Is it possible to get better at chess through practice?

Question

Is it possible to get better at chess through practice?

Answer 1

Yes, you will improve tremendously with practice.  In fact, it is the only way to improve.  Play real live games, on line games, computer games.  Have a board set up at home and play both colors.  Buy computer books and browse tutorial sites.  Do the chess problem in your local newspaper.  Read as much as you can about chess.  Most importantly, try to find players better than yourself to play against.  You will not win as many games but you will learn a great deal.  Best of luck with it.

Answer 2

Of Course, Perfect Pracice makes Perfect

Answer 3

Practice makes perfect,

I used to play it a lot a few years ago and I was really good at it. But now,,,,, I can't win that easy anymore.

Answer 4

Its the ONLY way to get better at chess! People arnt born to naturaly know how to play chess! : )

Answer 5

yes

Answer 6

well,

duh.

practice

makes

perfect.

Answer 7

there may be an equation or calculation you can do so your every move is perfect and corresponds to your opponents

Answer 8

Well obviously u'll get better, espicially if u play with someone who' higher rank than u cause u'll get more of their expirience and if u analyze a game u play u could improve more and don't forget to read chess books (These r something that seperates chess and "go", CHESS IS MUCH BETTER THAN GO IT HAS MORE VARIATIONS AND IT'S MORE FUN)

Answer 9

Yes.  Practice will condition your mind to spot opportunities and pitfalls in the game.

For some free chess tutoring, download the demo of Chess Mentor at

http://www.chessmentor.com/demo.html.......

The demo is a very generous sampling of what Chess Mentor has to offer.  Even if you don't buy the software, the free demo is well worth having and will train you with about 100 drills.  I loved it so much I sprung for the Deluxe package.  If you love chess like I do I highly recommend this excellent training software.

Also, here are a few tips from my bag-o-tricks (from books I've read) and then I have some great resource recommendations for you:

In the opening, avoid moving the same piece twice.

This will help you get your pieces activated quicker. Clear out the area between your king and rook as soon as possible so you can castle early.

Move pawn to e4 on your first move.

Then focus on controlling the center of the board.

Always capture towards the center whenever possible.

Avoid placing knights and bishops on the edge of the board.

Use pawns to support bigger pieces, never have bigger pieces support other big pieces or pawns. This will keep stronger pieces available for attacks.

Always ask yourself, "If I were my opponent, what would be my next best move?" Then find a way to either prevent that move or plan a counter move that will make your opponent sorry for making his.

If you are even in material or slightly ahead, don't be afraid to trade off pieces evenly including queens. This will clear the board of clutter and make your lead more obvious. It will also make for a quicker game.

*Remember that a lone bishop can only capture on 50% of the board. (White squares only, or black only depending on the bishop). But a lone knight can capture on 100% of the board. (Both colored squares as he alternates on each move.) This may be important if you have to decide which one to sacrifice or trade off near the end game.

*Pawns are insignificant at first, but they become mightier as they move forward towards the eighth rank and become queens! Don't underestimate them!

Seek out a target and hit it! Whenever your opponent leaves a piece unprotected, make that your target!

Most pieces work better as a team closer together than they do apart.

Don't just watch for opportunities for forks, pins and skewers. Look for ways to create them! Entice your opponent into those situations with small sacrifices.

RESOURCES:

Bruce Pandolfini's book, Beginning Chess is the best book by far that I've seen which will train your eye to see golden opportunities that are regularly overlooked. It's a fun way to learn because it gives you chess drills and scores your perfomance. That way, you can always go through the book again and try to beat your previous best score!

Also, Susan Polgar's book, Chess Tactics For Champions ($17 at Barnes & Noble) is a great way to learn how to create forks, pins and skewers. My game improved greatly after reading just the first 10 pages! A very exciting book! After spending a little time with it you can't wait to play a game and try out what she shows you! A really great book!!You would probably enjoy her website, too: Polgarchess.com.

For $10 at Staples you can get the PC software called Majestic Chess. I highly recommend it for this reason...It has a very unique "story mode" which is the most entertaining way to develop your chess skills that I've ever seen! In the story mode, you are riding a horse to progressive locations. At the first location, you are taught chess basics (you may skip any location at any time if you feel already know that particular lesson.) Then, after it teaches you, you are challenged to a drill (a test on what you've learned.) If you pass the test you are given a chess piece to play with in the next challenge. You are given additional pieces as you pass the tests along the journey and you will need them to win the challenges that lie ahead. So, you are being trained piece by piece until you have built an entire chess set to play with. The challenges are excellent and really make you think. The training really does develop your ability to recognize opportunities and pitfalls that you wouldn't have seen before playing this excellent chess game. And a word should be said about the magnificent environments in which you play your games. Very soothing and pleasing visuals and music make this game a joy to play. And of course, you can just play a regular chess game against the computer at any time as well...so you have the nice story mode, or you have the computer opponent ready to play a regular game at any time. So it is a well rounded chess tool.

Good luck! I hope this helped!

Castle early!

Answer 10

Yes - you get better at ANYTHING through practice and attention to detail, and chess is a prime example of that. I thought I was a good chess player until I ran into someone who really was, who referred me to chess reference books, which I read, since I didn't like losing,and I learned a lot (and started beating him)

Answer 11

yeah it is because practice makes perfect!!:)

Answer 12

Playing chess is a great way to have fun and meet new friends; you may even get better at it over time.  Yet, for those who are interested in learning to play better, reading  chess books is the way to go.  

There has been so much theory developed over the years.  The beginner level can take only a short time to learn and usually is enough to help you beat any of your friends and family; It can feel like cheating.  However, the rate of chess progress slows as you get better and the game can take years (and a lot of hard work) to master.  Ambitious players will spend hours a day reading over useful texts, while some will seek out the aid of a coach.

To get better at chess you should combine practice with study.  Try looking in your public or school library for books on chess; there will be heaps.

Answer 13

PRACTICE MAKES MAN PERFECT

Yes it is possible to get better at chess through parctice.

it always helps  ^_^

Answer 14

shooot yes. PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE