The book proposes a White repertoire against all variants of the Dutch in the spirit of the London System with 1.d4 f5 2.Bf4.
Georgiev also covers the tricky move orders 1.d4 e6 2.Nf3 f5 3.Bf4, 1.c4 e6 2.d4 f5 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nc3 Be7 (4...Bb4 5.Bd2) 5.Bf4, 1.d4 d6 2.Nf3 f5 3.Bf4 to offer a complete repertoire with Bf4.
It is in no way worse than the standard fianchetto lines, and has the huge advantage of being unexplored and barely mentioned in the books on the Dutch. The f4-bishop often proves to be White's most important and active piece, especially when he carries out the thematic break c4-c5. At the same time it defends White's castling position. In contrast to the worn-out fianchetto lines, White always has clear plans in the middlegame, which range from pawn advance on the queenside against set-ups with ...Be7, to h4, Qf3 and long castling against the Leningrad. Play is intuitive, and Black cannot easily prepare at home as the engines consistently show a fair advantage for White while top GM games are scarce. If it comes to that, they are even misleading.
On the White side we can see grandmasters as Carlsen, Aronian, Topalov, Grischuk, Morozevich, Praggnanandhaa, Nihal, Najer, Grandelius and many others. The Bf4-System against the Dutch is not a tricky, one-game opening. It can stand deep analysis with the latest versions of Leela AI and Stockfish. That makes it perfect for a long-term repertoire.
Grandmaster Kiril Georgiev has been the strongest Bulgarian player for many years. He was a Junior World Champion and a bronze medalist in Europe. He has played in 15 Olympiads and also coached Bulgarian national team. His peak rating was in the world's top ten. Kiril wrote the books Fighting the London System, Attacking 1...d5, The Modern English, The Sharpest Sicilian, Squeezing the Gambits.
We all have an intuitive feeling of the stress, pressure and frustration on the path to winning a World Championship in sport, but rarely will you get as unfiltered and raw an insight into the struggle to succeed as in The Mental Game.
Aleksandra Maltsevskaya won the 2018 World Junior Championship and 2022 European Rapid Championship. This book reveals the inside story of an 18-month period in which she worked with Grandmaster Alexander Galkin. A year later, Maltsevskaya became World Junior Champion. Galkin holds nothing back in revealing the highs, lows, jubilations and frustrations that were experienced in their collaboration, all while providing expert insights that will benefit chess players and coaches alike. The book contains a wealth of bonus material, including all eleven annotated games from Maltsevskaya’s World Championship victory.
In Chess Survivor – The Last of the Greats a chess legend shares his life story and annotates his best games.
When FIDE introduced the grandmaster title in 1950, Andor Lilienthal was one of the 27 names on that original list. And when he died at age 99, he was the last survivor of that historic group. This inspired our title. Douglas Griffin translated Lilienthal’s book from Russian and added 17 games to the 60 that Lilienthal annotated.
Lilienthal met or played all the World Champions of the 20th century. In fact, that understates it – Lilienthal won a game against Lasker, whose reign began in the 19th century. And some 21st-century champions, such as Vladimir Kramnik, certainly met Lilienthal. One might say that Lilienthal was connected to three centuries of chess.
Lilienthal’s quality of play matched his longevity. Most famous is his win against Capablanca in 1935. Equally famous is the story that when Bobby Fischer saw Lilienthal in the audience during his 1992 return match against Spassky, Fischer immediately said: “Pawn e5 takes f6!” – a reference to that Capablanca game.
We live in era of computers (unfortunately!) and we are simply forced to use them often and widely. Chess is no exclusion – it is impossible even to imagine modern chess without computers, engines, databases, online platforms, etc. Modern generations have their first connection with chess through computers, not books, and that is wrong of course! Young players prefer to memorize than to understand; they follow some fashionable line even if they do not know what is going on!
That motivated me to write this book – logic must be included in the process of chess education! Moreover, logic must be the most important part of that education process. Youngsters often neglect logic and not surprisingly they get surprised when their “well-remembered” variation doesn’t work.
Experienced players often lead the game out of theory, to places where understanding will prevail over memory and energy. That is my favorite concept against youngsters –setting static situations on the board – because young players usually go for dynamics, because they are good at calculating and memorizing. Understanding and logic are everything you need with statics on the board.
You can hardly find a more unconventional idea than pushing your g-pawn 2 squares down the board.
Some may say it belongs to a backroom chess game in a café, some may say it belongs to olden times - back when the King's Gambit was the main line after 1.e4 e5. But we are seeing more and more occurrences at the top-level.
Is it a coincidence ??
It's safe to say that g2-g4 (or ...g7-g5) is one of the most weakening moves available. As a matter of fact, the objectively worst first-move happens to be 1.g4, accompanied by an evaluation of -1.30 when running Stockfish 15 on low-depth (we did not see the point on letting it run in this position, it will probably get lower, that's not good advertising).
