Hi again! I am back from some travel, and its great to catch up on so much thoughtful chess writing. I have not been in the chess ring lately, but reading about the experiences of those who are still makes me feel the feelings. If you read a piece you enjoy, be sure to like and subscribe. It is not quite the least you can do, but it’s pretty close. Have a good weekend everyone!

Chess Improvement

Kamryn Hellman has built a sizable audience by sharing what she has learned from an impressive improvement arc, but she had never won a tournament… until recently. “This tournament was filled with games where I had to act more confident than I necessarily felt.” (The Little Pawn)

Dr. Nick Vasquez wrote about his continued quest to avoid blundering. Before each move he makes, he now asks himself “What’s my opponent’s most annoying response?” (Chess in Small Doses)

IM Junta Ikeda has been focusing on a different category of moves, consciously working to play “interesting” ones. “For me, looking for or prioritizing interesting moves helps me choose the scarier move in games that I’m curious about and can learn from, and just feel excited about.” (Infinite Chess)

Chris Wainscott wrote about his efforts to resist the allure of gamified streaks and to work on what he deems most helpful to chess. (On the Road to Chess Master)

It was the “summer of Kevin” in California, and Kevin Scull drew some lessons from having an unusual amount of free time. “The final takeaway is that as I’ve thought all along, improvement seems to be more about time than age.” (Chess Journeys)

Dr. Ronei also wrote about the surprisingly addictive nature of online chess, and how he has learned to curb his worst impulses around it. (32 on 64 Squares)

Why do you need a chess community, even if you think you don’t? Because “Getting better at chess is a goal that will tear you apart like nothing you have tried before.” (The Ono Zone)

Martin Justesen built another cool chess tool. (Say Chess)

Books

Chris Wainscott reviews a little-known but fascinating-sounding chess memoir, The Grandmaster I Never Became by Kerim Demirkol (On the Road to Chess Master)

Ben Graff interviewed GM Danny Gormally about his book “Classic Amateur Mistakes and How to Fix Them.” (Chess Moves)

Pro Chess

In case you missed the ESports World Cup, Magnus won! Leonard Barden, among many others, has covered it. “GM Alireza Firouzja is a creative talent, but he has been involved in several disputes with organisers over the years, which most recently included his withdrawal from the Sinquefield Cup in St Louis in favour of Paris. It amounts to a negative track record which could seriously limit his future invitations.” (The Guardian)

And FM Dennis Monokroussos has been all over the Grand Chess Tour Finals. GM Praggnanandhaa won it and took home $200,000! (The Chess Mind)

Chess Improvement

Dr. Nick Vasquez looks back at the core tenets of chess improvement that he wishes he had identified sooner. “If I had known how important it was to emphasize quality in my training over quantity I would have done things very differently.” (Chess in Small Doses)

IM Junta Ikeda wrote about the importance of overcoming performance anxiety, and competing when opportunities present themselves. “Going into the event, knowing I may not be at my sharpest made me think this: ‘Hey, I might make some game-losing mistakes, and that’s ok. Let’s just focus on playing my best on every move’. (Infinite Chess)

What might you learn if you used an LLM to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses (using Stockfish move analysis). Martin Justesen reviewed his own games. “After reviewing the output, I think that some chess sites that deliver these light reports with a spiderweb chart showing playing strength based on your last 10 games have something to worry about, because models like Opus 5 can access all the games I have ever played online since 2012 and analyze them, while giving a more helpful and comprehensive output.” (Say Chess Blog)

TheOnoZone went from beginner to 1700+ FIDE as an adult. Unfortunately, the secret to his success is hard work. (The Ono Zone)

News

IM Alice Lee became the youngest ever winner of the Chess.com Speed Chess Championship! (Colin McGourty for Chess.com)

WGM Zoey Tang wrote a round-by-round recap of her successful defense of the US Girl’s Championship. She touches on the challenges of balancing chess and academics and reveals that she will be attending Stanford University in the fall. (Chess Life Online)

A youth movement is afoot in British Chess, as 17-year-old GM Shreyas Royal became the youngest British Champion, and WIM Bodhana Sivanadan won the Women’s Championship. (Leonard Barden for The Guardian)

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GothamChess played basketball and chess with Victor Wembyana at his Hoops/Chess Summit in France. (NM Jeremy Kane for Chess.com)

Legendary Tournament Director, player, and US Chess Hall of Famer FM Bill Goichberg passed away at 82. NM Jeremy Kane wrote about his lasting legacy. “Goichberg's contributions as an organizer will leave their mark on the American and global chess scenes for generations.” (Chess.com) (US Chess) (The Chess Mind)

FM Andy Lee honored the death of FM Goichberg by writing about the thankless nature of organizing tournaments, and his own formative experiences doing so. (Lit & Chess)

Chess Improvement

A reader sent me a cool, free chess tool he built- Auditchess enables you to make a full opening scouting report on any Chess.com or Lichess account. (AuditChess)

FM Dalton Perrine provides some good advice for how to play after you’ve won material. “When you win a pawn or an exchange, you usually pay for it in some small way. Your development skips for a move, your king stays in the center a little longer, a file or diagonal opens up for the opponent, or a square near your king becomes weak.” (Chess Chatter)

Chess News

Its never too early to write an Olympiad preview, Tarjei Svensen provides an early look at the star-studded September 16 event. (Chess.com)

In an interview with Jonathan Zhi, GM Zhu Jiner reveals that she was self-taught as a child and benefited from Gelfand and Dvoretsky’s books, among others. (Underpromoted)

Books

Here is what you can expect if you read the Seirawan classic Chess Duels. (Path to Chess Mastery)

Nick Visel reviews Botvinnik’s Best Games by GM Alexander Khalifman “For players looking to study Botvinnik, Botvinnik’s Best Games is obviously a great choice, but the analysis is very heavy, and for many club players, including myself, it borders on oppressive” (Nick Plays Chess)

Misc.

