rabbitoid: lol . . . very cheery

Eriisa: Single elimination with atomic warefare. Now there's a cheering thought...

I was setting up a bunch of tourneys the other day (got quite carried away), and I ended up creating a Single Elimination Tourney for Chess and Atomic Chess. Please feel free to check them out.


Chess Elimination.
Chess
Atomic Chess
16 player Single Elimination

Ahoj jak se máš pojd´ hrát.

Carl Schlechter : Life and Times of the Austrian Chess Wizard is probably the best book on Schlechter published in 1994, but may not be in print any more. Rudolf Spielmann also wrote a book in Swedish in 1924 and there is a Russian book written by Verkhovsky that was written in 1984. There no doubt are others, but those found there way into my chess library over the years....

HalfPawn: http://snow.prohosting.com/~batgrrl/Schlechter.html

HalfPawn: Haha that guy looks like his head is about to explode

ouspensky: WGM, but still nice: http://www.hrokurinn.is/frett.cfm?gnr=409

Tigran Petrosian or Judit Polgar?

DragonKing: Steinitz said he could give God a pawn and the move. For a good account of craziness in chess, see "Chess and the Dance of Death" by James Coburn.

HalfPawn: I have read that many of the greatest chess players of all time had really strange quirks. Paul Morphy had some type of fetish for women's shoes. ( I have heard that he like to dance around them!?) Alekhine was almost destroyed by alcohol. And one GM- I have forgotten who it was supposed to be- is said to have nearly bankrupted himself for "brain food" i.e shrimp or was it oysters? So, if Karpov was having sometime of nervous breakdown at a World Championship match- it would not surprise me at all.

DragonKing:Unfortunately, the story I read about it only quoted another story about it. It fits the events so well, though.

ouspensky: A history of the 84-85 match can be fibd on line at:
World Chess Championship: 1984 Karpov-Kasparov. The record of the draws is there- but there is no mention of Botvinnik. Perhaps this is apocryphal? The htoery that Karpov was on drugs is discussed, so who knows? There is also a book on this Championship by two authors Speelman and Tisdal, but I don't know the title.

I nominate Kasparov and Botvinnik for their plot against Karpov in the first Kasparov-Karpov match. This was reported in the European press at the time and I would be interested to know if anyone is familiar with it.
In a six-win match, Karpov pulled ahead 5-0 with scintillating play.
Kasparov approached Botvinnik for advice and Botvinnik said: "Start drawing games."
Botvinik, as the story goes, knew Karpov took amphetamines before his games.
After 46 or something straight draws, Karpov collapsed into amphetamine psychosis and withdrew from the match due to what was reported as physical and mental exhaustion.

Kramnik better than Kasparov???? No way....!

Cubs93: Im curious about this post. Why did you rate Kranmik over Kasparov? While Kranmik is brilliant- with a stellar career ahead of him- Garry has an overall better winning percentage (69% to Kranmiks64%) and his games with Kranmik are a virtual tie. Besides, no one, except maybe Fischer, has done more for chess that Garry. It is far too early to label Kranmik the greatest player of all time! Of course, the best comparison cannot be made until Kranmik has retired as well.

HalfPawn: One of my favorite Bobby Fisher quotes: "I like to make them squirm."

Speaking about pronunciation of all these great players, here are some great sayings of top players and others throughout history:

“The Pawns are the soul of the game”
(Francois Andre Danican Philidor)

“When you see a good move, look for a better one”
(Emanuel Lasker)

“All I want to do, ever, is just play Chess”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Chess is mental torture”
(Garry Kasparov)

“The Pin is mightier than the sword”
(Fred Reinfeld)

“Many have become Chess Masters,
no one has become the Master of Chess”
(Siegbert Tarrasch)

“Some sacrifices are sound; the rest are mine”
(Mikhail Tal)

“Best by test: 1.e4”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Play the opening like a book, the middle game like
a magician, and the endgame like a machine”
(Spielmann)

“Later, I began to succeed in decisive games. Perhaps because I realized a very simple truth: not only was I worried, but also my opponent”
(Mikhail Tal)

“Who is your opponent tonight,
tonight I am playing against the Black pieces”
(Akiba Rubinstein)

“I like the moment when I break a man's ego”
(Bobby Fischer)

“I am the best player in the world and I am here to prove it”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Nothing excites jaded Grandmasters more than a theoretical novelty”
(Dominic Lawson)

