Hard to win a chess game, easy to lose

When was the last time you beat a player who didn't make any fairly serious mistakes?

When was the last time someone beat you and you didn't make any fairly serious mistakes?

I've come to the conclusion that "strategy" makes little difference in chess. Most games are won or lost because of mistakes/blunders. What qualifies as a mistake or blunder varies according to the level of competition, but is probably still true at any level.

Run a GM game through an engine and there's almost always a tactical mistake at some point by the losing side. I'm sure there are exceptions but not very often.

Am I off base?

You're totally not off base.

Like most sports/games/etcs.. Nothing is ever "won" per se, especially at the amateur level as the skill level is not good enough. You lose or your opponent loses.

The loser is the one that makes the last mistake. That's what I heard Kasparov say once anyway. He always reviewed his games, win/lose or draw. It's all about minimizing mistakes at every stage. A key thing is to recognize when your opponent has made a mistake, whether tactical or positional, and capitalize. Even still, very few players have the technique to convert an advantage without making mistakes themselves!

There is no such thing as an "I almost won except for some blunder in the end". You just made the last mistake, and it ended up costing you.

It tends to be true - even when a side gets into a lost king and pawn endgame with level material, it could be considered a mistake to have traded off the pices and allowed that ending to occour.

I disagree. Quite often at high level you won't make a tactical mistake at all. So what you are left with is positional or "strategical "mistakes". And Thus your opponent can pressure you until the point you have to make a concession either materially or positionally. Until you eventually lose the game.

So then the game is just won by having the superior plan or idea and not by blundering a piece.

That's not to say that the most games that are played are the ones you describe. Where blunders or larger mistakes decide the games.

Part of the art of chess is to put pressure on your opponent so that it is easier for them to make mistakes.

Originally posted by Reverb
When was the last time you beat a player who didn't make any fairly serious mistakes?

When was the last time someone beat you and you didn't make any fairly serious mistakes?

I've come to the conclusion that "strategy" makes little difference in chess. Most games are won or lost because of mistakes/blunders. What qualifies as a mistake or blunder vari ...[text shortened]... y the losing side. I'm sure there are exceptions but not very often.

Am I off base?

It's supposed to be hard to win a chess game.
If it were easy, we'd all be masters!