Exploring Chess Openings

Every chess season, I try to improve my knowledge of opening theory by trying out a few new openings. Opening theory is just one aspect of chess, and frankly, some might consider it the least important, compared to the Middle Game and End Game. The idea is, when playing with players of similar strength, the game is usually decided in the End Game (and sometimes the Middle Game). But my problem is that against tougher opponents, I usually find myself at a disadvantage out of the opening, and end up with an inferior end game. Some preparation in opening theory simply should not be dismissed.

Preparing for 2013/2014

Now that the 2012/2013 Kingston Chess Club season is over, I have approximately 4 months to prepare for the start of the next season in September. As part of that preparation, I’ve compiled my games against the 5 top players at the chess club for 2012/2013 (well four actually, since it excludes me):

Opponent	CXR Rating	All-time Club Record	2012/2013 Club Record
Peter Sibbald	2055	2 wins, 2 losses, 1 draw	1 win and 1 loss
Jay Serdula	1802	1 win, 2 losses, 1 draw	1 win and 1 loss
Dave Gordon	1713	8 wins	5 wins
Sid Anjilvel	1708	3 wins and 2 losses	1 loss

End of the 2012/2013 Chess Season

The 2012/2013 Kingston Chess Club season is over 😦

We had the end-of-year party last Monday, but my video camera broke, so I wasn’t able to take any videos. I did take some pictures of my trophies after getting home though, here they are on my mantel (the keeper trophies):

Full results are on the Kingston Chess Club website. I’ll be looking forward to next season, since we’ve also solidified the list of events for next year as well. And 2 of the 4 tournaments will be divided into sections, meaning I’ll be able to play with tougher players.