Play the Catalan

Play the Catalan
Author: Nigel Davies
Publisher: Gloucester Publishers Plc
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2009
Genre: Chess
ISBN: 9781857445916

Grandmaster Nigel Davies presents a major study of the Catalan, providing a reliable and dynamic repertoire for White and covering the main plans for both sides.

The Powerful Catalan

The Powerful Catalan
Author: Victor Bologan
Publisher: New In Chess
Total Pages: 244
Release: 2015-04-28
Genre: Games & Activities
ISBN: 9056915231

The Catalan is a solid yet flexible chess opening system that is popular on all levels. Both amateurs and top-level strategists such as Vladimir Kramnik and Vishy Anand employ this opening to put a lot of unpleasant pressure on Black. In The Powerful Catalan grandmaster Victor Bologan presents a complete repertoire for White that covers all of Black’s responses. Also included are those variations where Black tries to steer the game into other openings like the Queen’s Indian or the Tarrasch Defence. The book is classically structured (starting with the rarest variations before moving on to the most popular ones) and contains original analysis of many recent tournament games. Bologan’s clearly formulated verbal explanations are essential for a good understanding of the strategic plans and the tactical themes of the Catalan. ,

Play the Catalan

Play the Catalan
Author: I︠A︡kov Isaevich Neĭshtadt
Publisher: Pergamon
Total Pages: 177
Release: 1987
Genre: Games & Activities
ISBN: 9780080320632

Grandmaster Repertoire 1A

Grandmaster Repertoire 1A
Author: Boris Avrukh
Publisher: Quality Chess
Total Pages: 440
Release: 2015-05-21
Genre:
ISBN: 9781907982880

When Boris Avrukh released the first volume of his 1.d4 repertoire in 2008, it revolutionized chess opening books. As GM Michael Adams said: "The high-quality Grandmaster Repertoire series has taken this format to a completely different level." Or as GM Glenn Flear put it: "This book represents nothing short of a technological advance in chess opening theory." Now Avrukh is back with an expanded, updated and revamped 1.d4 repertoire. Volume 1A deals primarily with the Catalan, which is an Avrukh specialty. In GM Simen Agdestein s words: "It s in Avrukh has become a standard comment for those trying to understand this opening." This volume covers the position after the opening moves 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3, concentrating on the Catalan which arises after 3...d5, while also dealing with the Bogo-Indian with 3...Bb4, and Benoni systems after 3...c5."

Winning with the Catalan

Winning with the Catalan
Author: Angus Dunnington
Publisher:
Total Pages: 164
Release: 1997
Genre: Games & Activities
ISBN:

The Catalan is a favourite of the greats of chess, and has been used by Kasparov, Karpov and Korchnoi in key matches. This guide focuses on the key plans at White's disposal, and how to exploit the typical errors Black makes when facing the Catalan.

Keep It Simple 1.d4

Keep It Simple 1.d4
Author: Christof Sielecki Christof Sielecki
Publisher: New In Chess
Total Pages: 796
Release: 2019-12-12
Genre: Games & Activities
ISBN: 9056918680

After the success of his award-winning book ‘Keep it Simple 1.e4’ International Master Christof Sielecki is back. His new repertoire based on 1.d4 has a similar profile: variations that are straightforward and easy to remember, and require little or no maintenance. Sielecki has created a reliable set of opening lines for chess players of almost all levels. The major objective is to dominate Black from the opening, by simple means. You don’t need to sacrifice anything or memorize long tactical lines. His main concept is for White to play 1.d4, 2.Nf3, 3.g3, 4.Bg2, 5.0-0 and in most cases 6.c4. Sielecki developed this repertoire while working with students who were looking for something that was easy to understand and easy to learn. This new 1.d4 repertoire may be even easier to master than his 1.e4 recommendations, because it is such a coherent system. Sielecki always clearly explains the plans and counterplans and keeps you focussed on what the position requires. Ambitious players rated 1500 or higher will get great value out of studying this extremely accessible book.

The Catalan

The Catalan
Author: Neil McDonald
Publisher:
Total Pages: 300
Release: 2017-05
Genre: Games & Activities
ISBN: 9781781942635

This series provides an ideal platform to study chess openings. By continually challenging the reader to answer probing questions throughout the book, the Move by Move format greatly encourages the learning and practising of vital skills just as much as the traditional assimilation of opening knowledge. Carefully selected questions and answers are designed to keep you actively involved and allow you to monitor your progress as you learn. This is an excellent way to study any chess opening and at the same time improve your general chess skills and knowledge. The Catalan is a solid opening system in which White combines the Queen's Gambit with a kingside fianchetto. In recent years it has become an increasingly popular choice at all levels of chess, and elite grandmasters such as Vladimir Kramnik have developed major new ideas for both White and Black. The Catalan can lead to a wide variety of positions, open or closed, tactical or strategic, that will suit players of all styles. In this book, Grandmaster Neil McDonald invites you to join him in studying the Catalan and its many variations. McDonald shares his experience and knowledge of the Catalan, exa

