said, this one is not too difficult but quite amusing. Solution
Sep
18
Bulletin No.79 – The Bournemouth ‘Grand’ Chess Congress
Introduction After much deliberation and several reworks of the numbers, the Bournemouth Grand Chess Congress was finally launched in 2012, the same year as the London Olympics. However, it almost did not happen! Below is the full history of the Congress, how it came about, its successes including attracting some of the UK's top Grandmasters [...]
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Sep
18
Friendly matches – Poole vs Bournemouth & Highcliffe vs Ringwood
Over the summer there have been a few warm up matches played as we all get used to playing real chess again. Paul Errington (Bournemouth) and Eric Sachs (Poole) report on two over the board matches between Bournemouth and Poole Chess Clubs played in September, the first one at the Winton Liberal Club, which is […]
Sep
11
Bulletin No.78 – Combo Corner: Botvinnik
Introduction When you think of Botvinnik you immediately think of strategic masterpieces rather than fantastic tactics. However, Botvinnik did play some really nice combinations, it was just that by the time he played them he normally had other ways of winning. In other words Botvinik's combinations were normally crowning glories after he had already outplayed [...]
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Sep
11
Poem No.14 – A Chess Riddle
Over the summer months Christine Roberts is delighting and entertaining us with her chess poems. This final one provides us with fond memories on how we used to greet each other at the start of the season. Since two years now, do you remember that yearly night in late September? We grouped together in the [...]
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Sep
11
Weekly Quiz No.14 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
This is the last of our Weekly Quiz Questions on Find the Plan (and Move)! Like the previous 13, it has been taken from an actual game position and you have a number of possible options but only one might be best! This is different to the Puzzles as the solution does not lead to [...]
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Sep
09
Thursday puzzle / game
White to play and mate in 2 To my eyes a little bit harder than Monday’s mate in 2 but still with a simplicity and elegance to the solution. There are 5 different mates involved! Solution
Sep
04
Bulletin No.77 – Local Games: A Mixed Bag of Goodies!
We have a bit of everything today! We start with a short king hunt... our second offering is a positional game with twists and turns... and we end with a memorable win against a famous GM. Enjoy! Attack with the English We normally associate the English with subtle queenside pressure or the big centre [...]
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Sep
04
Poem No.13 – Suspend all Sense (Part Two)!
Over the summer months Christine Roberts is delighting and entertaining us with her chess poems. This one covers even more difficulties in choosing the right opening! Beginners look out for this bait, don’t ever fall for Scholars Mate! Stafford Gambit’s new in town; using it might win the Crown. But if you want to draw [...]
DETAIL Sep
04
Weekly Quiz No.13 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they [...]
DETAIL Aug
21
Bulletin No.75 – Local Games: One Human Baffler and Two Engine Bafflers!
Today we start with a game that has a sharp and pretty finish and on the way through features unusual and interesting positions that are really hard for a human to evaluate. Then we have a couple of games containing moves that are easy for a human to understand but have baffled engines! All three [...]
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Aug
21
Poem No.11 – Time for Change
Over the summer months Christine Roberts is delighting and entertaining us with her chess poems. This one covers the changing face of the chess clock! “Analogue clocks!” I hear you complain, as we’re placed beside competition boards. Denying the decades we’ve timed your game, you really hurt us, your words like swords. Till now we’ve [...]
DETAIL Aug
21
Weekly Quiz No.11 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they [...]
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Aug
14
Bulletin No.74 – Endgame Corner: Rook Ending Crash Course
Introduction I thought a few times about writing an Endgame Corner on rook endings and decided against it, partly because I am not a GM standard expert on them and partly because it seemed like a large and daunting task. However, having decided that I wouldn’t do it, a couple of people suggested it would [...]
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Aug
14
Poem No.10 – Man Over Board!
Over the summer months Christine Roberts is delighting and entertaining us with her chess poems. This one covers the battlefield over the chess board! Always the battlefield for the game, whilst armies change, I stay the same. Use me for draughts, though I confess I prefer to be the site of chess. 64 squares in [...]
DETAIL Aug
14
Weekly Quiz No.10 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they [...]
DETAIL Aug
07
Bulletin No.73 – Local Games: A Stunning Novelty and 2 Black Kingside Attacks
Today we feature a brilliant opening sac that was way ahead of its day, and two attacks against the castled white king. Plenty of blood all round! A Stunning Novelty! When Martin Clancy played this game in 2005 the idea of Nd5 in the Morra was basically unknown and must have given his opponent quite [...]
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Aug
07
Poem No.9 – Pawn (no graphic!)
Over the summer months Christine Roberts is delighting and entertaining us with her chess poems. This one covers the modest but often underestimated pawn! Walk beside the humble pawn, which on its own is quite forlorn. It’s aim is to become a queen; in most games, though, that’s seldom seen. First, it moves one square, [...]
DETAIL Aug
07
Weekly Quiz No.9 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they [...]
DETAIL Jul
31
Bulletin No.72 – Endgame Corner: How to Win Opposite Colour Bishop Endings
We all know that opposite coloured bishop endings are drawish. The defending side puts their pawns on the same coloured square as their bishop and blockades the opposing pawns when they are on the opposite colour. A pawn up you will not normally be able to win, two extra pawns are often not enough, and [...]