“We cannot resist the fascination of sacrifice, since a passion for sacrifices is part of a Chessplayer's nature”
(Rudolf Spielman)

“A win by an unsound combination, however showy,
fills me with artistic horror”
(Wilhelm Steinitz)

“Help your pieces so they can help you”
(Paul Morphy)

“Chess holds its master in its own bonds, shackling the mind and brain so that the inner freedom of the very strongest must suffer”
(Albert Einstein)

“Strategy requires thought, tactics require observation”
(Max Euwe)

“I don't believe in psychology. I believe in good moves”
(Bobby Fischer)

“A sacrifice is best refuted by accepting it”
(Wilhelm Steinitz)

“Even the laziest King flees wildly in the face of a double check!”
(Aaron Nimzowitsch)

"Patzer sees check, Patzer makes check."
(Bobby Fischer)

“Combinations have always been the most intriguing aspect of Chess. The masters look for them, the public applauds them, the critics praise them. It is because combinations are possible that Chess
is more than a lifeless mathematical exercise. They are the poetry of the game; they are to Chess what melody is to music. They represent the triumph of mind over matter”
(Reuben Fine)

“I give 98 percent of my mental energy to Chess.
Others give only 2 percent”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Chess is a fairy tale of 1001 blunders”
(Savielly Tartakower)

“Chess is no whit inferior to the violin, and we have a large number of professional violinists”
(Mikhail Botvinnik)

“Only the player with the initiative has the right to attack”
(Wilhelm Steinitz)

"The winner of the game is the player who makes the next-to-last mistake”
(Savielly Tartakover)

“Your body has to be in top condition. Your Chess deteriorates as your body does. You can't separate body from mind”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Of Chess it has been said that life is not long
enough for it, but that is the fault of life, not Chess”
(William Ewart Napier)

“I have added these principles to the law: get the Knights into action before both Bishops are developed”
(Emanuel Lasker)

“Life is like a game of Chess, changing with each move”
(Chinese proverb)

“You cannot play at Chess if you are kind-hearted”
(French Proverb)

“It’s just you and your opponent at the board
and you're trying to prove something”
(Bobby Fischer)

“It is the aim of the modern school, not to treat every position according to one general law, but according to the principle inherent in the position”
(Richard Reti)

“In order to improve your game, you must study the endgame before everything else, for whereas the endings can be studied and mastered by themselves, the middle game and the opening must be studied in relation to the endgame”
(Jose Raul Capablanca)

“Without error there can be no brilliancy”
(Emanuel Lasker)

“Chess is like war on a board”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Chess is played with the mind and not with the hands!”
(Renaud and Kahn)

"The most important feature of the Chess position is the activity of the pieces. This is absolutely fundamental in all phases of the game:
Opening, Middlegame and especially Endgame. The primary constraint on a piece's activity is the Pawn structure”
(Michael Stean)

“You have to have the fighting spirit. You have
to force moves and take chances”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Openings teach you openings. Endgames teach you chess!”
(Stephan Gerzadowicz)

“My style is somewhere between that of Tal and Petrosian”
(Reshevsky)

“That's what Chess is all about. One day you give your opponent a lesson, the next day he gives you one”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Some part of a mistake is always correct”
(Savielly Tartakover)

“Methodical thinking is of more use in Chess than inspiration”
(C. J. S. Purdy)

"Excellence at Chess is one mark of a scheming mind”
(Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

“A bad day of Chess is better than any good day at work”
(Anonymous)

“Chess is the art of analysis”
(Mikhail Botvinnik)

“The mistakes are there, waiting to be made”
(Savielly Tartakower)

“There are tough players and nice guys, and I'm a tough player”
(Bobby Fischer)

“After black's reply to 1.e4 with 1..e5, leaves him
always trying to get into the game”
(Howard Staunton)

“A player surprised is half beaten”
(Proverb)

“A passed Pawn increases in strength as the number
of pieces on the board diminishes”
(Capablanca)

“The essence of Chess is thinking about what Chess is”
(David Bronstein)

“Chess is a forcing house where the fruits of
character can ripen more fully than in life”
(Edward Morgan Foster)

“Half the variations which are calculated in a tournament game turn out to be completely superfluous. Unfortunately, no one
knows in advance which half”
(Jan Tinman)

“Chess is as much a mystery as women”
(Purdy)

“Good positions don't win games, good moves do”
(Gerald Abrahams)