Now, there are quite a few positions where g2-g4 (or ...g7-g5) makes more sense and brings an interesting fight. The player has to be willing to take some considerable amount of risk, and that may be too much for some of us. The resulting positions often get messy and veer very much away from traditional paths, which means the expected number of mistakes gets higher, thus decreasing the drawing percentage.
Still, it's important to remain somewhat objective and not to get too excited by the thrill of an upcoming attack. Yes, g-pawn pushes are aggressive, but can also very quickly turn out to have disastrous consequences. "I wish I could play g4-g2", is usually a sign the experiment has gone wrong. The book is aimed at covering a wide range of chess openings. We decided to showcase the different categories of g4 (...g5) one may meet in the early stage of the opening, no matter if the idea is strong, interesting or quite unadvisable (bad, you may also say).
Most of the time, g4 (...g5) won't be the best move, but we will try to show that the value of surprise and the tendency of players to react solidly to aggression can matter as well. Also, we have decided not to include any Sicilians, as the g2-g4 push has become so frequent there, and in many variations deeply analyzed already.
Over the 50 games that we picked, the 3 main reasons why the g-pawn is being launched are: 1) Attacking a short-castled king with a hook created by h2-h3 (or ...h7-h6) 2) Challenging the stable position of a Nf3 (or ...Nf6). It becomes stronger when the knight doesn't have a good square to hop to. 3) Seizing space on the kingside.
The more you dive into the examples, the more you'll see that it's a mix of the 3, with one reason prevailing. We wish you happy reading and hope that you'll implement some of these lines into your play!
Although the London System has been known for a long time, it has only surged in popularity in the last decade or so. This rise can likely be attributed to many players’ desire to focus more on the practical aspects of chess, emphasizing positional understanding over the heavy use of engines and memorization of long theoretical lines. The London System has seen not just an increase in the number of games but also a deeper understanding of the positions it produces. Historically, it was sporadically used, with only a few regular practitioners, such as grandmasters Milorad Knezevic and Vlado Kovacevic from the former Yugoslavia, and the English GM Tony Miles.
Today, players like Gata Kamsky and Magnus Carlsen frequently employ the London System, and it has become a staple in the repertoires of many other grandmasters and non-grandmasters alike. The system’s various move orders and the resulting transpositions make it unique, adding a layer of complexity not as prevalent in other openings.
My personal experience with the London System has been mixed. After losing a game to Grandmaster Volkov in the Rilton Cup, I initially decided that the resulting positions were not to my liking. However, in 2019, I revisited the London System during a game in a World Senior tournament and played exceptionally well. Like any opening, it can lead to both good and bad games, but the London System has undeniably become a significant part of 1.d4 theory.
How should a chess player, be they amateur or professional, achieve their full potential? What’s the best way to prepare psychologically for the game, opponents, tournaments? How can they set goals at the board and achieve them? What techniques can they employ to react when the game takes an unexpected turn? How should they plan to avoid time trouble, and then handle it (or their opponent’s) if it occurs? What about maintaining concentration and controlling emotions at the board? How to use psychology when choosing a move or trying to achieve a draw? What’s the best approach to facing much stronger opponents? What should a player do if one’s opponent breaks the rules? How to bounce back from losses?
Woman Grandmaster Maria Manakova has written a detailed psychological manual on how to navigate these and other key matters for both club players and those setting out on their professional journey. This book contains a huge number of practical and actionable tips, drawn from both Maria’s personal experience and that of her professional peers among players and coaches. It provides examples from 24 games, some taken from Maria’s career and others played by the greats of the game (among them Carlsen, Kramnik, and Anand). It also contains a generous selection of photos from Maria’s life, as well as her own magnificent drawings that illustrate her advice.
Maria Manakova (born 1974) is a Serbian WGM of Russian origin with a career-high rating of 2395 who has played for Yugoslavia and Serbia in two Olympiads and three European team championships. Honors include silver medal at the European team championship (1999) representing Yugoslavia, gold medal in the European club championship (2002), Moscow women’s champion (2009) and Serbian women’s champion (2013). Maria has coached for three decades. Away from the board, she obtained a university degree in journalism and also studied theater. Maria has acted in theater plays and movies, co-hosted a talk show on Russian terrestrial TV, sung in a jazz band, and regularly performs as a singer-guitarist, including solo shows. Several documentary films have been made about Maria, the reason being, according to Boris Spassky, she is “a woman with a uniquely interesting life story”.
Here’s what Alexei Shirov had to say about the first edition of her book, published in 2023 in Russian: “While we ‘strong’ grandmasters narrow our perception of Earthly chess to one or two lines, Maria Manakova has embraced our entire galaxy in her work. This book will not leave any chess lover unmoved.”
Available via subscription
British Chess Magazine (June 2024)
What Does It Take to Play Master-Level Chess?