DETAIL Jul
31
Weekly Quiz No.8 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they [...]
DETAIL Jul
24
Bulletin No.71 – Local Games: A Strategic Masterpiece and 2 King Attacks
Today we feature a strategic masterpiece by Christian Westrap and two attacks against the opposing king by Mike Waddington, both featuring exploitation of the dark squares. All three games are annotated by the winners, giving a great insight into their thinking. How to crush the Benko! The Benko can be tricky to play against because [...]
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Jul
24
Poem No.7 – The Baffled Bishop
Over the summer months Christine Roberts is delighting and entertaining us with her chess poems. This one aptly describes the confusion of the bishop! I’ll tell you now, I’m so confused. My problem’s of a special kind - It’s not that I am underused - I’m grappling with it in my mind. When I am [...]
DETAIL Jul
24
Weekly Quiz No.7 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they [...]
DETAIL Jul
17
Weekly Quiz No.6 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they [...]
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Jul
15
Thursday puzzle / game
White to play and win Can you work out how to nurse a pawn through to the eighth rank? Solution
Jul
10
Bulletin No.69 – Local Games: A Superb Miniature and Two Swindles
Today we feature a superbly played miniature and two horrendous swindles! 13 Moves... Unlucky for Someone! Mike Duggan finds all the critical moves to produce a fine game. He makes it look easy, but that is only because his play was really strong. Simple but Sneaky! Here Peter Anderson wondered if his opponent might autopilot [...]
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Jul
10
Poem No.5 – Queening It!
Over the summer months Christine Roberts is delighting and entertaining us with her chess poems. This one takes a look at her majesty the queen. Imagine how it feels to be superior to all the team. The pawns and pieces next to me, worth less, acknowledge I’m the cream. I bide my time to move [...]
DETAIL Jul
10
Weekly Quiz No.5 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they [...]
DETAIL Jul
03
Bulletin No.68 – Endgame Corner: Queen vs Minor Pieces
Do you know how a queen fairs against two minor pieces? And if you know what the result should be, could you achieve it in practice? Queen vs Two Bishops This is drawn but only if the defending side can quickly achieve the correct defensive set up. The king needs to be near but not [...]
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Jul
03
Poem No.4 – Behold The King
Over the summer months Christine Roberts is delighting and entertaining us with her chess poems. This one is a reminder on the importance of protecting your king! When you first begin to play the game of chess, whichever way, the very most important thing is guard and shield your precious King. Unless you play the [...]
DETAIL Jul
03
Weekly Quiz No.4 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they [...]
DETAIL Jun
26
Bulletin No.67 – Local Games: Instructive miniature plus two sacrificial finishes
Today we feature a very enjoyable and instructive miniature and two games with crisp finishes featuring the same sac, each annotated by the winners. Pretty and Instructive We start today with a delightful miniature from Christian Westrap. Sac and Win! Martin Simons finishes a complex game with a well calculated sac. Sac, Sac and Win! [...]
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Jun
26
Poem No.3 – An Ode to a Chess Congress
Over the summer months Christine Roberts (Poole) is delighting and entertaining us with her chess poems. This one takes us on the roller-coaster ride of playing at a chess congress! Late Friday night, stifling a yawn, I face my foe, who’s slow to move. After aeons of time he shifts a pawn And I counter [...]
DETAIL Jun
26
Weekly Quiz No.3 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they [...]
DETAIL Jun
19
Bulletin No.66 – Endgame Corner: Two Bishops vs Knight (and Pawn)
Endgame Corner will be one of the types of bulletin we will be running over the next few months. There won't be lots of analysis in these (quite often no analysis), but rather I will normally try to quickly summarise whether an endgame is won or drawn, whether or not it is easy to play, [...]
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Jun
19
Poem No.2 – Club Nights
Over the summer months Christine Roberts (Poole) is delighting and entertaining us with her chess poems. This second one highlights the atmosphere and friendship that we have all been missing at our local chess clubs. Remember the time when we chessed at a club? We greeted each other, assembled so near, no pawns to sanitise, [...]
DETAIL Jun
19
Weekly Quiz No.2 – Find the Plan (and Move)!
Over the summer, on each Saturday we will be providing a Weekly Quiz Question on Find the Plan (and Move)! This will be taken from an actual game position and you will be provided with a number of possible options but only one might be best! These will be different to the Puzzles as they [...]
DETAIL Jun
12
Bulletin No.65 – Local Games: A Miniature and 2 King Walks!
From today the weekly bulletins will be shorter than in the past but we will still bring you plenty of quality content! Roughly every other week we will bring you three games by local players. These will be a mixture of best/favourite games, short games and swindles and will be annotated by the players themselves [...]
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Jun
12
Poem No.1 – In Praise of (Li)Chess
Over the summer months Christine Roberts (Poole) will be delighting and entertaining us with her chess poems. This first one covers her experiences of playing chess online – a useful distraction during Lockdown! Lockdown comes - what do I do when I’m alone and feel duress? I’ve dug the garden, cleaned the loo. I know, [...]
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