“If I win a tournament, I win it by myself.
I do the playing. Nobody helps me”
(Bobby Fischer)

“What would Chess be without silly mistakes?”
(Kurt Richter)

“Before the endgame, the Gods have placed the middle game”
(Siegbert Tarrasch)

“Chess was Capablanca's mother tongue”
(Reti)

“Alekhine is a poet who creates a work of art out of something that would hardly inspire another man to send home a picture post card”
(Max Euwe)

“Don't even mention losing to me. I can't stand to think of it”
(Bobby Fischer)

“During a Chess competition a Chessmaster should be a combination of a beast of prey and a monk”
(Alexander Alekhine)

“The defensive power of a pinned piece is only imaginary”
(Aaron Nimzovich)

“When the Chess game is over, the Pawn and
the King go back to the same box”
(Irish saying)

“A strong memory, concentration, imagination, and a strong will is required to become a great Chess player”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Every Chess master was once a beginner”
(Chernev)

“One doesn't have to play well, it's
enough to play better than your opponent”
(Siegbert Tarrasch)

“Chess is above all, a fight!”
(Emanuel Lasker)

“Discovered check is the dive bomber of the Chessboard”
(Reuben Fine)

“I know people who have all the will in the world,
but still can't play good Chess”
(Bobby Fischer)

“The most powerful weapon in Chess is to have the next move”
(David Bronstein)

“He who fears an isolated Queen's Pawn should give up Chess”
(Siegbert Tarrasch)

“Different people feel differently about resigning”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Chess is not like life... it has rules!”
(Mark Pasternak)

“Why must I lose to this idiot?”
(Aron Nimzovich)

“It's always better to sacrifice your opponent's men”
(Savielly Tartakover)

“To avoid losing a piece, many a person has lost the game”
(Savielly Tartakover)

“All that matters on the Chessboard is good moves”
(Bobby Fischer)

“In a gambit you give up a Pawn for the sake of getting a lost game”
(Samuel Standige Boden)

“It is not enough to be a good player... you must also play well”
(Siegbert Tarrasch)

“Tactics flow from a superior position”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Chess is life”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Chess is a beautiful mistress”
(Bent Larsen)


“A bad plan is better than none at all”
(Frank Marshall)

“Chess books should be used as we use glasses: to assist the sight, although some players make use of them as if they thought they conferred sight”
(Jose Raul Capablanca)

“There are two types of sacrifices: correct ones and mine”
(Mikhail Tal)

“Morphy was probably the greatest genius of them all”
(Bobby Fischer)

“My opponents make good moves too. Sometimes
I don't take these things into consideration”
(Bobby Fischer)

“The combination player thinks forward; he starts from the given position, and tries the forceful moves in his mind”
(Emanuel Lasker)

“A Chess game is divided into three stages: the first, when you hope you have the advantage, the second when you believe you have an advantage, and the third... when you know you're going to lose!”
(Savielly Tartakower)

“Chess demands total concentration”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Chess, like love, like music, has the power to make people happy”
(Siegbert Tarrasch)

“All my games are real”
(Bobby Fischer)

“Chess is everything: art, science and sport”
(Anatoly Karpov)

“Chess is the art which expresses the science of logic”
(Mikhail Botvinnik)

“Not all artists are Chess players, but all Chess players are artists”
(Marcel Duchamp)

“Chess is imagination”
(David Bronstein)

"I'm not afraid of Spassky. The world knows I'm the best. You don't need a match to prove it”
(Bobby Fischer)

“If cunning alone were needed to excel, women
would be the best Chess players”
(Albin)

“Chess is thirty to forty percent psychology. You don't have this when you play a computer. I can't confuse it”
(Judith Polgar)

“On the chessboard, lies and hypocrisy do not survive long”
(Emanuel Lasker)

“Chess is war over the board. The object is to crush the opponents mind”
(Bobby Fischer)

“The passed Pawn is a criminal, who should be kept under lock and key. Mild measures, such as police surveillance, are not sufficient”
(Aaron Nimzovich)

“Human affairs are like a Chess game: only those who do not take it seriously can be called good players”
(Hung Tzu Ch'eng)

“The blunders are all there on the board, waiting to be made”
(Savielly Tartakover)

“Via the squares on the chessboard, the Indians explain the movement of time and the age, the higher influences which control the world and
the ties which link Chess with the human soul”
(Al-Masudi)

