How to Begin Mastering Chess

Chess is a highly competitive game played by millions of people around the world. The basics can be mastered in a matter of 10 minutes. Advanced strategic concepts can take years to come to terms with and lifetimes to master.

Steps   

  1. Learn the rules - This might seem obvious but many people with start playing the game before they fully understand all the rules. Be sure to come to terms with "en passant", "castling" and "checkmating".
  2. Study basic checkmates - Don’t stop until checkmating positions have become second nature. Start by studying easy mating combinations like king vs. king + queen or king vs. king + rook. Then move on to more difficult combinations like king vs. king + pawn. Eventually work your way up to what I consider the most difficult combination king vs. king + knight + bishop.
  3. Study basic combinations and tactics - Start by learning forks, skewers, discovered attacked and double attacks. Then learn how to set up these combinations by finding vulnerable pieces to attack or by taking away the defender.
  4. Learn the basic opening concepts/rules - One hesitates on calling these concepts rules because there will always be times when its best or more desirable for you to break the rules. For example you might learn to try not to double your pawns. In reality you can build very strong positions with doubled pawns. You can use doubled pawns to gain control of the center of the board or open files for your rooks or other pieces. The only time some players go out of their way not to double pawns is when this creates double isolated pawns. Pay close attention to development, time, central control, space, pawn structure and king safety.
  5. Study endgames - Endgames enable you to understand how the pieces work individually. They also improve your calculating abilities, as many times endgames can be won out of pure calculating power. Finally, everything you pick up by studying endgames can be applied to middle-games and even openings; you could, for instance, judge if a certain exchange is good for you by analyzing what kind of endgame could arise from that position.
  6. Practice - Play at least 100 games. Be sure to apply what you have learned. As much as possible go back over your games to study your mistakes and missed opportunities. If possible, store an archive of your games in ".pgn" format with attached notes. Tournament games are especially good because you are likely to face skilled opponents who are willing to analyse the game together with you in the "post-mortem".


Tips   

  • Don't waste too much time on openings when you're a beginner. Tactics and combinations are far more important at the beginner level.
    • Learn from your opponents - If you are playing a stronger opponent and something looks odd pay close attention and study the position after the game.
  • Play different openings - Its good to develop your own opening strategies but for learning purposes it is better to rotate between openings.
  • Study classic games - Many grandmasters and masters over the past couple hundred years have pumped decades of their lives into researching the game. You can learn a few things from their games. If possible go over the raw ".pgn" files with a ".pgn" reader making your own notes. Then compare that with what others have written.