Jen Shahade wrote about a consequential, inexplicable hand at the World Series of Poker final table as it relates to the “long think, wrong think” concept. (See the Sideways Move)

FM Andy Lee wrote about the necessity and shortcomings of chess puzzles. “I’ve worked through about half of Think Like a Super-GM and it certainly confirms my belief that calculation is the important chess skill. When I play much lower rated players I find that they frequently hold it together until the position demands precise calculation.” (Lit & Chess)

What makes a chess move beautiful? What makes a human face beautiful? Dr. Benjamin Balas gives a primer on what scientists have determined (so far) about both. (Science of Chess)

Books

Forward Chess previews Ulf the Attacker. “In conclusion, this is an excellent collection of attacking games from the Swedish GM. It also has a lot of interesting biographical material and insights into Andersson’s thought processes during the games.” (Forward Chess)

News

Leonard Barden details some more record-breaking successes for Bodhana Sivanadan, as well as the news that the FIDE World Championship will be held in Geneva from November 25-December 15 (The Guardian)

GM Maurice Ashley announced the latest recipients of the Ashley Fellowship (Devansh Singh for Chessbase India)

Ray Lincville writes about the storied career of NYC legend IM Jay Bonin. Jay estimates that he has played 40,000 tournament chess games! (Chess.com Blog)

That’s all for this week- have a good weekend!- Ben

“Friend of the Newsletter” IM Junta Ikeda has launched his course, The Ten Habit Improvement System. Regular readers of Junta’s blog (like myself) know how knowledgeable and thoughtful Junta is is about chess improvement. I have already watched the first few chapters of his course, and it is direct and helpful. (Infinite Chess)

“TheOnoZone” has moved his popular Lichess Blog to Substack. His first post (on Substack) takes you behind the scenes of a dramatic Dutch league match. (The Ono Zone)

GM Eugene Perelshteyn’s friend NM Mike Mahoney held his own in the Naroditsky Memorial Blitz Tournament. Eugene shares five lessons we can learn from Mike’s comeback. (Grandmaster Secrets)

Chris Wainscott made a free website with a couple chess improvement tools that he has found useful in his own training. (On the Road to Chess Master)

Chess Politics!!

FIDE President Arkady Dvorkovich has been sanctioned by the EU and has stepped down as president, with GM Viswananathan Anand taking over on an interim basis. (Tarjei Svensen for Chess.com)

In more recently developing news, Kazakh billionare Timur Turlov announced that he will run with Anand to replace Dvorkovich. “Russian Chess Federation President Andrey Filatov told Russian state-run news agency TASS, "one is out [Dvorkovich], and the other is in," of the potential Russian candidates, though Turlov's ticket is likely the one that will mean continuity with the current FIDE hierarchy.” (Colin McGourty for Chess.com)

GM Judit Polgar turned down a chance to become interim President of Hungary (the whole country, not the chess federation!) (NM Anthony Levin for Chess.com)

Books

Nick Visel reviews Paul Morphy: A Collection of His Games with Detailed Notes. He writes “it is a wonderful collection of Morphy’s games, lightly annotated by Maroczy, whose analysis remains unmolested by any modern update or corrections” (Nick Plays Chess)

Forward Chess provides a helpful overview of many of the recent “1. e4 complete repertoire” books that are available on its platform (Forward Chess)

News

Bodhana Sivanadan became the youngest girl ever to beat a 2600-rated GM! (Leonard Barden for the Guardian)

Lastly, in honor of Lebron James unexpectedly signing with my beloved 76ers, here is my favorite Lebron James quote-

"I play a lot of chess, not in real life; I never played chess; I play it in my mind in theory; I play chess on the floor." - Lebron James

Have a good weekend everyone!

Improve Your Chess and Support this Newsletter!

This newsletter is committed to remaining free but does use affiliate links. One way to help support it (and your chess!) is to sign up for special offers using the following links:

Chessdojo- Great chess community for dedicated improvers, use- the code “Ben” at checkout for a for a 10% discount on your membership.

https://www.chessdojo.club/signup

Chess Improvement

Kevin Scull went to NYC and bunch a chess at Lincoln Square. He shares what he learned. “My main takeaway is that I need to have more fun with chess…Chess doesn’t just have to be a strenuous workout where the pain feels rewarding.” (Chess Journeys)

FM Andy Lee argues convincingly why should very rarely accept draw offers. “Draw offers are a legal way to distract the other player from what they should actually be doing: finding the best move!” (Lit & Chess)

As if to illustrate Andy’s point about draws, IM Junta Ikeda wrote about a time he took a draw for the wrong reasons. (Infinite Chess)

GM Alex Colovic shows how engines can help deepen our understanding of chess, through the lens of a classic Capablanca win. (GM Alex Colovic’s Blog)

Misc.

GM Jianchao Zhou is the most active GM in the U.S. so I have often wondered how and why he logs so many miles and games. A profile by Rick Massimo helps to answer this question. “He has a passion for chess, so a difficulty, like the logistics, is not a big issue for him.” (Chess Life Online)

Books

The Forward Chess Blog has posted a few overviews of books recently, including one of Attacking Strategies for Club Players by Michael Prusikin. It looks like an interesting book. (Arun J for Forward Chess)

IM Junta Ikeda shares a few takeaways from “the best non-chess book I’ve read for chess improvement.” (Infinite Chess)

How does Magnus Carlsen do when playing the Orangutan opening? Carl Portman reviews Carlsen Goes Ape (Chess Book Reviews)

Chess and the FIFA World Cup

How does Lionel Messi get away with running less than other players? Author David Epstein likens his pattern recognition to the chess players studied in the famed de Groot study . “When Messi is “mapping” the field, he is a grandmaster (playing speed chess!) unconsciously picking up on familiar chunks that will help him decide what’s coming, and where to attack.” (Range Widely)

FM Dennis Monokroussos links to a classic soccer/chess themed commericial (The Chess Mind)

News

The US team will face off against Uzbekistan in a team match in late July in Miami. (Leonard Barden for the Guardian)

Videos/Podcasts

Chessbase India’s coverage of the Naroditsky Memorial was fantastic, I particularly recommend this interview with Danya’s mother, Elena Schuman. I cannot imagine how difficult the past year has been for her. (Chessbase India)

FM Donny Ariel is not exactly in hot pursuit of the IM title despite some earlier proclamations, BUT, more importantly he is back to making instructive chess videos. In this one he crushes IM Greg Shahade. Please lavish him with praise in the comments! (Donny Ariel: The People’s Champion)

Chess News

FM Dennis Monokroussos assesses the strength of the U.S. Olympiad teams. (The Chess Mind)

Arkady Dvorkovich is running for FIDE President, contradicting an earlier promise to only seek two terms. (Tarjei Svensen for Chess.com)

As the FIFA World Cup Captivates the World, Tarjei Svensen recounts Norwegian Football Superstar Erliig Haaland’s Investment in Chess (Chess.com)

Chess Improvement

Even GMs grapple with the question of how to deal with slowly atrophying skills and limited time to compete. GM Alex Colovic will still find ways to enjoy chess, but is resigned to accepting this fate. “As it turned out, the European Individual Championship in Skopje in 2019 was the last tournament of my chess career. I didn’t know that back then, but 7 years later I realise that my professional career ended where it started - in my home city.” (GM Alex Colovic’s Blog)