“It is no time to be playing Chess when the house is on fire”
(Italian Proverb)

“Chess is really ninety nine percent calculation“
(Soltis)

“Chess is the gymnasium of the mind”
(Blaise Pascal)

“Winning isn't everything... but losing is nothing“
(Mednis)

“Only sissies Castle”
(Rob Sillars)

“Look at Garry Kasparov. After he loses, invariably he wins the next game. He just kills the next guy. That's something that we have to learn to be able to do“
(Maurice Ashley)

Just in case there may be future pronunciation discussions, I thought this reference might come in handy. However,I have no idea if Mr. Wall's definitions herein are in fact correct ???....:(

PRONOUNCE THAT CHESS WORD by Bill Wall

Here is a list of chess terms and personalities and their pronunciation.

Abramov (ah-BRAHM-ahf), Lev - Russian arbiter and Correspondence International Master (IM)
Adorjan (A-door-yan), Andras - Hungarian Grandmaster
Akhmilovskaya (akh-mih-LOEV-ska-ya), Elena - woman grandmaster
Akhsharumova (akh-sha-ROO-ma-va), Anna - woman grandmaster; Boris Gulko's wife
Alapin (ah-LAH-pin), Semyon - Russian master
Alatortsev (a-LAH-tahrt-seff), Vladimir - honorary Soviet grandmaster
Alburt, (AHL-bert), Lev - grandmaster
Alekhine (ahl-YECK-een), Alexander - former world champion
Alexandria (ah-lek-SAHN-dree-ya), Nana - woman grandmaster
Antoshin (ahn-TOE-sheen), Vladimir - Soviet grandmaster
Aronin (a-ROE-neen), Lev - Soviet International Master
Averbakh (ah-ver-BAKH), Yuri - Soviet grandmaster
Balashov (bah-lah-SHOFF), Yuri - Soviet grandmaster
Barcza (BAR-tza), Gedeon - Hungarian Grandmaster
Belyavsky (bel-YAHV-skee), Alexander - Soviet Grandmaster
Bernstein (BERN-shtyne), Ossip - Russian Grandmaster
Bisguier (BIS-gire), Arthur - American Grandmaster
Bogolyubov (bah-gah-LYU-bahf), Efim - German Grandmaster
Boleslavsky (ba-leh-SLAV-skee), Isaak - Soviet Grandmaster
Bondarevsky (bahn-da-REV-skee), Igor - Soviet Grandmaster
Book (Bek), Eero - Finnish Grandmaster
Botvinnik (baht-VIHN-ik), Mikhail - former world champion
Bronstein, David (brahn-SHTAYN) - Soviet Grandmaster
Bykova (BY-kah-va), Elizveta - former world women's chess champion
Caissa (KI-E-sa) - goddess of chess
Caro Kann (KAH-ro KAHN) - opening named after Horatio Caro and Marcus Kann
Chajes (KHAH-yes) - strong master
Charousek (Kha-ROO-sek), Rudolf - Hungarian master
Chernin (chair-NEEN), Alexander - Soviet Grandmaster
Chiburdanidze (tchee-boor-dah-NEED-zeh), Maya - former women's world champion
Ciocaltea (Cho-calta-ya)
Colle (KAW-lee), Edgard - Belgium champion
Csom (Chom), Istvan - Hungarian Grandmaster
Dolmatov (dahl-MAH-tahf), Sergei - Soviet grandmaster
Dorfman (DOHRF-mahn), Josif - Soviet Grandmaster
Dvoretsky (dvahr-YET-skee), Mark - chess trainer
Duz-Khotimirsky (dooz-kha-tih-MEER-skee), Fyodor - Russian master
En passant (ahn pah-SAHNT) - special method of capturing
En prise (ahn preez) - piece hanging
Euwe (UHR-vuh), Max - former world champion
Fedorowicz (Fe-do-RO-vich), John - American Grandmaster
Fianchetto (fee-an-KET-toe) - development of the bishop on b2, g2, b7, or g7
Furman (FOOR-mahn), Semyon - Soviet Grandmaster
Gaprindashvili (gah-prin-dahsh-VEE-lee), Nona - former world women's champion
Gelfand (GEHL-fahnd), Boris - Soviet Grandmaster
Geller (GEH-ler), Yefim - Soviet Grandmaster
Gligoric (Glee-GO-rich), Svetozar - Yugoslav Grandmaster
Gruenfeld (GREWN-feld), Ernst - Austrian Grandmaster
Giuoco Piano (JOKE-o Pee-AH-no) - Italian Opening
Gufeld (GOO-feld), Eduard - Grandmaster
Gulko (gool-KOE), Boris - Grandmaster
Gurevich (goo-RAY-vich)
