Chess also contains large doses of _strategy_ and _positional play_. In short, the ability to find the best move in all those positions that don't contain a tactic.
And if you're not good at that yet, most opening theory will just be impossible to understand. You might be able to memorize some, but you'll be clueless when your knowledge ends, and never have any idea what kind of "+=" you're actually supposed to have.
I know, because I fall in this trap on a daily basis...
Scarblac, I always laugh when I read a chess book and there is a line, and in the end something like "+=" as you said. Most books don't explain why a position is "+=", as if it was very obvious. "C'mon, you can't see? 14. Nf4 d5 15. Qa4 Bb2 +=... so elementary...".
@Dionysus_godGM Julio Granda Zuniga does not do opening preparation.
For me that means that one can become GM without spending loads of time on openings.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julio_Grandahttp://www.chessgames.com/player/julio_ernesto_granda-zuniga.htmlhttp://articles.chicagotribune.com/1996-11-24/news/9611240392_1_grandmaster-chess-tournament-vassily-ivanchukAnd of course : Memorizing opening lines without understanding what one is doing is rather pointless.
One move out of "theory", and one could be lost already against a stronger player who does understand what's going on.
I see it time after time when I play off-beat opening lines, that my opponents play the same moves that they have learned. They "learned" one opening, but don't think for themselves and deviate.
One example of deviating in the opening :
1.e4 b6 2.d4 Bb7 3.Nc3 e6 4.a3
4.a3 is my own move, which I borrowed from the Petrosian a3 line in Queen's Indian, preventing Bb4.
One quote that I like, and remember having read before :
"The opening is used to give up middlegame positions that we are comfortable with".
Focusing on the opening only makes sense if you know how to follow up.
If you get opening advantage but don't know how to use it (Like using "The Initiative"), then you have more homework to do, then just studying opening lines :)
Typo, sorry : s/up/us
"The opening is used to give us middlegame positions that we are comfortable with".
As a 1400ish player I wondering if learning the basics of a system is a good starting point? I have been trying to play KIA as white and quite honestly am struggling.
I know the move orders, but what I don't know is follow up. However if I just play e4 e5 or d4 d5 I seem to a little bit better, but also have troubles understanding the follow up as I end up in some opening I do not understand.
As a 1400 player, it's good to play through annotated games, the kind that explains what is happening in detail, with words. Lots of such games.
And then when you see openings you like, you try to play like that in your own games.
Also, ending up in some position you don't understand -- that happens to everyone. That's where positional chess comes in, that ability to think about any type of position and figure out what each side should be trying to do. It's a hard thing to learn, but playing through annotated games helps a lot with that too.
The thing you have to train is maybe middle game playing, how to create/find a weak point to attack in the opponents position.
@gcollier24 #16
Have a look at the excellent videos from St.Louis chess club.
Especially the ones by GM Seirawan and GM Akobian are my favourites (Clear voices, good explanations, patient, fun and smiles included. Great stuff)
www.youtube.com/user/STLChessClub Thanks all!