my latest books
"Game Changer" won the ECF Book of the Year 2019 prize
"Chess for Life" won the ECF Book of the Year 2016 prize
Engine Snacks! Sacrificing to make your major pieces happy!
In my new book “The Silicon Road to Chess Improvement” I spend a whole chapter on engine sacrifices. One of the many sacrifices that engines play nowadays are sacrifices to clear lines for their major pieces. We saw many such long-term sacrifices from AlphaZero and modern engines are just as ready – indeed eager – to do so! One great example was from the game Combusken-rofChade in round 3 of the ongoing TCEC Swiss 2 (https://tcec-chess.com/#div=sw2&game=102&season=21)
Engines can teach us how to play like Tal or Shirov at their best! Understanding this theme is a key building block in creating promising attacking positions.
Engine Snacks! Mate in 3!
A little test of your tactics this time from a mate that came up in an engine game. It was so beautiful and elegant I burst out laughing when I saw it! Spotting little tactics quickly and reliably is the key to successful practical play – the way to improve is to train solving positions like this!
"The secret of my success: with every move I force the opponent to think for themselves!"
- Alexander Alekhine
about
I am a Chess Grandmaster and writer, and one of England's top players. When I am not doing my job as an IT Consultant, I fill my free time with as much chess as possible
my work
Writing and discussing chess has always been one my passions. I review chess books in a regular column for New in Chess magazine and have written 7 books myself. I also contribute to chess videos regularly.
contact me
I hope that you enjoy the site. I will enrich its content over time and would love to hear what you think. Let me know whether there are any topics you would like me to cover in my blog.
"How many moves do I consider when analysing? Only one, but it's always the best one!"
- Emanuel Lasker