Ilyin-Genevsky (ih-lee-IN-zheh-NYEV-skee), Alexander - Russian master
Ivanchuk (ee-vahn-CHOOK), Vasily - Soviet Grandmaster
J'adoube (Zha-DOOB) - I adjust
Jaenisch (YAY-nish), Carl - Russian player and author
Janowsky (Yan-OF-sky), Dawid - Polish master
Karpov (KAHR-pahf), Anatoly - former world chess champion
Kasparov (Kah-SPAHR-off), Garry - former world champion
Kavalek (kuh-VAHL-ek), Lubomir - American grandmaster
Keres (CARE-ess), Paul - Soviet Grandmaster
Khalifman (kha-leef-MAHN), Alexander - former FIDE world champion
Kholmov (KHOEL-mahf), Ratmir - Soviet Grandmaster
Kmoch (k-MOTCH), Hans - chess master and writer
Konstantinopolsky (kahn-stahn-ti-NOE-pahl-skee), Alexander - Russian master
Kortchnoi (kahrch-NOY), Viktor - Swiss Grandmaster
Kotov (KOE-tahf), Alexander - Soviet Grandmaster
Labourdonnais (lah-boor-do-NAY), Louis - 19th century player
Lange (LAHN-guh), Max - German player and author
Lein (Lane), Anatoly - American Grandmaster
Levenfish (leh-ven-FISH), Grigory - Russian master
Levitina (leh-VEE-ti-na), Irina - woman grandmaster
Liberzon (lee-ber-ZONE), Vladimir - grandmaster
Ljubojevic (Luh-BOY-yuh-vitch), Ljubomir - Yugoslav Grandmaster
Lucena (Lou-CHAYN-uh), Luis - 15th century chess author
Maroczy (muh-ROT-see), Geza - Hungarian Grandmaster
Najdorf (NIGH-dorf), Miguel - Argentine Grandmaster
Petroff (PEHT-roff), Alexander - Russian master
Petrosian (Peht-rahs-YAHN), Tigran - former world champion
Pirc (Peerts), Vasja - Yugoslav Grandmaster
Planinc (PLAN-ints), Albin - Yugoslav Grandmaster
Polugaevsky (pah-loo-gah-YEV-skee), Lev - Soviet grandmaster
Ponomariov (ponn-no-MAH-rre-ov), Ruslan (ROOS-lahn) - former world champion
Przepiorka (pshe-PURER-ka), David - Polish master
Psakhis (SAHK-iss), Lev - Soviet Grandmaster
Reti (RAY-tee), Richard - Hungarian master
Robatsch (RO-bahtsch), Karl - Austrian Grandmaster
Ruy Lopez (Rue-y Lopeth) - 16th century Spanish priest and player
Saemisch (SAME-ish), Friedrich - German Grandmaster
Schevenigen (sheh-VEN-i-gen) - pairing system and Sicilian Defense variation
Schliemann (SHLEE-mon), Adolf - German player and opening analyst
Shirov (SHEER-ahf), Alexey - Soviet grandmaster
Smyslov (smih-SLOEFF), Vasily - former world champion
Spassky (SPAHSS-kee), Boris - former world chess champion
Stean (Steen), Michael - British Grandmaster
Stein (Shtayne), Leonid - Soviet Grandmaster
Steinitz (Styne-itz), William - former world champion
Suba (SHOO-ba), Mihai - Romanian Grandmaster
Suetin (soo-AY-teen), Alexey - Soviet grandmaster
Sveshnikov (SVYESH-ni-kahff), Yevgeny - Soviet grandmaster
Taimanov (tie-MAH-naff), Mark - Soviet grandmaster
Tal (Tahl), Mikhail - former world champion
Tarrasch (tuh-ROSH), Siegbert - German master
Tartakower (tart-a-KO-Wer), Savielly - Austrain/Polish/Russian grandmaster
Tchigorin (chih-GOE-reen), Mikhail - Russian master
Timman (TEE-mahn), Jan - Dutch Grandmaster
Tseshkovsky (tsesh-KOEV-skee), Vitaly - Soviet grandmaster
Tukmakov (took-mah-KOEFF), Vladimir - Soviet grandmaster
Vaganian (va-gahn-YAHN), Rafael - Soviet grandmaster
Vasiukov (vahs-you-KOEFF), Yevgeny - Soviet grandmaster
Winawer (WIN-ah-wer), Szymon - Polish master
Xie Jun (she-a-JUNE) - former world women's champion
Yusupov (yoo-SOOP-ahf), Artur - Soviet grandmaster
Zaitsev (ZITE-seff)
Znosko-Borovsky (ZNOE-ska-bah-ROEV-skee), Yevgeny - Russian master
Zugzwang (TSOOKS-vahng), position in which the move makes a worse result
Zukertort (SOOK-er-tort), Johann - German master
Zvjiginsev (zvya-GIN-tsev), Vadim - Soviet grandmaster
Zwischenzug (TSVEYE-shun-tsook) - in-between move

