https://youtu.be/MC7YS8hmBfQ Greetings Chess Players. My name is Chris Torres and this is my Daily Chess Musing for Tuesday, October 19, 2021. I am really excited to announce the return of The Daily Chess Musings’ Halloween Blitz Chess Extravaganza! The structure will be identical to last year meaning that the event will be comprised of 5ContinueContinue reading “Halloween Blitz Chess Extravaganza 2021!”
Author Archives: chessmusings
So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 43
National Chess Day is celebrated in the United States on the second Saturday in October. The 38th U.S. President Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. declared National Chess Day on October 9th, 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial celebration. Today, the day honors chess’ lengthy history and the role it has played in uniting people fromContinueContinue reading “So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 43”
Winning Chess Moves: Borisenko-Belova vs Nakhimovskaya, 1968
During her illustrious career, WGM Valentina M Borisenko-Belova (1/28/1920-3/6/1993) won the Women’s Soviet Championship five times (a record she shares with Nona Gaprindashvili.) Zara Nakhimovskaya was a formidable chess player who won the Latvian Chess Championship for Women four times. In our feature position, Valentina M Borisenko-Belova is playing with the white pieces against ZaraContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Borisenko-Belova vs Nakhimovskaya, 1968”
August Camp Points & Prizes
Hello Chess Players! First place shirt + private lesson with Coach Torres + entry to pyramid Second place shirt + entry to pyramid Third place shirt Fourth & Fifth place button 6-10 sticker Absolute Beginners Atticus Blecker fieryspark 46 Beginners Ayaan Patel AyaanP6 70 Brandon Chen Axoloto 56 Tyler Eng Tyler0725 27 Eadburt Hsu Ea20045ContinueContinue reading “August Camp Points & Prizes”
Winning Chess Moves: Mamedyarov vs Artemiev, 9/29/2021
GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov demonstrates a useful tactical motif in his round 5 victory over GM Vladislav Artemiev at the Meltwater Tour Final 2021. Can you spot white’s winning move? What is white’s best move? (Mamedyarov – Artemiev, Meltwater Tour Final 2021, R5)
Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 60
I enjoy mating puzzles where the target king is surrounded by open squares. In these puzzles, the appearance of freedom for the target king is only an illusion because, in reality, the open squares surrounding it are not free from the influences of distant pieces. In tonight’s puzzle, the black king appears to have severalContinueContinue reading “Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 60”
Honesty is the Best Policy in Chess
https://youtu.be/Syjp8q7eAis The chess community has a very low tolerance for dishonesty. If someone is found to be cheating, their reputation can be permanently damaged, or simply banned from playing competitive chess. But honesty in chess is a much broader topic than FairPlay and recently, some big names have entered the chess community without understanding theContinueContinue reading “Honesty is the Best Policy in Chess “
Winning Chess Moves: Nakamura vs Shankland, 9/9/2021
The Champions Showdown 9LX is a rapid Fischer Random/Chess960 chess tournament that is currently taking place in Saint Louis, USA. Today’s winning chess move comes from the round 2 game between Grandmasters Hikaru Nakamura and Sam Shankland. White (Nakamura) has just recaptured with Rxe5. What is black’s (Sam Shankland’s) winning move? What is black’s winningContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Nakamura vs Shankland, 9/9/2021”
So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 42
This evening’s position is from a training game I played with a student earlier today. My young opponent just blocked my rook’s check with Bd3 so as to avoid losing his queen on d1. Does this work? What is black’s best move? Sign up for a private chess lesson with Chris Torres and maybe aContinueContinue reading “So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 42”
#Chess Position Worth Sharing 137
In round 4 of the 2003 Corus Chess Tournament, Michal Vladimirovich Krasenkow fought admirably for 79 moves before allowing Vladimir Kramnik to end the game with a cute one-two combination. Can you spot Kramnik’s mating maneuver? White to move and mate in 2 (Kramnik vs. Krasenkow, 2003 Corus Tournament in Wijk aan Zee, Ned.).
#Chess Position Worth Sharing 136
Great chess players have a way of making it look easy. However, making it look easy requires a lot of work. For instance, just to get to the feature position in today’s puzzle, Boris Spassky had to spend hours grinding out a winning position. (Not to mention the years of hard work to become anContinueContinue reading “#Chess Position Worth Sharing 136”
Facilitative Ball Sharing in Chess
Basketball fans throw around terms like “ball hogs” and “facilitators”. A poor point guard, for example, will “hog the ball” attempting to be the star to the detriment of the team. A good point guard is a facilitator for the entire team setting the plays and passing the ball to a teammate with the bestContinueContinue reading “Facilitative Ball Sharing in Chess”
Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 59
Considering that the black king is utterly alone in a forest of white pieces, this mate in two puzzle is rather tricky. Can you find the only two move checkmating line for white? White to move and mate in 2 (composed by Nils Adrian Bakke, 2006).
Winning Chess Moves: Mieses vs Von Bardeleben, 1905
Curt Carl Alfred von Bardeleben Curt von Bardeleben was a most interesting chess personality and managed to lose in some of the most beautiful ways possible. Of course, many students of chess are quite familiar with the triumph Wilhelm Steinitz played over Curt Carl Alfred von Bardeleben at Hastings in 1895, but also of noteContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Mieses vs Von Bardeleben, 1905”
A California Chess Tradition Returns: The People’s Tournament
Chess players in California are flocking to Santa Clara, California to play in the upcoming People’s Tournament, Young People’s Championship and People’s Blitz. The People’s Tournament is a prestigious annual chess tournament with a storied history. This year’s event continues an important 45 year California chess tradition. Don’t miss out on your chance to competeContinueContinue reading “A California Chess Tradition Returns: The People’s Tournament”
Available Now: Private Lessons with Chess Coach Chris Torres
Dramatic checkmating combinations and vast tactical complications, a thick forest of opening trees and the esoteric plans of the ancient masters – the chessboard is a place of stunning creativity and eternal curiosity. Through it we can escape into a world of untamed gambits, beautiful sacrifices and fascinating storylines. Sign up for a customized oneContinueContinue reading “Available Now: Private Lessons with Chess Coach Chris Torres”
Chess Chat: Q&A With Michael Buss, America’s Preeminent Correspondence Chess Master
Michael Buss is currently the number one ranked correspondence chess player in the United States and further separates himself from the pack by having won the prestigious Golden Knights championship on multiple occasions. Some of his success in correspondence chess can be attributed to his “press on” attitude which he developed in his distinguished careerContinueContinue reading “Chess Chat: Q&A With Michael Buss, America’s Preeminent Correspondence Chess Master”
MOURNING EVGENY SVESHNIKOV
https://youtu.be/e8Y39jjPdKA Greetings Chess Players. My name is Chris Torres and this is my daily chess musing for Sunday, August 22, 2021. The chess world is mourning the loss of Grandmaster Evgeny Sveshnikov who passed away on August 18th at the age of 71. Chess players have probably heard his name in relation to the popularContinueContinue reading “MOURNING EVGENY SVESHNIKOV”
Summer Games Winners!
https://youtu.be/LEL5McKQj3g Greetings Chess Players. My name is Chris Torres and this is my daily chess musing for Saturday, August 21, 2021. The Daily Chess Musings Summer Games took place on chess.com from August 2 – 6. Over the five days, scores of chess players who are members of the Daily Chess Musings chess club competedContinueContinue reading “Summer Games Winners!”