Dr. Nick Vasquez wrote insightfully about his continued quest to improve his play in quiet positions. “One reason why kids learn differently than adults, they are far more likely to engage in play based learning.” (Chess in Small Doses)

FM Christoph von Puttkamer wrote about the parallels between chess improvement and training for a half-marathon. “In running, training plans are the norm. They span several months, schedule regular sessions, and prescribe exactly what to do: long runs, tempo workouts, or easy recovery kilometers. These plans aren’t theoretical; they have a proven track record verified by hundreds of thousands of runners.” (Chessable Blog)

Books

IM Junta Ikeda reviews ten of the most impactful chess books he has read. (Infinite Chess)

Ben Graff wholeheartedly recommends Jennifer Shahade’s Thinking Sideways. “This review can only do justice to a few elements of Shahade’s excellent book, which abounds with personal stories and intriguing insights” (English Chess Federation)

What makes a chess book good? Renowned author and chess bibliophile GM Mauricio Flores Rios breaks it down. “If you can't tell me what you've learned in words, then you probably didn't learn that much.” (Chessreads)

Improve Your Chess and Support this Newsletter!

This newsletter is committed to remaining free but does use affiliate links. One way to help support it (and your chess!) is to sign up for special offers using the following links:

Chessdojo- Great chess community for dedicated improvers, use- the code “Ben” at checkout for a for a 10% discount on your membership.

https://www.chessdojo.club/signup

Chessmood- Chessmood features a chess video library with opening, middlegame, endgame videos. Plus game analysis and opening explorer tools.

Chessmood Free one Week Trial-

Chessmood.com/Ben

Chess Publishing- Chess Publishing is a long-time newsletter with articles written by GMs and IMs about the latest in opening theory. GM Simon Williams has been working to make their online database modern and comprehensive. Check it out here:

chesspublishing.com/?ref=PCP

GM Noel Studer-

GM Studer has published two popular courses- one with the goal of getting you to 1200, and the second designing a study

Check out Noël’s updated course on studying chess the right way here (https://courses.nextlevelchess.blog/courses/simplified-chess-improvement-system?ref=bc4be0)

FM Andy Lee extracts some lessons from an uneven tournament performance. “A sports podcast I listen to talks about “the irrational confidence guy” — the basketball player who puts up a contested 3 in a close came despite shooting only 30% from deep — and that’s what I turn into from time to time at the board.” (Lit & Chess)

Dr. Benjamin Balas walks you through an interesting chess study that suggests that studying your WINS is actually more instructive than studying your losses. Color me skeptical, but I have been wrong before! (SciComm fron the Frozen North)

Kevin Scull hit a new rating high at age 52 and is starting to see hard work pay off. “After about a minute staring at the board, my opponent leaned into whisper to me. I prayed that he was going to say those two words that I longed to hear, “I resign.” Instead, he whispered, “nice combo.” That was even more shocking. Had I suddenly become Beth Harmon? My opponents cheering my moves.” (Chess Journeys)

How are chess sites measuring “Accuracy scores”, and what is the best approach? (The Chess Engine Lab)

Chess News

US Chess announced its 2026 Olympiad teams, featuring GM Hans Niemann, GM Awonder Liang and IM Rose Atwell as first time participants. (Chess Life Online)

A second private equity firm (CVC Capital) has taken a stake in Chess.com. I wonder what they are planning with the cash infusion. 🤔 (Chess.com News)

With Magnus dealing with an unprecedented slump, Leonard Barden contemplates whether he might be entering a less ambitious phase of his career. (The Guardian)

When I recently interviewed former Uzbek national team coach, GM Ivan Sokolov, he discussed working with Sindarov, suggested that he was a bit lackadaisical, and recounted telling him “Talent has an expiration date.” In this interview with Tarjei Svenson, Sindarov pretty much cops to Sokolov’s accusations. “Before, I didn't work with chess that much. From last year, I can really say I started working seriously.” (Chess.com News)

FM Dalton Perrine and Varun Kumar on the latest features offered by Chessalyz, including targeted opening review. (Chessalyz)

Wadim Rosenstein and Jan Buettner both announced they are running for FIDE President. With IM Malcolm Pein running alongside Buettner, I support his candidacy, although I wouldn’t mind if he pumped the brakes on Freestyle Chess events 😉. (Tarjei Svensen for Chess.com)

Kevin Scull concluded a period of doing 100 chess puzzles per day for 100 days. “Writing this a few weeks after the challenge, I’m happy to have done it. However, there were many moments during the challenge that it felt like a mistake. I wouldn’t do it again or recommend it.” (Chess Journeys)

GM Noël Studer writes about the joys of succeeding at difficult tasks. “That’s the quiet frustration behind so many adult improvers wanting to get better: not the rating points themselves, but the wish to actually enjoy the beauty of the game instead of constantly tripping over their own mistakes.” (Next Level Chess)

Why do many adults struggle to improve? IM Junta Ikeda says they aren’t focusing enough on feedback from their games. “What is my last serious game trying to tell me?” (Infinite Chess)

News

FM Dennis Monokroussos catches you up on the Uzbek Cup. “It has been an amazing few months for the players around Sindarov. First and foremost, there was his smashing win in the Candidates. Then his girlfriend, Kazakh GM Bibisara Assaubeyava, won the women’s event at Norway Chess. Now, to complete the trifecta, his main second from the Candidates, Madaminov, has won this prestigious tournament.” (The Chess Mind)

GM D Gukesh talked about his slump and the stress of life as the World Champion. “Right now, its a challenge to enjoy chess.” (Susan Ninan for the Hindustan Times)

Misc.

Is AI killing writing? Jen Shahade writes about the parallels between AI in chess and writing books (including a knock off of hers.) (See the Sideways Move)

As the world is captivated by the World Cup (soccer/football, not chess), Sheldon of Osaka composes a soccer lineup of chess legends based on their chess styles. Personally, I think Fischer should be in the mid-field with Kasparov as a striker, rather than vice-versa.) (Chess.com Blog)

Improve Your Chess and Support this Newsletter!

