Learning Chess

Interested in learning chess? This suite of articles will help you understand the game, improve your skills and ultimately master it.

Alexander Petrov

Unexpected Opening Moves: Petroff’s Defense

The first 10 moves of a chess game, called the “opening,” can be a minefield. Although following opening principles — such as controlling the center, developing your minor pieces (bishops and knights), and castling — usually succeeds, you also have to know some common opening traps. In this article, the Petroff’s Defense trap is explained. More 🡢
Ding Liren

Overloading at the Chess Olympiad

Teams from China won both the Open section and the Women’s section of the 43rd Chess Olympiad, which took place in Batumi, Georgia. Grandmaster Ding Liren was first board for China’s Open section team. This article features a tactic, overloading, from his win over Grandmaster Jan-Krzysztof Duda of Poland. More 🡢
Strke Like Judit! The winning tactics of chess legend Judit polgar

Judit Polgar: Chess Connects Us

Although Grandmaster Judit Polgar retired from playing top-level competitive chess in 2014, she is one of the game’s most active promoters. On October 13, 2018, the second Saturday in October and thus also National Chess Day in the United States, Judit and her sister Sofia will give a simultaneous chess exhibition (a “simul”) as part of the Global Chess Festival. More 🡢
Crusader Chess

Chess Children

While some children may play chess for a year or less, others stick with the game. It’s fun to see them grow, both taller and as chess players. In this article, I highlight two chess-playing children and their mom. More 🡢
How to teach chess (part four) and the Ruy Lopez, Exchange Variation

How to teach chess (part four) and the Ruy Lopez, Exchange Variation

In this article (part four) and in my previous article (part three, which covered Monday, July 23 and Tuesday, July 24), I outline my lessons for these more advanced students. You can use these articles as a self-study guide (for improving your own chess). Or, if you are a chess teacher, you might try my outlined plans with your advanced students. More 🡢
World Cup

World Cup

The skill of “dribbling” in soccer is perhaps the game’s most fundamental skill. Dribbling is running or moving with the ball under the control of your feet. Beginners learn how to dribble and World Cup players demonstrate excellent dribbling in their games. Likewise, as a beginning or intermediate chess player, you learn the endgame checkmates. The king and queen versus king and rook win should be in the top of the endgame fundamentals that you learn and practice. More 🡢
Elliott Neff teaching Boys & Girls Club children how to play chess- Fall 2016. Photo by Sarah Smoots

Chess coach Elliott Neff answers your questions

Thirty-two SparkChess readers had questions for chess coach Elliott Neff. Alexey Root chose the best ones and Elliott has the answers. All five readers received one-year Premium Live SparkChess memberships. Read on to find out which of the five also won a one-year Chess4Life Online Premium membership. More 🡢
National Master Elliott Neff

Learn a basic endgame checkmate from Elliott Neff

When facing a lone king, you should know how to checkmate if you have king, a knight, and bishop. Most videos only show the checkmate when the king is already on the edge of the board. But it is important to learn what to do when the defending king starts in the center. NM Elliott Neff shows how to drive the defender’s king from the center to the edge of the board and then follow it up with checkmate. More 🡢