Chess Second Edition by Patrick Wolff A Pearson Education Company To everyone who knows and loves the game of chess, and to everyone who is about to discover the King of games. Copyright  2002 by Patrick Wolff All rights reserved. No part of this book shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval sys- tem, or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher. No patent liability is as- sumed with respect to the use of the information contained herein. Although every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher and author assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed for damages resulting from the use of information contained herein. For information, ad- dress Alpha Books, 201 West 103rd Street, Indianapolis, IN 46290. THE COMPLETE IDIOT’S GUIDE TO and Design are registered trademarks of Pearson Education, Inc. International Standard Book Number: 0-02-863182-5 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2001092305 04 03 02 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Interpretation of the printing code: The rightmost number of the first series of num- bers is the year of the book’s printing; the rightmost number of the second series of numbers is the number of the book’s printing. For example, a printing code of 02-1 shows that the first printing occurred in 2002. Printed in the United States of America Note: This publication contains the opinions and ideas of its author. It is intended to provide helpful and informative material on the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the author and publisher are not engaged in rendering profes- sional services in the book. If the reader requires personal assistance or advice, a com- petent professional should be consulted. The author and publisher specifically disclaim any responsibility for any liability, loss, or risk, personal or otherwise, which is incurred as a consequence, directly or indi- rectly, of the use and application of any of the contents of this book. Illustration credits: p.5 Photograph by Jerome Bibuld, Courtesy of the Russell Collection. p.10 Paramount Pictures. p. 13 House of Staunton, Courtesy of the Russell Collection. p. 264 Courtesy of the Russell Collection. p. 269 Courtesy of the Russell Collection. p. 272 Courtesy of the Russell Collection. p. 274 Courtesy of the Russell Collection. p. 275 Courtesy of the Russell Collection. p. 278 Courtesy of New In Chess. p. 280 Courtesy of New In Chess. p. 303 Mindscape. p. 303 (bottom) Davidson/Simon & Schuster. Publisher Marie Butler-Knight Product Manager Phil Kitchel Managing Editor Jennifer Chisholm Acquisitions Editor Brandon Hopkins Development Editor Michael Koch Production Editor Billy Fields Copy Editor Cari Luna Illustrator Jody Schaeffer Cover Designers Mike Freeland Kevin Spear Book Designers Scott Cook and Amy Adams of DesignLab Indexer Tonya Heard Layout/Proofreading Angela Calvert John Etchison Mary Hunt Contents at a Glance Part 1: Let’s Play Chess 1 1 Why Play Chess? 3 The history of chess and its popularity today. 2 Drawing the Battle Lines 11 An introduction to the board, pieces, and rules of chess; plus how to read and write chess moves. 3 Rules of Engagement 31 The rest of the rules, so you can start playing chess. 4 How to Win with Just One Piece 49 Checkmating the lone king with just the queen or rook. Part 2: Tactics 65 5 It’s a Material World 67 Making sure your army is bigger than your opponent’s. 6 Tricks of the Tactical Trade 87 The most important tactics for capturing your opponent’s pieces. 7 Dirtier Tricks 111 Some more important tactics for capturing your opponent’s pieces. 8 Hunting Down the King 127 Using tactics and material to attack your opponent’s king. Part 3: Strategy 143 9 In the Beginning 145 How to play the opening phase of a chess game. 10 Making the Most of Your Pieces 161 Strategies for maximizing the power of your pieces. 11 Pawn Shop 179 Special strategies for using the pawns. 12 The Final Frontier 199 How to control more of the board than your opponent, and what to do if you control less of it. 13 Weak Squares 215 Recognizing when certain squares are more important than others, and how to use them to your advantage. 14 All Good Things Must Come to an End 229 How to play the endgame phase of a chess game. Part 4: Beyond the Basics 249 15 Training Camp 251 Tips for continuing your chess study beyond this book. 16 Hall of Fame 261 The chess superstars: The World Champions throughout history and today. 17 Getting Competitive 283 Everything you need to know to find new opponents, and to play in chess clubs and tournaments. 18 Chess in Cyberspace 293 Everything you need to know to find chess on the Internet or to find the right computer chess product for you. 19 How Computers Play Chess 305 An explanation of the “thinking process” of the machine. 20 How to Beat the !?%@&?>!# Computer 321 Tips for using the different ways that humans and computers play chess to your advantage. Appendixes A Your Chess Rolodex 331 B Other Chess Notations 335 C Answers to Exercises 337 D Glossary 357 Index 361 Contents Part 1: Let’s Play Chess 1 1 Why Play Chess? 3 Are We Having Fun Yet? ..........................................................................................4 Once the Game of Kings … ....................................................................................4 … Now the King of Games ......................................................................................9 2 Drawing the Battle Lines 11 Meet the Chessboard ............................................................................................11 Naming the Squares ..............................................................................................12 Meet the Pieces ......................................................................................................13 The Pawn ..............................................................................................................14 The Knight ............................................................................................................16 The Bishop ............................................................................................................17 The Rook ..............................................................................................................19 The Queen ............................................................................................................20 The King ..............................................................................................................21 The Two R’s: Reading and ’Riting Chess Moves ....................................................23 Pawn Moves Without Capture ..............................................................................23 Pawn Moves With Capture ....................................................................................24 All Other Moves Without Capture ..........................................................................25 All Other Moves With Capture ..............................................................................27 Now Take a Deep Breath ........................................................................................28 3 Rules of Engagement 31 Three Special Moves ..............................................................................................31 Pawn Capturing a Pawn En Passant ......................................................................32 Promoting the Pawn ..............................................................................................33 King’s Special Privilege ..........................................................................................35 Win, Lose, or Draw: How Does That Happen? ....................................................38 Checkmate—the Aim of the Game! ........................................................................38 An Example of Checkmate ....................................................................................39 Throwing in the Towel ..........................................................................................40 Sometimes Nobody Wins ......................................................................................40 Insufficient Material to Deliver Checkmate ............................................................41 Friendly Agreement ................................................................................................41 Perpetual Check ....................................................................................................42 Stalemate ..............................................................................................................43 Okay, One