This newsletter is committed to remaining free but does use affiliate links. One way to help support it (and your chess!) is to sign up for special offers using the following links:

Chess Publishing- Chess Publishing is a long-time newsletter with articles written by GMs and IMs about the latest in opening theory. GM Simon Williams has been working to make their online database modern and comprehensive. Check it out here:

chesspublishing.com/?ref=PCP

GM Noel Studer-

GM Studer has published two popular courses- one with the goal of getting you to 1200, and the second designing a study

Check out Noël’s updated course on studying chess the right way here (https://courses.nextlevelchess.blog/courses/simplified-chess-improvement-system?ref=bc4be0)

Chessiverse:

If you have not already, be sure to check out IM John Bartholomew’s new site, Chessiverse. It offers over 600 human like bots to spar and practice openings against, and is rolling out more features and courses, including IM John Bartholomew’s Comprehensive Scandinavian. Playing is free, but you can use the code “Perpetual30” to save 30% on premium courses and subscriptions.

Chess Improvement

GM Alex Colovic shares some sage advice for how to approach a game where you are higher rated player. “You are the stronger player. So calm down. In a normal game when nothing unexpected happens, you’re expected to win. What you should be striving for therefore is a normal game.” (GM Alex Colovic’s Blog)

Why do so many players get stuck at the 1500-1800 level? Sam Asaka has some ideas. (Road to Infinity)

How should one incorporate the engine into a game review routine? (On the Road to Chess Master)

Chess in the Media

Kevin Lincoln wrote about Ben Mezrich’s book and the future of chess cheating. “One confrontation between Niemann and another American grandmaster in a parking lot, the details of which Mezrich admits are hypothetical, is so stilted and confusing that it risks knocking the entire narrative off its axis.” (Bloomberg News)

A chess documentary “Grandmasters” premiered at the Tribeca film festival, and as far as I can tell, it is NOT about the Niemann-Carlsen scandal. Rejoice! (Tarjei Svensen for Chess.com)

Chess News

In Leonard Barden’s latest he writes about Roman Shogdzhiev, an 11-year old Russian kid who recently got his first GM norm, and is receiving 7 lessons from GMs per week. (The Guardian)

Reviews

IM Junta Ikeda reviews GM Igor Zaitsev’s classic Attacking the Strongpoint. “It’s probably the most Proustian chess book I’ve read.” (Infinite Chess)

Nick Visel gives a thumbs up to IM Herman Grooten’s Chess Strategy for Club Players (Nick Plays Chess)

That’s all for this week- catch you next time- Ben

Chess Improvement

When I interviewed NM Han Schut about some of the cool chess tools he had built using Claude code, I was inspired, but struggled to come up with unused chess ideas that I could build myself. FM Dalton Perrine is full of ideas, and built many of them, including a “Guess the Move” training tool. In this article he shows you what he has built. (Chess Chatter)

There is a tendency to aim for perfection in your chess games, writes IM Junta Ikeda, but its often sufficient to find moves that are “good enough.” (Infinite Chess)

Why is chess so hard? Dr. Nick Vasquez boils it down to, “(When playing chess), We are asked to do the hardest thing ever, to remain aware of our thinking while fully engaged in calculation” (Chess in Small Doses)

Dr. Benjamin Portheault on NBA star Victor Wembayama, crying in sport, books, and chess. (Mindcreaser)

GM Alex Colovic shares advice for combatting pre-game nerves. “There are two states of mind you can have before a game of chess: you are either afraid or you are not.” (GM Alex Colovic’s Blog)

Mindful Chess Author, GM Paul van der Sterren reflects on learning to let go of results-oriented thinking. “Everybody loves to win; nobody likes losing, but winning and losing, satisfaction and disappointment, happiness and unhappiness, sunshine and rain, inevitably alternate in human life. There is no escaping the rainy days.” (Chess Life Online)

Misc.

Has the continued development of engines led to significantly stronger play from humans? When looking at human move accuracy over time, Dr. Benjamin Balas was (surprisingly) unable to find convincing evidence. (Science of Chess)

Lauren Goodkind and Megan Chen wrote about what it was like to represent the U.S. in Peru. “For any female chess players reading this who are on the fence about competing internationally: take the leap.” (Chess Life Online)

Touching, long read from the NYT about how a casual Central Park chess game ended up changing two lives. (John Leland for the New York Times)

Books

GM Tiger Hillarp Persson’s book continues to receive well-deserved praise. He rounds up some recent reviews and mentions. (Chess at the Bag of Cats)

FM Dylan Loeb McClain summarizes the good and bad of Ben Mezrich’s Checkmate: Genius, Lies, Ambition, and the Biggest Scandal in Chess. “Unfortunately, the subject at the heart of the story — chess — is not one that the author knows well, and in those sections of the book where he tries to explain the events of individual games, he can go wildly astray.” (New York Times)

Chess Structures Author GM Mauricio Flores Rios wrote about the books that helped him become a GM. (ChessReads)

Chess News

Assubayeva has won the Norway Chess Women’s Event, while the Open section was tightly contested headed into the final round. UPDATE- now Pragg won. (NM Anthony Levin for Chess.com)

Improve Your Chess and Support this Newsletter!

This newsletter is committed to remaining free but does use affiliate links. One way to help support it (and your chess!) is to sign up for special offers using the following links:

Chessdojo- Great chess community for dedicated improvers, use- the code “Ben” at checkout for a for a 10% discount on your membership.

https://www.chessdojo.club/signup

GM Noel Studer-

GM Studer has published two popular courses- one with the goal of getting you to 1200, and the second designing a study

Check out Noël’s updated course on studying chess the right way here (https://courses.nextlevelchess.blog/courses/simplified-chess-improvement-system?ref=bc4be0)

Chess Publishing- Chess Publishing is a long-time newsletter with articles written by GMs and IMs about the latest in opening theory. GM Simon Williams has been working to make their online database modern and comprehensive. Check it out here:

chesspublishing.com/?ref=PCP

A Niemann-Nepo exhibition match started today, with Nepo striking the first blow. FM Dennis Monokroussos points out that with a good result, GM Hans Niemann can crack the world top 10. (That is looking less likely after round 1) ( The Chess Mind)

In today’s round, Magnus started the inevitable bounce back by beating Gukesh on the Black side of a Ragozin. Notes and analysis from FM Dennis Monokroussos. (The Chess Mind)

Chess Improvement

FM Dalton Perrine surveyed some well known coaches to ascertain what they may be doing right, and wrong. “Coaching that feels comfortable is usually coaching that’s serving the coach.” (Chess Chatter)

What chess lessons can we learn from the unexpected success of a soccer/football club? IM Junta Ikeda extracts many. “When I was younger I played a lot of tournament games but barely analysed any of them. Part of it was not really knowing how, but mostly I told myself it would be too much work, so I avoided it. What I actually needed to do was this: look for recurring weaknesses and patterns, find one thing to take into training, repeat.” (Infinite Chess)

Reviews and Ratings

Chris Wainscott reflects on the personal lessons he absorbed from reading Jennifer Shahade’s Thinking Sideways. (On the Road to Chess Master)

That’s all for this week- have a good weekend!- Ben

Improve Your Chess and Support this Newsletter!

