So I took all of your advice and then read some books. I finally got
my courage back and went to my local chess club to play in another
tournament. But I got clobbered again. They even let me play white
three times for some reason. I did my homework and looked up the
openings; now I know the variations that my opponents played. What am
I doing wrong in my games?? Why can't I beat any of these players at
my local chess club? It is really frustrating...You gotta help me,
please!!!


Round 1:
White: Me 1210
Black: 2187

[Opening "Sicilian: accelerated fianchetto, modern variation"]
[ECO "B34"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 g6 5. Nc3 Bg7 6. Be3 Nf6 7. f3
O-O 8.
Bc4 Qa5 9. O-O Ne5 10. Nb3 Qc7 11. Be2 d6 12. Qd2 Nc4 13. Qc1 Nxe3 14.
Qxe3
Be6 15. Rad1 Rac8 16. Rd3 a6 17. Rfd1 b5 18. Nd5 Nxd5 19. exd5 Bf5 20.
Rc3
Bxc3 21. bxc3 Qxc3 22. Qxe7 Bxc2 23. Qxd6 Bxd1 24. Bxd1 Qe1#


Round 2:
White: 1923
Black: Me 1210

[Opening "Catalan opening"]
[ECO "E00"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ 5. Qxd2 Ne4 6. Qc2 f5 7.
Bg2 d5
8. Nf3 O-O 9. O-O b6 10. Ne5 Bb7 11. f3 Nf6 12. Nd2 Nbd7 13. Nd3 c6
14. c5
Ba6 15. b4 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 Qe7 17. Rac1 a5 18. cxb6 Nxb6 19. Rxc6 Qxb4
20. Rb1
Qe7 21. Rbxb6 e5 22. Re6 Qc7 23. dxe5 Nd7 24. Rbc6 Qb8 25. f4 Qb2 26.
Bxd5
Kh8 27. Bb3 Rac8 28. Qxd7 Rxc6 29. Rxc6 I resigned.

Round 3:
White: Me 1210
Black: 1850

[Opening "Sicilian defense"]
[ECO "B32"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. c3 d3 5. Bxd3 g6 6. O-O Bg7 7. Re1
d6 8.
Be3 Nf6 9. h3 O-O 10. Qd2 Re8 11. Bh6 Bh8 12. Na3 Be6 13. Nc4 b5 14.
Ne3 a6
15. a3 Rc8 16. Rad1 Na5 17. Nd4 Bd7 18. b4 Nc6 19. Nxc6 Bxc6 20. f3
Nd7 21.
Ng4 Bb7 22. Be3 Bxc3 23. Nh6+ Kf8 24. Qf2 Bxe1 25. Rxe1 Ne5 26. Bf1
Qc7 27.
Rc1 Nc4 28. Bxc4 bxc4 29. Rc3 e6 30. Qh4 Qd8 31. Qf4 Qe7 32. Ng4 f5
33. exf5
exf5 34. Qh6+ Qg7 35. Nf6 Re7 36. Nxh7+ Kf7 37. Ng5+ Kg8 38. Qh4 Qxc3
I resigned.

Round 4:
White: Me 1210
Black: 1765

[Opening "Caro-Kann: Steinitz variation"]
[ECO "B17"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nd7 5. Nf3 Ngf6 6. Bd3 Nxe4 7.
Bxe4
Nf6 8. Qe2 Nxe4 9. Qxe4 e6 10. O-O Bd6 11. Bg5 Qc7 12. h3 h6 13. Bd2
b6 14.
Bc3 Bb7 15. Qg4 O-O-O 16. Qxg7 Rdg8 17. Qf6 c5 18. Rad1 Rg6 19. Qh4
Bxf3 20.
dxc5 Rxg2+ 21. Kh1 Rh2+ 22. Kg1 Rg2+ 23. Kh1 Rg4#
Ouch!!