More Deep Breath and You’re Ready to Play! ....................................45 4 How to Win with Just One Piece 49 Checkmate with Queen and King Versus King ....................................................50 Making a Plan ......................................................................................................50 Constricting the King ............................................................................................52 Bringing Your King Up to Help ..............................................................................52 Driving the King to the Corner ..............................................................................53 Beware of Giving Stalemate! ..................................................................................54 Time to Bring Up the King ....................................................................................54 Checkmate with Rook and King Versus King ......................................................56 Constricting the King ............................................................................................56 Bringing the King up to Help ..................................................................................56 Driving the King Back ............................................................................................58 Beware of Giving Stalemate! ..................................................................................59 Going In for the Kill ..............................................................................................60 Could You Do It Again? ........................................................................................61 Part 2: Tactics 65 5 It’s a Material World 67 The Concept of Material ........................................................................................68 When Fewer Pieces=More Material ........................................................................68 The Relative Worth of the Pieces ............................................................................68 What About the King? ..........................................................................................70 How Do You Use This Scale? ................................................................................70 How to Win Material, and Avoid Losing Material ................................................71 “How Do You Get to Carnegie Hall?” ....................................................................71 “Do I Really Need All of This Practice?” ................................................................75 How to Defend Against a Threat to One of Your Pieces ......................................77 Moving the Piece That Is Being Attacked ................................................................77 Defending the Piece That Is Being Attacked ............................................................78 Blocking the Attack on the Piece ............................................................................78 Capturing the Piece That Is Attacking You ............................................................79 Attacking Something Else in Your Opponent’s Position ............................................79 Practice, Practice, Practice! ....................................................................................81 6 Tricks of the Tactical Trade 87 The Fork ................................................................................................................87 Pawn Forks ............................................................................................................87 Knight Forks ..........................................................................................................89 Bishop Forks ..........................................................................................................91 Rook Forks ............................................................................................................92 Queen Forks ..........................................................................................................93 King Forks ............................................................................................................93 The Pin ..................................................................................................................95 Bishop Pins ..........................................................................................................96 Rook Pins ..............................................................................................................98 Queen Pins ............................................................................................................99 The Skewer ..........................................................................................................100 Two Attacks at Once ............................................................................................102 Discovered Check ................................................................................................103 Double Check ......................................................................................................104 7 Dirtier Tricks 111 Getting an Enemy Piece Out of the Way ............................................................111 Attacking the Defender ........................................................................................111 Overloading the Defender ....................................................................................114 When You Are Your Own Worst Enemy ............................................................116 Wishing Can Help You Make It So ......................................................................117 Superman’s Not the Only One with X-Ray Vision! ............................................119 The “In Between” Move ......................................................................................121 8 Hunting Down the King 127 When a Material Advantage Is All Relative ........................................................127 The Emperor Has No Clothes! ............................................................................129 Exposing Your Opponent’s King ..........................................................................131 Anand–Kasparov, 1995 ......................................................................................131 Useful Tactics for Attacking the King ..................................................................135 Nowhere to Run! ..................................................................................................135 Death by Suffocation ..........................................................................................136 The Infinite Variety of Checkmates ....................................................................138 The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Chess, Second Edition Part 3: Strategy 143 9 In the Beginning 145 The Beginning, Middle, and End of a Chess Game ............................................145 “The Opening” or “An Opening?” ......................................................................146 When Does the Beginning End? ........................................................................147 The Center’s Where All the Action Is ..................................................................147 Center Pawns First ..............................................................................................148 Minor Pieces Before Major Pieces ..........................................................................148 Time Is of the Essence ..........................................................................................149 Castle Early! ........................................................................................................150 Two Openings to Illustrate the Principles ..........................................................150 Queen’s Gambit Declined ....................................................................................150 Sicilian Defense ..................................................................................................154 A Brief Digression: Fianchettoing the Bishop ........................................................155 Back to the Sicilian Defense ................................................................................156 10 Making the Most of Your Pieces 161 Mobility: Give Me Room! ....................................................................................161 Do Be Cruel: Attack Your Opponent’s Weaknesses ............................................162 The Knight ..........................................................................................................162 