This newsletter is committed to remaining free but does use affiliate links. One way to help support it (and your chess!) is to sign up for special offers using the following links:

Chessdojo- Great chess community for dedicated improvers, use- the code “Ben” at checkout for a for a 10% discount on your membership.

https://www.chessdojo.club/signup

GM Noel Studer-

GM Studer has published two popular courses- one with the goal of getting you to 1200, and the second designing a study

Check out Noël’s updated course on studying chess the right way here (https://courses.nextlevelchess.blog/courses/simplified-chess-improvement-system?ref=bc4be0)

Chessiverse:

If you have not already, be sure to check out IM John Bartholomew’s new site, Chessiverse. It offers over 600 human like bots to spar and practice openings against, and is rolling out more features and courses, including IM John Bartholomew’s Comprehensive Scandinavian. Playing is free, but you can use the code “Perpetual30” to save 30% on premium courses and subscriptions.

Jordan traveled to all of the stops in the 2024 FIDE Candidates Cycle, and portrays the competitors in a very honest and compassionate way. I obviously followed these events pretty closely, and still felt like I learned more about the personalities of players like GMs Vidit, Abasov, Wesley So and Anish Giri. It is good bedside reading, as it is that rare chess book with zero diagrams! If you are NYC-adjacent and free on Sunday, I would recommend attending and picking up the book. On to this week’s links…

Chess Improvement

On the occasion of competing in the Silman Memorial in San Francisco, FM Andy Lee takes an instructive look back at what he learned from the Silman classic How to Reassess Your Chess. (Lit & Chess)

Chris Wainscott used Claude to vibe code a few chess study tools. Have y’all built anything? (On the Road to Chess Master)

Misc.

Writing one post could have been a fluke, but now two posts is a trend! Super GM Awonder Liang returns to the blogosphere to write about chess and AI. Worthwhile. “What happened to the players that refused the AI adoption? They gradually stopped becoming top players. Today, of the top 100 players, at least 95, and probably 100, use the latest engines or play opening moves suggested by the top engines.” (A’s Substack)

What would it be like if you could retire in your 50s and play chess full time? Paulo SantAnna did just that and has resuscitated his rating to a new personal high over 2100 FIDE. Find out his lessons learned and study recs in this week’s podcast. (Perpetual Chess YouTube) (Spotify)

That’s all for this week, catch you all next time!- Ben

I really enjoyed putting together this week’s compilation, as I am often catching up on several days of chess writing when I dig in. This week touches on chess and AI, chess improvement, a kid being good at chess, Hans Niemann, and books. In other words… the usual! Have at it…

Chess Improvement

Brilliant post by IM Junta Ideka about what he calls “the upstream problem” Money quote below 👇

GM Serper is back with another great post about prophylaxis, including a great Ivanchuk story. (Chess.com)

GM Eugene Perelshteyn shares some hard-won advice about dealing with losses. (Grandmaster Secrets)

Even GM Magnus Carlsen sometimes loses the plot in a game. GM Alex Colovic walks you through an uncharacteristic mistake vs. MVL in a blitz game. (GM Alex Colovic’s Blog)

A recurring topic in conversations on The Perpetual Chess Podcast is the race to create an AI coach that explains engine analysis like a human GM would. FM Dalton Perrine and his partner Varun take you under the hood of their product Chessalyz, which is improving with each update. (Chess Chatter)

Chess News

“Paris-based GM Alireza Firouzja is often absent from what many consider ‘can’t-miss’ international tournaments. French captain GM Laurent Fressinet recently spoke out about his absence from French national teams.” (NM Anthony Levin for Chess.com)

GM-elect Faustino Oro got his final GM norm, becoming the 2nd youngest Grandmaster ever! (FM Dennis Monokroussos for The Chess Mind)

GM Hans Niemann had an impressive, $50,000 result at the GCT Warsaw. Leonard Barden convincingly argues that while his professed goal of world #1 is far-fetched, he now has a realistic shot at becoming the top-ranked American player. (The Guardian)

Books

One topic deserving of more attention is the Niemann-Carlsen saga. Never fear, a new book has arrived! Jokes aside, this interview with famed Bringing Down the House author Ben Mezrich is genuinely insightful. “"I really like Hans. Hanging out with him is fun. The guy is nuts. He's fun, confident and crazy." (Tarjei Svensen for Chess.com)

Ben Graff interviewed Jen Shahade about Thinking Sideways, and writes “Thinking Sideways is truly destined to be one of the best chess books of 2026!” (English Chess Federation)

Misc.

Alekhine-Euwe is one of the most fascinating World Championship matches, because a) upsets are pretty rare

b) how drunk was Alekhine anyway?

c) the actual chess.

Sam Kahn digs deeper. “The question then presents itself if Euwe was, in fact, a better player than Alekhine, and, based on the play in the match, there’s a surprisingly strong case that he was. In prescient remarks before the match, Capablanca said, “Dr. Alekhine's game is 20% bluff. Dr. Euwe's game is clear and straighforward. Dr. Euwe's game is not as strong as Alekhine's in some respects but is more evenly balanced." (Chess.com Blog)

Improve Your Chess and Support this Newsletter!

This newsletter is committed to remaining free but does use affiliate links. One way to help support it (and your chess!) is to sign up for special offers using the following links:

Chessdojo- Great chess community for dedicated improvers, use- the code “Ben” at checkout for a for a 10% discount on your membership.

https://www.chessdojo.club/signup

Chess.com-

Tons of unlocked features and videos, use the following link for a free one-week trail, or you can also use it when renewing your already existing premium membership:

http://go.chess.com/Perpetual

GM Noel Studer-

GM Studer has published two popular courses- one with the goal of getting you to 1200, and the second designing a study

Check out Noël’s updated course on studying chess the right way here (https://courses.nextlevelchess.blog/courses/simplified-chess-improvement-system?ref=bc4be0)

That’s all for now, catch you all next time- Ben

FM Dalton Perrine offers some great advice about handling draw offers from higher rated players. “If a higher-rated player thought they were winning or had serious chances in the position, why would they offer you a draw? They wouldn’t. The draw offer itself is information.” (Chess Chatter)

Dr. Nick Vasquez writes about how his approach to openings has evolved. “I have come to believe that opening study matters to improvement, perhaps even a great deal.” (Chess in Small Doses)

