How do you know the general ideas behind an opening? - Page 2 - Chess Forums

Ronaldinho · 06-04-2009, 08:13 PM

Originally Posted by hyperactivemodernist

I wanted to adopt the KID myself, but when I've tried to play it, I get crushed. The idea behind that particular defense is that you allow your opponent a lot of space for his pawn center and then attack it from the flanks, which sounds great in theory, but is pretty tricky in practice.

My advice is to stick to classical openings for a while before you try to play anything "hypermodern."

This is very, very good advice.

And you could say the same thing about the najdorf.

There are openings where the ideas are enough ... and there are openings where you have to know the theory, and there's no substitute for memorizing variations.

music · 06-05-2009, 02:35 AM

Thanks for all your responses.

Originally Posted by hyperactivemodernist

I wanted to adopt the KID myself, but when I've tried to play it, I get crushed. The idea behind that particular defense is that you allow your opponent a lot of space for his pawn center and then attack it from the flanks, which sounds great in theory, but is pretty tricky in practice.

My advice is to stick to classical openings for a while before you try to play anything "hypermodern."

So I should choose a different opening? Which one should I choose then?

hyperactivemodernist · 06-05-2009, 03:39 AM

There are many choices, I'd suggest reading the article on closed openings. Some possibilities would be the the Slav/Semi-Slav, the Queen's Gambit Declined, or, if you really want to play an Indian defense, maybe try the Nimzo-Indian, which tends to contest the center a bit earlier than most lines of the KID.

Whatever you choose, I'd suggest sticking with it for a while to get a feel for it. Whenever one starts playing a new opening, it's normal to lose a few games while you are learning it. I think you have the right approach in picking just a few openings to concentrate on and learning them thoroughly. I believe that's more effective than trying to learn a little bit about many different systems.

Good luck!

Zuker · 06-05-2009, 03:51 AM

Originally Posted by music

Thanks for all your responses.

So I should choose a different opening? Which one should I choose then?

Music, I thought you were one of the people I sent a copy of Zuke Em too...why not try that?

music · 06-05-2009, 03:00 PM

Originally Posted by Zuker

Music, I thought you were one of the people I sent a copy of Zuke Em too...why not try that?

Don't worry, I'll adopt that system when I finish reading your book and learning the variations. But I'm going to a tournament in about a week and I need a solid line that I know pretty well.

Ronaldinho · 06-05-2009, 07:21 PM

If you're playing a tournament in a week, honestly ... don't start learning new variations now.

Play whatever you've been playing.

The standard advice is, when learning, to meet 1.e4 with e5 and 1.d4 with d5.

Honestly I don't think you should change your study pattern just because you have a tournament coming up ... but if you want to do one thing which is most likely to improve your results ... study rook endings.