The Bishop ..........................................................................................................165 Which Is Better: Bishop or Knight? ......................................................................166 The Two Bishops ................................................................................................168 “Opposite-Colored Bishops” ................................................................................170 The Rook ..............................................................................................................171 The Queen ............................................................................................................173 11 Pawn Shop 179 “The Pawns Are the Soul of Chess” ....................................................................179 Chain Gangs ........................................................................................................180 Side by Side Is Strongest ......................................................................................181 Forward Pawns and Backward Pawns ..................................................................182 When One Pawn Holds Two ................................................................................185 Some Pawns Are Islands ......................................................................................186 The Isolated Pawn ..............................................................................................187 Double the Pleasure ............................................................................................188 Pawns: What Are They Good For? ......................................................................191 Open Sesame! ......................................................................................................191 “Reconstructive Surgery” ......................................................................................191 Damaging Your Opponent’s Pawn Structure ..........................................................193 12 The Final Frontier 199 The Advantage of Space ......................................................................................199 Grabbing Space ....................................................................................................200 What to Do With More Space ..............................................................................202 But Don’t Forget the Center! ................................................................................203 Relieving a Cramp ................................................................................................205 Exchange Pieces ..................................................................................................205 Take Some Space of Your Own ............................................................................206 Challenge Your Opponent’s Space Advantage ........................................................209 13 Weak Squares 215 Recognizing Weak Squares ..................................................................................215 Weak Squares and Pawn Structure ......................................................................217 The “Hole” ..........................................................................................................218 The Weak Color Complex ....................................................................................218 viii Contents Weak Squares and the King ................................................................................220 Repairing a Weak Square ......................................................................................223 14 All Good Things Must Come to an End 229 But Don’t Forget What You’ve Learned Up to Now! ..........................................229 The King Is a Strong Piece: Use It! ......................................................................232 The Passed Pawn Rules the Endgame! ................................................................234 The Pawn Majority ..............................................................................................234 The Outside Passed Pawn ....................................................................................235 The Protected Passed Pawn ..................................................................................236 Blockading the Passed Pawn ................................................................................237 Connected Passed Pawns ....................................................................................239 Three Specific Endgames ....................................................................................240 King and Pawn vs. King, and the “Opposition” ....................................................241 King, “Rook’s Pawn,” and “Wrong-Colored Bishop” vs. King ................................242 Opposite Colored Bishops ....................................................................................243 Part 4: Beyond the Basics 249 15 Training Camp 251 Studying the Opening and the Endgame ............................................................252 Studying the Opening ..........................................................................................252 Studying the Endgame ........................................................................................254 Magazines and Periodicals ..................................................................................254 Using www.wolffchess.com and Other Web Sites ..............................................255 Studying Tactics ..................................................................................................256 Studying Strategy ................................................................................................256 Reading for Pleasure ............................................................................................257 Collections of Games ..........................................................................................257 Studying Your Own Games ..................................................................................259 16 Hall of Fame 261 The Classical Era ..................................................................................................261 Wilhelm Steinitz (1836–1900) ............................................................................262 Emanuel Lasker (1868–1941) ..............................................................................263 José Raul Capablanca (1888–1942) ....................................................................264 Alexander Alekhine (1892–1946) ........................................................................265 Machgielis (Max) Euwe (1901–1981) ..................................................................266 Soviet Dominance ................................................................................................267 Mikhail Moiseyevich Botvinnik (1911–1995) ......................................................267 Vasily Vasiliyevich Smyslov (1921–) ....................................................................268 Mikhail Tal (1936–1992) ....................................................................................268 Tigran Vartanovich Petrosian (1929–1984) ..........................................................269 Boris Vasiliyevich Spassky (1937–) ......................................................................270 The Fischer Revolution ........................................................................................271 Robert James (Bobby) Fischer (1943–) ..................................................................272 Anatoly Yegenyivich Karpov (1951–) ....................................................................273 Garry Kimovich Kasparov (1963–) ......................................................................275 Will the Real World Champion Please Stand Up? ..............................................277 Viswanathan Anand (1969–) ..............................................................................278 Vladimir Kramnik (1975–) ..................................................................................279 17 Getting Competitive 283 Finding Stronger Opposition ..............................................................................283 Special Chess Rules for Tournament Play ............................................................285 Time Controls and Chess Clocks ..........................................................................286 Other Ways to Draw the Game ............................................................................287 ix