Kamryn Hellman wrote about training to run a 5k even though she has always hated running. Maybe there is hope yet for me to study queen and pawn endings. (The Little Pawn)

How much of a difference does a clock advantage make in LiChess blitz games? Julian takes a quantitative look. (The Chess Engine Lab)

Chess News

Chess.com announced that members can now access its massive database of player games. (Chess.com News)

GM Axel Smith is going to try to break the record by playing 49 blindfold games simultaneously. Here is Tarjei Svensen on some of the memorization techniques he will utilize. “As an example, he described how he encodes one specific opening: "If game 30 starts with 1.d4 e6 2.c4 Bb4+, it's Gandhi during the Salt March (1930), reaching the playing hall in the Swedish Championship… using a sword (a check)." (Chess.com News)

Returning to the story from last week of Webster University shuttering its powerhouse chess program, NM Anthony Levin provides an explanation from its the university’s head of P.R., Patrick Giblin. “The program never met its stated objective goals of raising donations or attracting significant numbers of students to the St. Louis campus," (Chess.com News)

Reviews

“KevinChessSmith” continues a series on GOAT chess authors, and writes about Irving Chernev. (Chess.com Blog)

Misc.

Legendary GM Judit Polgar shared some interesting thoughts about the use of AI in schools. “For Judit, a generation interacting heavily with AI engineered to validate them, may grow up with an underdeveloped tolerance for being wrong, being challenged, or sitting with discomfort.” (Dan Fitzpatrick for Forbes)

Since the demise of ChessBomb and Chess24, many have lamented the challenges of following professional games on apps. GM Vasif Durarbayli is stepping into the void with an app called ChessEver. (Rasika Ratnaparkhi for Chessbase India)

Improve Your Chess and Support this Newsletter!

This newsletter is committed to remaining free but does use affiliate links. One way to help support it (and your chess!) is to sign up for special offers using the following links:

Chessdojo- Great chess community for dedicated improvers, use- the code “Ben” at checkout for a for a 10% discount on your membership.

https://www.chessdojo.club/signup

GM Noel Studer-

GM Studer has published two popular courses- one with the goal of getting you to 1200, and the second designing a study

Check out Noël’s updated course on studying chess the right way here (https://courses.nextlevelchess.blog/courses/simplified-chess-improvement-system?ref=bc4be0)

Thanks for reading and catch y’all next week- Ben

Chess Improvement

NM Todd Bryant alert! Chess.com Software Engineer Todd Bryant is always insightful when he writes about data, ratings, and adult improvement. In this post he tackles the normal rating fluctuations one can expect from a point of stable chess strength. “. If you play lots of games, your rating will fluctuate. 125 points, in either direction. This happens to be about the exact threshold of "this is pretty unusual, but it'll happen every few thousand games." (Chess.com)

TheOnoZone wonders why he, and many others, love chess but find the act of playing chess so stressful. (LiChess Blog)

Why is GM Jose Raoul Capablanca revered by so many? Nick Visel gives you a primer. (Nick Plays Chess)

Chess News

Turkish phenom GM Yagiz Erdogumus beat Topalov in a training match. FM Andy Lee brings it to life and touches on the criticism the match received for Erdogmus supposedly “farming” one of the best players of the early 21st century. (Lit & Chess)

Chess.com plans to recalibrate its approach to advertising. “The mindset change crystallized late last year and became a board agenda item in the first quarter after private equity partner General Atlantic, which took a stake in the company at the end of 2021, pushed the company to think bigger, per IM Danny Rensch” (Mark Stenberg for AdWeek)

How tf is Greg Shahade so good at Jeopardy?

ICYMI, IM Greg Shahde not only went on the trivia show Jeopardy, but soundly ousted 31-time champion Jamie Ding. (Tarjei Svensen for Chess.com)

Jen Shahade also wrote about a couple of lessons we can learn from her brother Greg’s success. An additional important one that she highlighted in a recent book talk I attended is that Greg’s success highlights the power of compounding, not just when it comes to money, but when it comes to maintaining daily practices, acquiring knowledge, and making mental maps of seemingly discrete facts. (Games and the Grid)

Among other media mentions, Greg was featured in Philadelphia magazine as well. This one has a lot of details about what recording Jeopardy is actually like. (Victor Fiorillo for Philadelphia Magazine)

A Podcast Rec

This is not strictly chess-related, but I really enjoyed this episode of The Excellence, Actually Podcast featuring Author and Computer Scientist Cal Newport . They talked about realistic ways to limit digital intake and the threats the phones present to our attention spans. There is often doom and gloom around these topics, but they actually highlighted a shift in public discourse about it and note that they are seeing progress toward establishing realistic guardrails. I found it helpful both as an individual and a parent. (Excellence, Actually YouTube) (Spotify)

Reviews

Dawn Lawson reviewed Jen Shahade’s Thinking Sideways. “In short, this is a lively, informative, and engaging book that I hope will garner a broad readership both within and outside poker and chess.” (An Older Woman’s Chess Journey)

IM Junta Ikeda wrote about the benefits and potential risks of self-talk during games. “Before your next tournament or serious games, ask yourself: What do I want to do better today?” (Infinite Chess)

FM Dalton Perrine on the value of simple study plans and drilling calculation. GM Javokhir Sindarov said “ Very concrete calculation is best basic element of modern chess.” (Chess Chatter)

Just as Rocky had many sequels, GM Eugene Perelshteyn is back to lay out the opening training plan for his NM friend Mike’s dive into chess deep end, competing at the Naroditsky Memorial. I am excited to watch tbis story unfold, and will be interviewing Eugene and Mike for the Perpetual Chess Podcast tomorrow. (Grandmaster Secrets)

Reviews/Features

FM Mike Klein spoke with Jen Shahade about Thinking Sideways. "When you see a chess position… many people stop [at intuition] and just play that move,” she said. "But we want to do better than that… come up with at least three candidate moves… evaluate each one and pick the best one." (Tarjei Svensen for Chess.com News)

It is never too late to review my book, Perpetual Chess Improvement! Jostein Langstrand from Patzerreview enjoyed it, although he thought some readers might wish for more concrete advice and study plans. The truth hurts! (Patzer’s Review)

IM Sagar Shah provides a great interview and article about GM Vaishali’s long road to the top. “(She and Praggnanandhaa) would arrive (at the chess academy) by 8:30 a.m., have breakfast, attend classes from 9:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. and eat all three meals at the academy just to maximize training time.” (Chessbase India)

The New York Times did a feature on the thriving scholastic chess scene in NYC. (Emily Belz for the New York Times)

Chess News

Legendary Armenian GM Smbat Lputian was arrested on alleged charges of fraud and forgery. (Peter Doggers for Chess.com)

Ascendant Turkish star, GM Yagiz Erdogmus became the youngest ever to break 2700. (The Chess Mind)

More on Erdogmus’ ascension with lots of other fun tidbits from professional chess from Leonard Barden (The Guardian)

“Do we really assume that a 19-year-old is just done?” GM Fabiano Caruana, as quoted by Colin McGourty in a summary of Magnus and Fabiano’s early World Championship match assessments (Chess.com News)

Misc.