Alex wrote:
So I took all of your advice and then read some books. I finally got
my courage back and went to my local chess club to play in another
tournament. But I got clobbered again. They even let me play white
three times for some reason. I did my homework and looked up the
openings; now I know the variations that my opponents played. What am
I doing wrong in my games?? Why can't I beat any of these players at
my local chess club? It is really frustrating...You gotta help me,
please!!!


Round 1:
White: Me 1210
Black: 2187

[Opening "Sicilian: accelerated fianchetto, modern variation"]
[ECO "B34"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 g6 5. Nc3 Bg7 6. Be3 Nf6 7. f3
O-O 8.
Bc4 Qa5 9. O-O Ne5 10. Nb3 Qc7 11. Be2 d6 12. Qd2 Nc4 13. Qc1 Nxe3 14.
Qxe3
Be6 15. Rad1 Rac8 16. Rd3 a6 17. Rfd1 b5 18. Nd5 Nxd5 19. exd5 Bf5 20.
Rc3
Bxc3 21. bxc3 Qxc3 22. Qxe7 Bxc2 23. Qxd6 Bxd1 24. Bxd1 Qe1#


Round 2:
White: 1923
Black: Me 1210

[Opening "Catalan opening"]
[ECO "E00"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ 5. Qxd2 Ne4 6. Qc2 f5 7.
Bg2 d5
8. Nf3 O-O 9. O-O b6 10. Ne5 Bb7 11. f3 Nf6 12. Nd2 Nbd7 13. Nd3 c6
14. c5
Ba6 15. b4 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 Qe7 17. Rac1 a5 18. cxb6 Nxb6 19. Rxc6 Qxb4
20. Rb1
Qe7 21. Rbxb6 e5 22. Re6 Qc7 23. dxe5 Nd7 24. Rbc6 Qb8 25. f4 Qb2 26.
Bxd5
Kh8 27. Bb3 Rac8 28. Qxd7 Rxc6 29. Rxc6 I resigned.

Round 3:
White: Me 1210
Black: 1850

[Opening "Sicilian defense"]
[ECO "B32"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. c3 d3 5. Bxd3 g6 6. O-O Bg7 7. Re1
d6 8.
Be3 Nf6 9. h3 O-O 10. Qd2 Re8 11. Bh6 Bh8 12. Na3 Be6 13. Nc4 b5 14.
Ne3 a6
15. a3 Rc8 16. Rad1 Na5 17. Nd4 Bd7 18. b4 Nc6 19. Nxc6 Bxc6 20. f3
Nd7 21.
Ng4 Bb7 22. Be3 Bxc3 23. Nh6+ Kf8 24. Qf2 Bxe1 25. Rxe1 Ne5 26. Bf1
Qc7 27.
Rc1 Nc4 28. Bxc4 bxc4 29. Rc3 e6 30. Qh4 Qd8 31. Qf4 Qe7 32. Ng4 f5
33. exf5
exf5 34. Qh6+ Qg7 35. Nf6 Re7 36. Nxh7+ Kf7 37. Ng5+ Kg8 38. Qh4 Qxc3
I resigned.

Round 4:
White: Me 1210
Black: 1765

[Opening "Caro-Kann: Steinitz variation"]
[ECO "B17"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nd7 5. Nf3 Ngf6 6. Bd3 Nxe4 7.
Bxe4
Nf6 8. Qe2 Nxe4 9. Qxe4 e6 10. O-O Bd6 11. Bg5 Qc7 12. h3 h6 13. Bd2
b6 14.
Bc3 Bb7 15. Qg4 O-O-O 16. Qxg7 Rdg8 17. Qf6 c5 18. Rad1 Rg6 19. Qh4
Bxf3 20.
dxc5 Rxg2+ 21. Kh1 Rh2+ 22. Kg1 Rg2+ 23. Kh1 Rg4#
Ouch!!


