The book provides valuable insight into the qualities that made Karpov such a great endgame player, maybe the greatest of all time.
This book is dedicated to rook endgames, but the goal is to provide a more broad illustration for how a chess player should go about studying any type of endgame. The steps that I found effective and that a lot of other chess players and coaches recommend are as follows: -Identify and understand most common general principles guiding a specific type of endgames -Find a few important theoretical positions that should be well studied and memorized -Study your own games related to this type of endgames
Magnus Carlsen’s brilliant endgame play is one of the key reasons for his success. The World Chess Champion can win positions which look drawn to anybody else. And more than any other player, he is able to save bad endings.
For this second volume of Magnus Carlsen Endgame Virtuoso, International Master Tibor Karolyi has selected Carlsen’s best endgames from 2018-2022, whereas the first volume covered 1999-2017. Reviewing these new games and explaining what Magnus was doing, the author was thoroughly impressed. Even Carlsen, who in 2017 was already the best endgame player of all time with Anatoly Karpov, had managed to improve his skills further.
Carlsen has it all. He can find deep ideas, play very technically, and is exceptionally well-versed in strategic and tactical endgames. The author is convinced that this new selection contains even better and more instructive games than Volume one.
Karolyi explains the general ideas in the games and gives concrete variations. Exploring these annotated endgames, you will soon get a good sense of what is happening. You will find out that Carlsen does not rush unless it is necessary. You will learn how Carlsen increases the pressure and uses all available resources. And you will see that sooner or later, his opponents will start playing second-best moves, feeling uncomfortable, following up with some dubious decisions, and, finally, cracking.
Endgame Virtuoso Magnus Carlsen - Volume 2 is a highly instructive, inspiring and entertaining book. It will help you appreciate Magnus’ endgame magic and improve your skills in this important game phase.
Tibor Karolyi is an International Master, a former Hungarian Champion, a prolific chess author and a renowned trainer. For New In Chess, he wrote about Karpov and Carlsen.
Sergei Tkachenko, a member of the Ukrainian team that won the 5th World Chess Composition Tournament in 1997 and which came second in 2000, 2004, 2013, and 2017, has collected 100 studies whose common theme is that white ends up with just one bishop in the finale, yet manages to win or draw
The author’s aim in this volume is to improve the tournament chess player and professional alike in their ability to evaluate and execute crucial and hard-fought practical endgames – either in converting a winning position or holding a draw. This book will also sharpen the player’s overall cognitive competences in practical situations, where the normal laws of endgame theory have little or no value. Dreev accomplishes this by providing categorized and detailed examples with clear commentary from his own tournament games, as well as from other Grandmasters’ at the elite level.
In this book, the authors aim to assist the reader in becoming better at finding combinations, constructing plans, and calculating long, forcing variations. For the purpose of instruction, the material is based on the output of former World Champion Vassily Smyslov (1921-2010), using his endgame compositions from various works and publications as well as several of his practical endgames from games from tournaments and matches throughout his career against players such as Mikhail Botvinnik, Paul Keres, Bent Larsen, Efim Geller, Tigran Petrosian and several other world class players
Why is a passed pawn usually considered a great asset? By definition, a pawn is passed when it can advance to promotion without encountering any opposing pawns in its path. Possession of a passed pawn and the ability to exploit its potential is a strategic element that can often determine the result of the game. A passed pawn is sometimes colloquially called a passer.
The passed pawn may prove significant in the middlegame, gaining space and tying down the opponent’s pieces, but its true strength comes to the fore in the endgame. In practically all types of endgames, possession of a passed pawn is considered a decisive advantage, particularly when the remaining material is scant. Even if it proves impossible to promote the pawn, its mere presence is enough to restrict the enemy pieces, force material gain or simply maintain the initiative. Consequently, this strategic element greatly influences — and is influenced by — the matter of piece exchanges.
A passed pawn must be blockaded, so as to have its power restrained as much as possible. The minor pieces (knight or bishop) are ideal for this purpose, as they can rarely be forced to retreat by enemy action. On the other hand, the major pieces (queen and rook) find it difficult to achieve a stable blockade as is easy to harass them, while one must also consider that, for such valuable pieces, dealing with a mere pawn cannot be an efficient form of employment. Taking the above into account, it becomes clear that the side with the passed pawn should seek to
exchange minor pieces and retain the major ones; the opposite applies to the defending side.
A factor of crucial importance is the ability of the defending king (i.e., the one facing the passed pawn) to participate in the proceedings. After exchanging the major pieces (and especially the queens), the king can approach the passed pawn and blockade it (or generally stop its advance), thus freeing the other pieces of its army for other duties. A passed pawn that has been securely blockaded and efficiently neutralized may become a weakness and then this very important element may even lead to the loss of the game.
In general, the side possessing a passed pawn has clearer plans and aims. The other side usually seeks ways to blockade it or, if this proves impossible, obtain counterplay on another part of the board. One good option is harassment of the opponent’s king. In practice this option often proves very effective, but unfortunately it is not always available! The most fundamental rule of exploiting this strategic element is: passed pawns must be pushed!
Sergei Tkachenko, a member of the Ukrainian team that won the 5th World Chess Composition Tournament in 1997 and which came second in 2000, 2004, 2013, and 2017, has collected 100 studies whose common theme is that white ends up with just one pawn in the finale, yet manages to win or draw.
International Master Tibor Karolyi has studied Carlsen’s career and selected more than 90 of his best endgames. He reviews them in chronological order to show how Magnus developed his skills. His technique and his choices are being explained in a manner that is easy to understand for club players.