Was Euwe over Alekhine the greatest match upset of all time? Sam Kahn provides you a blow by blow of the match. “Game 14 is Exhibit B for the Alekhine-was-drunk thesis — he castled directly into a brutal h-file attack. Surprisingly, he was able to hang on for a long time, but the result was a foregone conclusion, and, suddenly, the three-point lead was gone and the match tied.” (Chess.com Blog)

That’s it for this week, catch you all next week! - Ben

Improve Your Chess and Support this Newsletter!

This newsletter is committed to remaining free but does use affiliate links. One way to help support it (and your chess!) is to sign up for special offers using the following links:

Chessdojo- Great chess community for dedicated improvers, use- the code “Ben” at checkout for a for a 10% discount on your membership.

https://www.chessdojo.club/signup

GM Noel Studer-

GM Studer has published two popular courses- one with the goal of getting you to 1200, and the second designing a study

Check out Noël’s updated course on studying chess the right way here (https://courses.nextlevelchess.blog/courses/simplified-chess-improvement-system?ref=bc4be0)

Chessiverse:

If you have not already, be sure to check out IM John Bartholomew’s new site, Chessiverse. It offers over 600 human like bots to spar and practice openings against, and is rolling out more features and courses, including IM John Bartholomew’s Comprehensive Scandinavian. Playing is free, but you can use the code “Perpetual30” to save 30% on premium courses and subscriptions.

When Arne Kaehler of Chessbase marveled that Vaishali had been preparing for the Women’s Candidates by studying for eight hours a day nearly every day, she explained her motivation simply: “The Candidates is the moment I have been dreaming of.” Despite this intense regimen, Vaishali and her team take a holistic approach, emphasizing consistency within a routine that also includes naps, yoga, exercise, and home-cooked meals from her mother.

In post-Candidates interviews, Sindarov and his team have also shed light on his journey to the top echelon. As highlighted in several of the linked articles, his approach is decidedly next-generation: he prefers digital learning to studying the classics and enjoys playing video games. Despite his online upbringing, Sindarov’s longtime coach, IM Roman Vidonyok, has taken a more analog approach in designing recent training camps. The nine (!) camps they conducted each lasted 15 days, with eight-hour training days and no use of engines at all.

While Sindarov’s opening knowledge has been highly praised, his coach estimated that 70% of the work is devoted to “chess training” rather than opening work. And while the 8 hour days are quite rigorous, Vidonyok told IM Sagar Shah that he encourages his students to live their lives outside of those regimented hours, encouraging video games, tv, socializing and exercise in the non-chess hours.

Regardless of their respective approaches, it is refreshing to see two level-headed, personable mega-talents ascend to the World Championship stage. I’m looking forward to their next matches.

Here are this week’s links…

FIDE Candidates Look Back

FM Andy Lee takes a big-picture look back at the Candidates, focusing on Sindarov’s strength, the opening choices,and the format. among other topics. “The problem (with the Candidates format) is that players with nothing left to play for can have an outsized impact on the final standings.” (Lit & Chess)

Leonard Barden on the Candidates! “Sindarov dominated the field with a controlled display reminiscent of the old Soviet master Mikhail Botvinnik” (The Guardian)

Reviews

FM Luis Siles heartily recommends Jen Shahade’s new book, Thinking Sideways. (Chess.com Blog)

Misc.

On this week’s Perpetual Chess, I caught up with GM Ben Finegold. Ben freely shared his opinions on the Netflix Hans/Magnus documentary, TakeTakeTake’s partnership with LiChess, and lots more. (Perpetual Chess YouTube) (Spotify)

There may be a paywall to navigate, but Wired magazine featured an excerpt from a forthcoming book about a cheating scandal that took place at the World Open in 1993. This was during the computer stone-ages, but a guy, going by the famous name of John von Neumann tried to use computer assistance by getting signals during a match. The author talked to the people behind the cheating conspiracy. IM Greg Shahade and I were there when it happened! (Kit Chellel for Wired Magazine)

Freedom Holdings is acquiring Chessbase. (Tarjei Svensen for Chess.com News)

The tradition of using chess imagery in a Coachella rock set continued from last year at this year’s annual festival.

Improve Your Chess and Support this Newsletter!

This newsletter is committed to remaining free but does use affiliate links. One way to help support it (and your chess!) is to sign up for special offers using the following links:

Chessdojo- Great chess community for dedicated improvers, use- the code “Ben” at checkout for a for a 10% discount on your membership.

https://www.chessdojo.club/signup

Chessmood- Chessmood features a chess video library with opening, middlegame, endgame videos. Plus game analysis and opening explorer tools.

Chessmood Free one Week Trial-

Chessmood.com/Ben

Chess.com-

Tons of unlocked features and videos, use the following link for a free one-week trail, or you can also use it when renewing your already existing premium membership:

http://go.chess.com/Perpetual

Its been an eventful couple of weeks in the world of chess.

1. GM Javokhir Sindarov has displayed a dominant performance in the Open FIDE Candidates tournament, making the last four rounds more of a coronation than a conclusion. The Women’s section looks to make up for the lack of drama in the Open, as five players are within one point of tournament leader GM Vaishali, with four rounds to go.

2. The highly anticipated “Chess Mates” Netflix documentary about the Carlsen–Niemann scandal has been released. Next week, I will be recording a podcast with GM Ben Finegold to share our thoughts on it, but I will also share a number of reviews and related features in the body of this email.

3. We’ve got some drama in the chess business world, as the Magnus-co-founded Take-Take-Take app announced that it will be launching a play zone, to compete with the Magnus affiliated Chess.com. It reminds me of the stories of an adolescent Bobby Fischer playing chess against himself.