Uhm, you were supposed to lose all those games. You were severly
outrated in every one of them. I did not look at the games at all. You
shouldn't expect to win against such high rated opponents when you are
rated barely 1200. Maybe someone else will take the time to annotate
your games...--Bill Wong

..
You certainly picked some tough opponents to try and make a comeback against,
Agent 1210.


What am I doing wrong in my games?? Why can't I
beat any of these players at my local chess club? It is
really frustrating...You gotta help me, please!!!

Round 1:
White: Me 1210
Black: 2187

[Opening "Sicilian: accelerated fianchetto, modern variation"]
[ECO "B34"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 g6 5. Nc3 Bg7 6. Be3 Nf6 7. f3
O-O 8. Bc4 Qa5 9. O-O Ne5 10. Nb3


When an opponent misplaces a piece, don't help him out by chasing it, perhaps
to a better square.

....Qc7 11. Be2 d6 12. Qd2


Good grief, 1210! You allow your Queen and Bishop to be forked
*on-the-move,* by a lowly Knight?


....Nc4 13. Qc1 Nxe3

Duh! And that was your betetr Bishop, you just traded!

(snip to next episode)




Round 4:
White: Me 1210
Black: 1765

[Opening "Caro-Kann: Steinitz variation"]
[ECO "B17"]

1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Nd7 5. Nf3 Ngf6
6. Bd3 Nxe4 7. Bxe4 Nf6 8. Qe2


Look, Agent 1210, you can't just go around letting CHAOS capture your Bishops
like this, in exchange for Knights. Get Smart: in general, the Rook is better
than a Bishop, and in general, the Bishop is (slightly) better than the Knight
-- especially in the open games.


....Nxe4 9. Qxe4


You wrote that you did your homework, yet in most of these games it was you
who went awry in the early opening phase, getting less than nothing as White.
Granted, you were outrated bigtime, in every game.

You might want to consider taking up something simpler as White, with less
theory to learn. In any case, don't expect miracles against such strong
opposition. In your position, you should expect to lose routinely to all but
the 1700 player, who is just out-of-range for you to occasionally "nip" for a
draw. Playing opponents 500--1000 points higher-rated can be quite
frustrating. A few of them (having no "life" outside of chess) actually enjoy
watching you squirm.


-- Robert D. James

In rec.games.chess.analysis Alex wrote:
So I took all of your advice and then read some books. I finally got
my courage back and went to my local chess club to play in another
tournament. But I got clobbered again. They even let me play white
three times for some reason. I did my homework and looked up the
openings; now I know the variations that my opponents played. What am
I doing wrong in my games?? Why can't I beat any of these players at
my local chess club? It is really frustrating...You gotta help me,
please!!!

Maybe you should consider another hobby, not chess?
Especially when you x-post to three groups, at least one of which
is absolutely irrelevant.
--
Roman M. Parparov - NASA EOSDIS project node at TAU technical manager.
Email: http://www.nasa.proj.ac.il/
Phone/Fax: +972-(0)3-6405205 (work), +972-(0)51-34-18-34 (home)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The economy depends about as much on economists as the weather does on
weather forecasters.
-- Jean-Paul Kauffmann

En/na Alex ha escrit:
Round 1:
White: Me 1210
Black: 2187
24. Bxd1 Qe1#

Round 2:
White: 1923
Black: Me 1210
I resigned.

Round 3:
White: Me 1210
Black: 1850
I resigned.

Round 4:
White: Me 1210
Black: 1765
23. Kh1 Rg4#

I do not understand why do you hide the name of your opponents, I do not
understand it in any case, but more in that one where your opponents won
all the games!!

AT

In article ,
(Alex) wrote:

So I took all of your advice and then read some books. I finally got
my courage back and went to my local chess club to play in another
tournament. But I got clobbered again. They even let me play white
three times for some reason. I did my homework and looked up the
openings; now I know the variations that my opponents played. What am
I doing wrong in my games?? Why can't I beat any of these players at
my local chess club? It is really frustrating...You gotta help me,
please!!!