Matarilevich:
Well for avoiding all these "problems" you can always say this opening the Spanish instead of Ruy Lopez..... Then there could not be any pronunciation problems....

Walter Montego, Pedro: Well, it´s a difficult matter. In Spanish "Ruy" is just one syllable. For me it sounds as [ru:I], with a "u" large as "rule", "too" or "you" and with a "i" short as "big" or "it". I´m not sure but i think the "u" in "Bush" is too much large as "sure" or "poor"

I kind of like that one. :)

Hey, I think it's two syllables and goes rue-ee

Matarilevich: There's just a minor difference between the vowel sounds in "bush" and "rule" and it's the one in "bush" that corresponds to the U in Ruy.

Pedro Martínez: But Ruy López are two spanish surname (Ruy -Ruiz- and López). In Spanish "Ruy" sounds like "Rui" and the "u" in "Ruy" is like "u" in the word "rule"... I think

Matarilevich: I think it's slightly incorrect, the U sounds as the "u" in "Bush", which is not the same as the "u" in "rule".

So the pronunciation is [rooy] with rolled R.

HalfPawn: "u" at Ruy sounds as "u" in rule, "y" sounds as [I]

http://brainking.com/en/Tournaments?trg=12856&tri=77645&trnst=0

redsales: neat . . . I'll have to look it up!

ColonelCrockett: just a collection of factoids about chess and its personages; ie an in-depth look at Tartakower, speculation on computers, composed games etc.

Socrates: 1 kramnik
2 kasparov
3 karpov
4 timman
5 euwe

yes! rating 1513 and i'm on stair 4!!!

redsales: what's the books premise?

One of the most entertaining books I've ever read on chess was "Karl Marx Plays Chess" by GM Andy Soltis. It probably won't make you a better player, but will you appreciate the game more.

votacommunista: Shirov has also used it . . . however, I think most Nimzo enthusiasts haven't studied the f3 line (instead voting for the Nf3 stuff) and so you may catch even a seasoned Nimzo-indian player off guard with f3.

ColonelCrockett: not really. check it at http://www.chesslive.de/ - this opening has been used by bogoljubow in 1931!

http://synonym.dk/mall/shop.asp?shop_id=5978&vare_id=220737

you can buy it in the us too.

ZOOM is a book written Stefen Zeuthen along with Bent Larsen. In it is a proposed a system of play based on the Greunfeld Indian formation. (Catalan as White --as Black the Greunfeld and Center Counter with ...g6.)

The main point was the with pattern recognition, where you can lessen the need to learn openings. Also the pattern recognition is helpful in middlegame structures and endgames. So instead of learning one opening and two defenses (against 1 e4 and 1 d4), you learn just one pawn formation.

Another classical ZOOM pattern is the King's Indian Attack as White, and King's Indian Defense with the Pirc Defense.

I think the book title is odd but chess friends who own it say it's very good.

it was only there because f3 has novelty value. :)

ColonelCrockett: why 4.f3 with a ?! In my opinion this is a very well variation against nimzo. i have used it sometimes

I have read a little bit about this interesting opening line . . .
1.d4 Nf6
2.c4 e6
3.Nc3 Bb4
4.f3?!

I was wondering what others thought of it.

votacommunista: Kaidanov had a copy in Russian . . . it was very worn . . . he must have read it alot.

ColonelCrockett: I know this book in German ... very well book! highly recommended!

mctrivia: GM Gregory Kaidanov recommeded to me . . . "Think Like A Grandmaster" by Alexander Kotov . . . the book is an excellent work!