THOUGHTS OF A CHESS ADDICT

The idea that there could be someone who wishes to take a byte size 1 hr lesson when available is mooted in my mind for some time. This will take place over Zoom, so there is no limit on how many students can attend.   Hence I am launching this Group Class for anyone who is attracted to come in to learn for 1 hour - something for everyone so not just targetted for any level but definitely not over 1800 online rating.  Date Topic Session 1 Board Awareness and Board Vision Session 2 What to watch on Youtube? Session 3 How to study Chess Books Session 4 Playing online for improvement P1 Session 5 Choosing an Opening Repertoire that suits you Interested parties feel free to leave your comments, email me at jfan2003@gmail.com for more information regarding payment and attendance. Please leave your name or your child's name and your contact number in the email.  Currently planning for the class to take place Mondays or Tuesday evening from 8pm. Naturally I will take note o...

 Yes I have received word that the Club can open at the CC once it is officially reopened sometime between June-July 2025. I am once again calling out to volunteers who are interested in help in opening the Club on Fridays. This will allow the Tanglin CC facility to stay open. If not I shall have to surrender it which is a great pity. So if you are interested please drop me a line at johnwongfk63@gmail.com. We can work out a roster system so that you need to appear every Friday. 

  My first encounter with Peter was in the 1983 Parkway Master's tournament where he was a player. Having lost a game against his compatriot Eddy Kwan, he was upset and wanted someone to accompany him to a meal. For the whole hour he was ranting all about his missed opportunities till the food came. That was one episode which made him realise that he could be better off as a trainer rather than a player. The next time we met, he was beamingly showing off his proteges, the Kumpulan Remaja (or National Junior)squads which comprises several of Malaysia's then top juniors. They played a few matches and swept away most of our crop. That was when his coaching endeavours truly paid off. For years he was corresponding and commenting on the local scene (both in Singapore and Malaysia) as a columnist for the New Straits Times. Emcompassing a sharp and sometimes barbed style of writing, he was controversial at times and soon realised that journalism was not for him. Which again led him to...

 After reviewing the games of the 3 students, my general observations is: UNDERSTANDING OF THE OPENING VARIATIONS     It is unfortunate that the students started with me only in 2025, so they had very little time to digest the opening notes given to them. The only way to bring their understanding to speed is to play several 5 + 5 (ie 5 min + 5 sec increment) games, review them with the notes and do it again. Owing to pressure from homework, this was not entirely done. Hence the opening positions ended with the first 12 moves in favour of the opponent. Trying to equalise from an inferior position is not an easy task. My opinion is to avoid getting into such positions in the first place. This can be done with some time reviewing the opening moves with the LiChess opening explorer to uncover the better lines to play. CHOICE OF THEORETICAL OPENINGS   Fanciful openings adopted by the current GMs are of course fun to watch and games from these openings are commen...

 The NSI took place at Our Tampines Hub on 15 - 16 March 2025 - a huge venue, but deemed cramped owing to the record turnout of 1728 participants and twice the number of parents and accompanying persons. So big was the crowd that the escalators on Lobby A (closest to the tournament hall) broke down each day owing to the weight stressed upon them! Walkways were crowded with mats and every seat was occupied. Hopefully a better solution to the crowd can be found in terms of holding areas for the accompanying parents/persons, or to simply separate the Primary and Secondary sections as was done last year.  The report as follows: U10 I had 2 students who took part, both joined my fold this year so they were relatively new in terms of OTB chess and did most of their chess-playing online. A few sessions of OTB sparring at Tanglin CC helped in Gabriel's preparation as he could manage the clock better. Luke had his OTB games at the SCF squad. Both finished reasonably given that Gabriel ...

 Most top players and top level coaches do not recommend that players below 1800 pay too much attention to studying the openings as a means to do better at chess. GM Noel Studer would advise spending at most 1/3 of the study time available to do this, spending the other 2/3ths on going through games and working on tactics. My take on this is that if one has to start playing 1 e4 early in your chess journey, then it makes sense to incorporate your chess learning with developing a sound repertoire along studying tactics. Why? With computers today having a significant say on how the game of chess develops from the opening, one can argue that the line where the opening ends and the middlegame begins is gradually blurred. I see the position coming out of the first 12 moves as a "opening-middlegame" position and the truth about this position should be established (ie where the pieces go, what pawn structure advantage can occur and the resulting endgames emerging). Hence to me, it i...

 The topic " How to Study Chess Books" was skipped as I realise that many of the players I have spoken to do not read them. Most are spending time on chess either playing online or watching videos to learn about the game. Hence I've decided to revise the schedule for February as follows: Date          TITLE Feb 11      Using online tools for chess improvement  Feb 18      How to choose an opening that suits you playing White Feb 25       How to choose an opening that suits you playing Black  Kindly email me at jfan2003@gmail.com to register for the dates. All classes start at 8pm going forward.