Um, you're playing people rated 500 to 1000 points higher than you.
You're gonna lose for a while; there's no quick fix.

--Harold Buck


"I used to rock and roll all night,
and party every day.
Then it was every other day. . . ."
-Homer J. Simpson

"Alex" wrote in message
om...
So I took all of your advice and then read some books. I finally got
my courage back and went to my local chess club to play in another
tournament. But I got clobbered again. They even let me play white
three times for some reason. I did my homework and looked up the
openings; now I know the variations that my opponents played. What am
I doing wrong in my games?? Why can't I beat any of these players at
my local chess club? It is really frustrating...You gotta help me,
please!!!

OK, I'll bite (again). Did you opponents offer any advice after the games?
If not, next time ask them if they wouldn't mind going over the games to see
where you went wrong. Post-mortems, especially with people so much higher
rated, are hard to beat.

Matt

Hello Alex:

I have read the replies to your note.

They say that you lose because they are higher rated than you, and they
may be right
They say that you hide your opponents name, and they may be right
They say that it has nothing to do with the game analysis, and they may
be right

but nobody say you have to study concepts, middle game, development of
your pieces, tactics, take care of double threats, pins and general
ideas on the game

I would recommend to begin by reading Nimzowitch "My System"

I know... they may say that this is a very old book, not updated, and
they may be right!!!

best regards
Luis

"Bill Wong" wrote:
Uhm, you were supposed to lose all those games. You were severly
outrated in every one of them. I did not look at the games at all. You
shouldn't expect to win against such high rated opponents when you are
rated barely 1200. ....

That kind of answer is not helpful, and confuses the cause with the effect.

A player is rated 1200 because he is a (comparatively) weak player, not the
other way around. Somebody actually willing to help the poster out, by
analyzing the games, might help him to become a stronger player. After
that, his rating will follow suit.

Bill Smythe

So I took all of your advice and then read some books. I finally got
my courage back and went to my local chess club to play in another
tournament. But I got clobbered again. They even let me play white
three times for some reason. I did my homework and looked up the
openings; now I know the variations that my opponents played. What am
I doing wrong in my games?? Why can't I beat any of these players at
my local chess club? It is really frustrating...You gotta help me,
please!!!

Alex. You took strange advice.

Advanced players do not remember openings as much as remember patterns. You
can only absorb patterns from playing chess, or by playing over other
peoples games of chess - lots of them! You do not consciously need to
remember anything.

Chess ability is otherwise very limited - you can maybe get to even 1600
level by only memorising opening theory. Beyond this you need to do
something else, and all your recent opponents were stronger than 1600 and
were not relying on rote learning.

I usually play openings that leave the book almost immediately, and then
there is real engagement even against strong players. I also don't know the
theory of what happens next, or what previous games were played in this
way - however, I do know the pattern of these positions, which is more
important. I have lost many many many games on the way to doing this, but
now I can negotiate them

So I can challenge a player's skill immediately, even at move 5, not
grandmaster theoretical openings to move 15. Keep going to your club and
playing lots of games, and also play over games at home from a book or the
internet. Maybe in a week or in a month your rating will 'jump' from 1200 to
1350 since you now have acquired some internal skills independent of
memorising openings. And then from 1350 to 1500, and one day you will beat
the 1900 player completely on your own without having had to rely on a
memory of other similar games.

Lose another 40 games! Don't analyse where you went wrong! You don't know
enough yet to know where to go right! After some time you will find
different resources in your games, and your position will stay tenable for
much longer. grin then you can find even more patterns from playing and
losing middle-games

Its the experience of acquiring patterns that it is important, and although
it is difficult to measure in the short term, you are learning to play
better chess all the time. People who learn mainly by rote from books can
always lose what they have rememebred. What you have learned by playing can
never be lost.

Keep playing and good luck! Phil Innes