Below are the rest of the latest chess links, so much good stuff!-

The Candidates

“Unless Javokhir Sindarov pulls off a choke for the ages, he’ll play Dommaraju Gukesh for the World Championship later this year.” (FM Dennis Monokroussos’ The Chess Mind)

FM Andy Lee is impressed by the protean styles Sindarov has displayed while romping through the Candidates field. (Lit & Chess)

In the video realm, FM Mike Klein has been presenting daily dispatches from Cyprus, GM Daniel King’s game recaps are always high class, and Dojo Talks provided an entertaining breakdown at the halfway point. (FunMaster Mike YouTube) (Powerplay Chess) (Dojo Talks)

Chess Mates Reviews

Tarjei Svenson of Chess.com hits a few of the highlights from Chess Mates. (Chess.com)

Edward Tansley of the Athletic also wrote about the film, although this feature is as much a chronology of events as review. (The Athletic)

Adam Crafton of the Athletic profiled Magnus Carlsen- not too much new in this one. (The Athletic)

OTOH, ESPN reporter Aishwarya Kumar spent a day in NYC with Hans Niemann and got some spicy quotes. “Every single instance that Magnus made his accusation, he hid behind proxies to do his dirty work for him,” Hans says. (ESPN.com)

Chess Improvement

It is often said that players around the beginner level should eschew opening study. FM Dalton Perrine argues that this is misleading advice. (Chess Chatter)

IM Junta Ikeda returned from a successful chess tournament and reflected on what he learned. “Going back to ‘normal life’ after a chess tournament can feel jarring, partly because it’s harder to (experience similar emotions.)” (Infinite Chess)

“In one of his games at the 1958 Chess Olympiad in Munich, GM Mikhail "the Magician" Tal, true to his style, sacrificed a pawn. His team member, then world champion GM Mikhail Botvinnik, asked him, "why did you sacrifice that pawn?" "It was in my way!" was Tal's instant response.” ( GM Gregory Serper for Chess.com)

GM Noel Studer wrote about a chess/life lesson he learned from dreaming of big poker scores. “When I get the taste that success could be easy, fun, and quick, the real way—which is difficult, boring, and slow—becomes so much less appealing.” (Next Level Chess)

Kevin Lincoln is getting close to a lifelong goal of breaking 2000. What will it take? (Good Moves)

Dr. Nick Vasquez also shared some brilliant insights on finding a balance between chasing goals and not having enough hours in the day. “What life has taught me is that plans are hopeful documents that often do not survive reality.” (Chess in Small Doses)

Misc.

The Charlotte Chess Center announced details for the first Naroditsky Memorial Blitz and Rapid featuring a star-studded field. (JJ Lang for CLO)

Hilarious Instagram/Tiktok creator Matt Biancuzzo has launched a new, affordable, chess collectible- Chess Trading Cards. (Kickstarter)

Keanu Reeves is an executive-producing another chess themed film, called Madwoman’s Game. Keanu said “I don’t want to play digital, I like in-person chess way better.” (Payton Turkeltaub for Variety)

US Chess and Jennifer Shahade have resolved their legal dispute, and Jen has been named the Official Ambassador of US Chess. (Chess Life Online)

What would chess be like if pawns could move sideways? Jen Shahade explores this question, and built an app where you can try this chess variant. (Games and the Grid)

Nick Visel reviews the novel “The Spy’s Mate” by Brad Buchanan (Nick Plays Chess)

Improve Your Chess and Support this Newsletter!

This newsletter is committed to remaining free but does use affiliate links. One way to help support it (and your chess!) is to sign up for special offers using the following links:

Chessdojo- Great chess community for dedicated improvers, use- the code “Ben” at checkout for a for a 10% discount on your membership.

https://www.chessdojo.club/signup

Chessmood- Chessmood features a chess video library with opening, middlegame, endgame videos. Plus game analysis and opening explorer tools.

Chessmood Free one Week Trial-

Chessmood.com/Ben

GM Noel Studer-

GM Studer has published two popular courses- one with the goal of getting you to 1200, and the second designing a study

Check out Noël’s updated course on studying chess the right way here (https://courses.nextlevelchess.blog/courses/simplified-chess-improvement-system?ref=bc4be0)

Minor programming note- my kids are on spring break next week, so I am going to take next week off from the newsletter. (Perpetual Chess Podcast episodes will continue though, hopefully with a few bonus pods covering the Candidates.)

I’ll be back in your inboxes in two weeks.

News

Leonard Barden writes about the ongoing Reykjavik Open, and shares a fun story about a simul he almost organized between peak Bobby Fischer and a team of future British young stars. “The juniors to face Fischer would have been the five trained by the national coach, Bob Wade, who all became grandmasters: Tony Miles, Michael Stean, John Nunn, Jonathan Speelman and Jonathan Mestel, plus David Goodman.” (The Guardian)

Is this year’s Candidates more important to Nakamura’s legacy than to any other player’s? FM Andy Lee says “yes.” (Lit & Chess)

GM Eugene Perelshteyn also weighs in with his thoughts on the year’s biggest chess tournament. “Sindarov’s trajectory to the top reminds me of Mikhail Tal. He is playing non-stop, and he is improving non-stop!” (Grandmaster Secrets)

Reuters provided a brief preview of the Candidates touching on Fabi’s attempt to take the crown and the dicey geopolitical backdrop. (Julien Pretot for Reuters)

JJ Lang alsogives a detailed Candidates preview, with a particularly insightful overview of the Women’s Candidates (Chess Life Online)

Chess Improvement

Chris Wainscott has been grinding away at OTB play and game review, and shares a few lessons he has learned along the way. (Road to Chess Master)

Kevin Scull is trying to adapt a mindset where he works to falsify his favored candidates moves rather than confirm their greatness. (Chess Journeys)

Videos/Podcasts

The Chess Dojo guys also previewed the Candidates, I was surprised to see Kostya and Jesse relatively bearish on Nakamura, but I get the reasons. (Chessdojo YouTube)

IM John Bartholomew and NM Matt Jansen also chatted about the Candidates and other topics. (Chessgoals and John Bartholomew YouTube)

Improve Your Chess and Support this Newsletter!

This newsletter is committed to remaining free but does use affiliate links. One way to help support it (and your chess!) is to sign up for special offers using the following links:

Chessdojo- Great chess community for dedicated improvers, use- the code “Ben” at checkout for a for a 10% discount on your membership.

https://www.chessdojo.club/signup

Chessmood- Chessmood features a chess video library with opening, middlegame, endgame videos. Plus game analysis and opening explorer tools.

Chessmood Free one Week Trial-

Chessmood.com/Ben

GM Noel Studer-

GM Studer has published two popular courses- one with the goal of getting you to 1200, and the second designing a study

Check out Noël’s updated course on studying chess the right way here (https://courses.nextlevelchess.blog/courses/simplified-chess-improvement-system?ref=bc4be0)