How to Study Chess on Your Own

How to Study Chess on Your Own
Author: Davorin Kuljasevic
Publisher: New In Chess
Total Pages: 541
Release: 2021-05-03
Genre: Games & Activities
ISBN: 9056919342

Every chess player wants to improve, but many, if not most, lack the tools or the discipline to study in a structured and effective way. With so much material on offer, the eternal question is: ‘How can I study chess without wasting my time and energy?’ Davorin Kuljasevic provides the full and ultimate answer, as he presents a structured study approach that has long-term improvement value. He explains how to study and what to study, offers specific advice for the various stages of the game and points out how to integrate all elements in an actionable study plan. How do you optimize your learning process? How do you develop good study habits and get rid of useless ones? What study resources are appropriate for players of different levels? Many self-improvement guides are essentially little more than a collection of exercises. Davorin Kuljasevic reflects on learning techniques and priorities in a fundamental way. And although this is not an exercise book, it is full of instructive examples looked at from unusual angles. To provide a solid self-study framework, Kuljasevic categorizes lots of important aspects of chess study in a guide that is rich in illustrative tables, figures and bullet points. Anyone, from casual player to chess professional, will take away a multitude of original learning methods and valuable practical improvement ideas.

Chess Structures

Chess Structures
Author: Mauricio Flores Rios
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2015
Genre: Chess
ISBN: 9781784830007

Mauricio Flores Rios provides an in-depth study of the 28 most common structures in chess practice. In Chess Structures - A Grandmaster Guide you will find:*Carefully selected model games showing each structure's main plans and ideas*Strategic patterns to observe and typical pitfalls to avoid*50 positional exercises with detailed solutionsGM Axel Bachmann from the Foreword:"Chess Structures - A Grandmaster Guide is an excellent selection of model games. By studying the 140 games and fragments in this book, the reader will learn many of the most important plans, patterns and ideas in chess."

1.D4! the Chess Bible: Mastering Queen's Pawn Structures

1.D4! the Chess Bible: Mastering Queen's Pawn Structures
Author: Juhasz
Publisher: Chess Bible
Total Pages: 280
Release: 2021-05-04
Genre: Games & Activities
ISBN: 9789464201116

"All beginnings are difficult" is an old saying, and this is true as well from my review of this book. I am reminded of the story where an elderly woman says to her surgeon, "Doctor, I am so afraid as this is my first operation." The doctor winks and says, "Don't worry it will be my first operation as well!" So you and I have this book in front of us as the surgery and the work of my young friend and former student IM Armin Juhász is the surgeon. I remember vividly the founding of Géza Maróczy Chess School in Budapest in 2006. The School was especially successful during its first years. Following the examples of such outstanding Hungarian players as László Szabó, Gedeon Barcza or Géza Maróczy himself, a number of excellent young players including Benjamin Gledura and Richard Rapport (currently ranked 13th in the world) have debuted their talents at the school. It was also at the Maróczy school where Ármin Juhász studied as well. Was it easy for these students? Was it easy for us coaches? I think the answer is a clear yes. We had the privilege to invite as guest lecturers such internationally known Hungarian chess greats as Pál Benkő, Lajos Portisch, Zoltán Ribli, Gyula Sax, István Csom, (members of the gold medalist team at the 1978 Chess Olympiad in Buenos Aires), and JuditPolgár, Zsuzsa Polgár, Zsuzsa Verőci and Mária Ivánka. Our young students had the opportunity to learn chess from no lesser names than these. And yes, IM ÁrminJuhász, who became the youngest FIDE Trainer in Europe in 2018, was among these students. In his first book (we anticipate many more), the young Hungarian author makes a worthy attempt to walk his readers through a complete 1.d4 opening repertoire. Yet while he is taking you thru the opening he never forgets the other phases of the game. As a result, the subsequent middlegame and endgame elements are remarkably well organized benefitting both beginner and advanced players to acquire powerful skills with 1.d4. In addition, Ármin pays adequate attention to those tactical motifs that are quite significant in the dynamic games of many contemporary players. Clearly he keeps in mind the German master Richard Teichmann's observation that "Chess is 99% tactics". This complex book follows a clear structure with a large number of games and positions from outstanding players and various historical eras. Then he spices all this up in the analyses sections with tricks and insights mainly associated with the so-called Hungarian chess school tradition. I heartily recommend this book not only to those who are eager to boost their ELO rating (Did you know that Dr. Árpád Élő was an American professor of Hungarian birth?) but also to coaching colleagues (including my fellow GMs), because 1.d4! The Chess Bible is an excellent source of great examples and useful drills. I will certainly use it in my own coaching practice. Lastly, please be aware that the author comes from a dedicated chess family. His older brother, IM Kristóf Juhász is 27 and achieved his first GM norm in 2020, the year of the pandemic. His younger brother FM Ágoston Juhász (aged 15) was a U14 National Champion. See you at the Chess Olympiad in Budapest in 2024! József Horváth Grand Master and FIDE Senior Trainer Budapest, January 2021