Becoming a master is a goal many chessplayers seek. And for most, it is an unfulfilled dream. Now, for the first time, the topic is squarely addressed. Not by a super grandmaster or high-powered international master, but by a "regular" national master, a master who earned his stripes in the trenches, battling his way to the title.
In Reaching the Top?!, author Peter Kurzdorfer shares his journey to the coveted 2200 Elo mark. Using his own games, major topics covered by the author include: Learning From Past Mistakes; Choose Openings to Suit Your Style; Handling Material Inequality; Practical Endgames; How Sound Do Your Openings Need to Be?; When Things Go Terribly Wrong; Overcoming Difficulties; and How to Win.
This guide shows what it takes to play at the master level. What you need to know. What you do not need to know. It is a practical presentation that will not only help aspiring masters, but in fact any player seeking to improve his game.
So come on in and sit by the side of a chess master as he plies his craft, marveling at the wonderful, intricate combinations and positional ideas and shuddering at the opportunities that supposedly strong chess players missed time and time again. Enjoy these every-day, blue-collar battles that do not involve the cutting edge of theory or top professional combatants, but do come out of ordinary amateur chess players who have made it work for them.
However, there is one requirement: you do have to love the game and give it your best shot, every game, every move. Mix in some discipline and concentration, and you too may be able to play master-level chess.
About the Author
After a 30-year adventure spent immersed in chess beginning in the early 1970s, Mr. Kurzdorfer is back. He is a long-time national master, chess teacher, certified coach and tournament director. He is also a former contributor and later editor of Chess Life and School Mates magazines, a former judge for the Chess Journalists of America, and author of The Everything Chess Basics Book and the Tao of Chess. Though no longer active on the tournament circuit, he is involved in chess editing once again, notably with Russell Enterprises, Inc.
Dragoljub Velimirovic was a former Yugoslav - Serbian, chess grandmaster whose international career was handicapped by political intrigues and his outspoken temperament. During the heyday of the USSR as the greatest national chess power, the former Yugoslavia was capable of running the Soviet Union a good second. Dragoljub Velimirovic posed a real threat to the men from Moscow.
Velimirovic was born in 1942 to a prominent family from Valjevo, in the former Yugoslavia. He was introduced to chess at the age of seven by his mother, Jovanka Velimirovic, one of Yugoslavia's leading female chess players. He died at the age 72, being one of the last players to develop a system or strategy that is so inventive it bears its creator's name. It is a feat that is unlikely to be repeated in the modern era, when computer-based games and databases so thoroughly dominate competition that it is almost impossible to come up with something new. That does not mean that players were more talented or courageous in the decades when Velimirovic was in his prime. Velimirovic, who became a grandmaster in 1973, was never among the 20 top-ranked players in the world. And that was when there were only 200 or so grandmasters; today, there are about 2,400.
A 21st-Century Edition of a Great Checkmate Collection!
Ask most chessplayers from the “baby boomer” generation how they acquired and sharpened their tactical skills, and chances are a Fred Reinfeld tactics collection will be part of their answer. And now, for the first time, 1001 Brilliant Ways to Checkmate is available in modern algebraic notation.
This may be the all-time great checkmate collection, with forced checkmate positions culled mainly from actual play. And Reinfeld's selection is simply marvelous, touching on all the important tactical themes.
In short, this is an outstanding book to hone your tactical abilities. It will help you recognize mating patterns, develop visualization skills, enhance imagination, and improve tactical sharpness. And now, with a modern 21st-century edition of this great checkmate collection finally available, there is no excuse for not only improving your tactical skills, but also enjoying yourself along the way.
What does it take to become an expert in opening preparation?
How can we learn the secret methods which allow the top players to dominate everyone else in the opening?
Books can hardly be useful in this regard because modern books on openings, regardless of the level of the author, are very standard and straightforward. The title of this book claims to answer this question. Your author will then back up his claim with proof in the form of analysis from a strong engine. You are then left to decide whether or not to include these ideas in your opening repertoire.
What is missing is some sort of guidance and advice relating to what sorts of tournaments and against what sorts of players this idea should be employed. Moreover, every one of you has likely noticed that even the best opening idea still has a relatively short life span and can hardly be used in more than a few games. So far I have published about 10 books on openings and for me it is not a problem to publish another 10 or even more. However, in the modern era I believe the lifespan of an opening book is incredibly short as new games are constantly being played and new ideas are being found. I feel it would be much more useful to you if I uncover a new approach to opening preparation, which will be more long-lasting and will improve your play as well.
The method of opening preparation I have used throughout my entire chess-playing career (1997 – 2018) allowed me, with relatively little effort, to be unpredictable the re by winning the psychological battle of the opening. Luring my opponents into prepared opening tricks and traps was great fun!
In the method which I will introduce you to in this book, the first and most important aspect is adapting your approach to each individual opponent and perfect prediction of the opponent’s opening choice, to the smallest details.