Who else here likes to play chess, what type of openings do you like to use?

Question

I have a rating of about a 1900 and I am looking for new openings to play!

Have you ever played in any tournaments? What is your current rating? What type of opening do you like to play the most and what are the moves, could you type them in?

Answer 1

Well I have had this same problem. You get further in your chess abilities and then you want to go with more unique chess openings.

         Not to sound bland or anything but you will notice that most chess masters out there open the same basic way that has been taught (by the king or queen pawn) however some openings were developed to trick the opponent and if the opponent isnt a chess master then they may work.

         There is a website that has an index of many openings

          www.observer.homestead.com/openings.html  

          chessopeningsdatabase.net        register for free

         You could check for a local chess master/ teacher too.

         Also did you know that internet ratings may not be that accurate? You could either be better or worse than msn chess says.

Answer 2

I have a correspondence chess rating of 2150, and it is increasing.  The only tournaments I have played are quick chess ones with 10 minute limits.  So I can play fast or slow.

When playing quick chess, I will play just about anything (it really does not matter, as long as it is a familiar line).  

When playing a slow game, I prefer the Bremen System of the English--starting with c4 as white and eventually playing the fiancetto.  I play English because I'm looking for favorable transpositions into other openings, including Queen's Gambit.  English can transpose into a lot of different openings, and few people can handle them all.  

When I play black and need a win, I will usually play the Najdorf of the Sicilian.  Many people are intimidated by the Sicilian.

Again, I will look for favorable transpositions.  I stay away from the Dragon, unless somebody allows a favorable transposition into it.  I won't force things.

When all I need is a draw as black, I usually play the poison pawn variation of the French.  It throws a lot of people off their game, and I can often win using it.  Often, the key to success with any French variation for black is knowing when to push and when not to. If white uses the exchange variation of the French, then I can usually only force a draw against a qualified opponent.  Pushing too much in the exchange variation of the French is a "no no"; you will lose playing black against somebody who is strong.

The key to success with the poison pawn variation proper is creativity.  That's why I like the variation so much. Just when it looks like you have a losing position, you can sometimes find a winning line.  Unbalanced middle or even endgames from these lines can often be wins for black.  White plays a line that he thinks is winning, then all of a sudden "Oops! How did I lose that one?"

If white plays d4, transposition into the French is still possible.  If not, then a favorable English is still possible.  If all else fails, I can still be successfully with the King's Indian Defense.  But it is hard to win with some variations of it against somebody who knows what they are doing.  So sometimes the Slav or Semi-Slav is best.  If I am adventurous, then I might simply defend as black in the Queen's Gambit proper.  But I can get bored with it, when white decides to force a Nimzo Indian--which happens a lot because I often play Nf6 and e6 as black.

Caution is the key to playing slow.  Risk usually works for fast games.

Answer 3

Hi,

     You may like to visit my chess web page - link below.  I hope this is helpful for you.

Yours,

Chesmayne.

Answer 4

I don't play in a lot of rated tournaments, but I would say I'm about a 1600-1700 rated player when playing in a slow tournament (g/60 or more). I prefer the king's gambit as white because it lets me develop quickly, and I enjoy opening up the f-file. The King's Gambit is the best method for opening up the f-file and attacking with the rook. As black I use the slav against the Queen's gambit and have tried the pirc against e4. When playing against the ruy lopez I prefer the archangelsk variation and like the two knights in response to the giuoco piano. I don't have a whole lot of experience against the english.

Answer 5

When I quit I was a class C, although I porpoised over 1600.

I played the Scotch Gambit if ever given the opportunity.  I played the Alekhine.

I played the Dutch, but I can't recommend it unless you like bad bishops.:)

For a shock and awe opening in blitz I liked the Polish.  (AKA the Oragutan.)