As a chess teacher, I find genuine joy and pride when I lose to a student who beats me with truly brilliant tactic. Such moments affirm my effectiveness as an instructor, highlighting that my guidance has cultivated a sharp, creative, and resourceful player. Watching my student pull off an amazing combination not only sparks admirationContinueContinue reading “So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 62”
Tag Archives: Winning Chess Moves
Winning Chess Moves: Yakubboev vs V. Rameshbabu, 2025
Vaishali Rameshbabu is not just an Indian chess grandmaster; she’s a trailblazer in the world of chess. Alongside her brother, Praggnanandhaa, they have etched their names in history as the first brother-sister duo to both hold the prestigious Grandmaster titles. Their remarkable achievements don’t stop there; they also made waves as the first siblings toContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Yakubboev vs V. Rameshbabu, 2025”
Winning Chess Moves: Morphy vs. Schrüfer, 1859
Last night I dreamt about attending a dinner party with Paul Morphy. At some point in my dream I asked him what he was doing here as he died a long time ago. Unfortunately, this subconscious realization jolted me awake before the chess games started. Luckily, I know a real Morphy game played under similarContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Morphy vs. Schrüfer, 1859”
Winning Chess Moves: Chithambaram vs Herman, 2011
Achieving a FIDE chess rating of 2700 is a significant achievement as it places a player among the elite Grandmasters of the world. A 2700 rating is a testament to exceptional skill, strategic depth, and consistency in performance. Of course, chess players who reach 2700 must overcome many setbacks in order to reach the highestContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Chithambaram vs Herman, 2011”
Winning Chess Moves: Erigaisi vs Kunin, 2024
So far in 2024, Indian Grandmaster Arjun Erigaisi has made winning on the chessboard look easy. Erigaisi’s latest accomplishment was taking clear first in the French Team Championship strong Pool A group with a whopping 2900 performance rating! Now as the highest rated player in India and ranked within the top 5 in the world,ContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Erigaisi vs Kunin, 2024”
Winning Chess Moves: Magnus Carlsen vs Ding Liren, 12th Norway Chess, 2024
Two World Champions were paired against each other in the eleventh round of the 2024 edition of Norway Chess. The reigning World Champion GM Ding Liren had the black pieces against his predecessor GM Magnus Carlsen. Sometimes, when players of this caliber meet, it is helpful to have a grandmaster chess commentator explain why oneContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Magnus Carlsen vs Ding Liren, 12th Norway Chess, 2024”
Winning Chess Moves: Euwe vs. Bernard van Mindeno, 1927
Imagine how awesome it would be to have your favorite high school math teacher become the World Chess Champion! The girls attending a Dutch Lyceum in 1935 had this happen when Machgielis “Max” Euwe defeated Alexander Alekhine in their World Championship Match. After winning the title, Max Euwe returned to the all girls Lyceum inContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Euwe vs. Bernard van Mindeno, 1927”
Winning Chess Moves: Koltanowski vs Diller, San Francisco, 1960
Today’s winning chess move involves a way to collect your opponent’s queen on just the fifth move! Unfortunately, you are not likely to find an opponent falling for this famous trap in the Damiano Variation of Petrov’s Defense. Still, as the great California chess ambassador George Koltanowski shows us, it’s an opening trap worth knowing.ContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Koltanowski vs Diller, San Francisco, 1960”
Winning Chess Moves: Barrameda vs. Zhang, 2009 USATW
With the 2024 US Amateur Team West chess tournament happening this weekend, it seemed rather fitting to share a winning chess move from a past edition of the USATW. Tonight’s winning chess move comes from the 2009 US Amateur Team West game between Gabriel Barrameda and Kevin Zhang. Gabriel (white) has just played 31. Ra3ContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Barrameda vs. Zhang, 2009 USATW”
Winning Chess Moves: Messinger vs. Rack, 1989
Just like an underwater explorer scanning the ocean floor for valuable artifacts, I often scour the chess databases for exceptional moves that have yet to be brought to light. This evening, I journeyed into the vast ocean of chess possibilities, diving deep into the depths of strategic encounters in search of some artifact of humanContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Messinger vs. Rack, 1989”
Puzzle Worthy Position 45
Frequent readers of this blog know that Grandmaster Max Euwe is one of my favorite chess heroes. In 1935, chess prognosticators didn’t give Machgielis “Max” Euwe of the Netherlands much of a chance in his title match against World Champion Alexander Alekhine in part because Dr. Euwe wasn’t a professional chess player but rather aContinueContinue reading “Puzzle Worthy Position 45”
Winning Chess Moves: Vokhidov vs. Wojtaszek, 2022
The FIDE World Team Championship for 2022 consisted of 12 nation teams and included many illustrious players who are recurring stars on the Daily Chess Musings blog including Anish Giri, Vasyl Ivanchuk, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, Teymur Radjabov, Nihal Sarin, and Alexei Shirov. However, the best finishing move of the event did not occur inContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Vokhidov vs. Wojtaszek, 2022”
So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 48
Position after just five moves. Last night I Played a 5 move miniature with the black pieces that would fit nicely into Irving Chernev’s 1000 Best Short Games of Chess. Enjoy… 1.d4 e5 2.dxe5 Nc6 3.Nf3 Qe7 4.c4 Nxe5 5.g3 Nxf3#
Puzzle Worthy Position 44
Since it’s inception in 2018, the Tata Steel Chess India tournament has invited five of the most talented Indian Grandmasters to compete in their home country against an equal number of top international competitors. The annual event features the strongest rapid and blitz chess on the subcontinent. For 2022, the Tata Steel Chess India eventContinueContinue reading “Puzzle Worthy Position 44”
Winning Chess Moves: Caruana vs. Lenderman, 2018
The 2018 US Championship was an action packed event. The San Francisco Bay Area’s own Grandmaster Sam Shankland stole the spotlight by taking first place over such pre-tournament favorites such as Fabiano Caruana, Wesley So and Hikaru Nakamura. Norcal chess enthusiasts weren’t exactly shocked by GM Shankland’s championship run as we have long since grownContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Caruana vs. Lenderman, 2018”
Puzzle Worthy Position 42
The action at the Chess Bundesliga is always worth checking out! A recent Bundesliga game between GM David Navara and GM Luke McShane reached a most remarkable position before concluding. In the position below, black (McShane) has just moved his pawn to b2 on his 34th move. GM David Navara (white) responds to the promotionContinueContinue reading “Puzzle Worthy Position 42”
Winning Chess Moves: Karpov vs. Mickiewicz, 1997
Former World Champion Anatoly Karpov is an incredible chess player who dominated the international chess scene for a decade beginning in the mid-seventies. Anatoly wasn’t the flashiest World Champion but his games are very approachable and I often recommend that fans of Capablanca also study the games of Karpov. For today’s Winning Chess Move puzzle,ContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Karpov vs. Mickiewicz, 1997”
Winning Chess Moves: Zhongyi vs Wagner, FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022
Grandmaster Tan Zhongyi of China finished her tenth round game at the 2022 Women’s Grand Prix with a very unique mate in 2. GM Zhongyi, who was the FIDE Women’s World Champion from 2017-2018, was facing WGM Dinara Wagner when Wagner played 43… Kh6 with the black pieces giving Tan a golden opportunity to finishContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Zhongyi vs Wagner, FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022”
So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 47
A mate in 7 can seem daunting but they aren’t always difficult to solve. Technically the position below is indeed a mate in 7 for white, but that’s only because black can throw pieces away blocking the first check to extend the game unnecessarily. So, in the actual game, I checkmated in just five moves.ContinueContinue reading “So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 47”
Winning Chess Moves: Chiburdanidze vs. Malaniuk, 1990
Grandmaster Maia Chiburdanidze, the Sixth Women’s World Chess Champion, has played many notable games that I regularly use as lesson material. Today’s puzzle comes from her final move against GM Vladimir P Malaniuk played in Round 9 of the 1990 Kusadasi Open in Kusadasi, Turkey. Chiburdanidze (white) plays a crushing move that causes her opponentContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Chiburdanidze vs. Malaniuk, 1990”