On endgame practice.

I have heard that in developing your chess you should learn tactics , then endgames, then openings. So what's the wbest way to improve your endgame?

Originally posted by lukemcmullan
I have heard that in developing your chess you should learn tactics , then endgames, then openings. So what's the wbest way to improve your endgame?

Reading endgame books is how I do it... dont know any other way

I have read 2 endgame books. Soltis' GM Secrets: Endings was excellent (though the dialog annoys many people. I am now reading Pandlofini's asic Endgame Concepts Explained - This book does not require a board to go through with only minimal visualization necessary.

Originally posted by lukemcmullan
I have heard that in developing your chess you should learn tactics , then endgames, then openings. So what's the wbest way to improve your endgame?

Depends on who you are. Capablanca recommended starting with endings.

That's a point I might play through a few of his games. He's supposed to have played brilliant edngames.

how about setting up endgame positions and drilling them against computer? of course first checking out from an endgame book what you should be doing...

Originally posted by rbmorris
Capablanca recommended starting with endings.

😕

Originally posted by Bowmann
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The most sensible post you ever made!

Originally posted by lukemcmullan
I have heard that in developing your chess you should learn tactics , then endgames, then openings. So what's the wbest way to improve your endgame?

If you cannot quickly deliver checkmate with a queen and king against a lone king, and if you cannot with certainty convert the last pawn on the board into that queen (when theoretically possible--and you must know the difference), then tactics in the opening and middle game are the only chance you have.

I doubt there is a sequence of instruction handed down by Caissa, but you could do much worse than to begin with Pandolfini's Endgame Course, followed by Renaud and Kahn's The Art of the Checkmate, then a basic primer on tactics that covers pins, skewers, forks, decoys, etc. Then, after countless hours of study along these lines, you begin your study of the openings with the Spanish, French, Italian, and Russian openings for white, and the same plus the Slav and Semi-Slav for black.

I started with Irving Chernev's The 1000 Best Short Games of Chess, and by learning to aggressively attack the king, quickly grew stronger than my school peers. However, the success I experienced with my recklessly aggressive play cultivated some bad habits that must be broken in order to move to the next level, and I've been an average player a terribly long time.

Originally posted by Bowmann
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On the second thought, forget what Capablanca said. Listen to Bowmann.

My 2cents - I think you can use wormwood's advice (see above post) into a very effective endgame training system.
That is, get an endgame book (see recommendations above by zebano & Wulebgr) and after you go through a position set it up into a chess program and play it.
I suggest you turn off tablebase feature if your program is using it, just so you can play against "funny" moves as you will often see in practice.
Endgame databases & 'courses' can also serve you well.

But you must remember, Tactics is everywhere is chess!,
you use Tactics at all stages of the game, opening, middlegame, endgame.
'Tactics' shouldn't be looked upon as an independend component but as a fundemental aspect of the game.
Much like aerobic training for a football player - you can't be a great football player if you are out pf shape - same is for tactics in chess.

So study the endgame along with tactics for the endgame phase.

I started with Irving Chernev's The 1000 Best Short Games of Chess, and by learning to aggressively attack the king, quickly grew stronger than my school peers. However, the success I experienced with my recklessly aggressive play cultivated some bad habits that must be broken in order to move to the next level, and I've been an average player a terribly long time.[/b]

I am intrigued with your starting with Chernev's Best Short Games. I am a terribly conservative player and need to learn to be more aggressive. Are you recommending Chernev's book, or recommending AGAINST it?

Originally posted by basso
I am intrigued with your starting with Chernev's Best Short Games. I am a terribly conservative player and need to learn to be more aggressive. Are you recommending Chernev's book, or recommending AGAINST it?

Simply stating a fact. It was the first chess book that I read, and I have not read it since. That was 30 years ago.

I can recommend Chernev's The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played, as I've been reading it off and on for the past year or two.

basso, If I may comment on the book, I think Chernev's 'The 1000 Best Short Games of Chess' - is better reffered to as: 'How NOT to play the opening' (to name another classic title).
The games there are mostly opening traps (many are less than 10 moves) or games where the losing side mishandled the opening or broke some fundamental 'rule' of the position (such as leaving your King in the center while playing the King's Gambit Accepted & opening the 'e' file at the same time...).

most of the "longer" games (more than 20 moves, I dont think there is a game longer than 30 moves) are King hunts when the position was lost for the 'hunted' several moves ago.

These are old games (the 'latest' ones are 50 years old or more)
and relatively few games can be considered "full attacks".

Still, it's a classic and a lot of fun to read & play through the games.
🙂

Originally posted by lukemcmullan
I have heard that in developing your chess you should learn tactics , then endgames, then openings. So what's the wbest way to improve your endgame?

I really liked "Chess Endgame Lessons" by Pal Benko. It is out of print, and has been for some time, but you can still find a copy occasionally on places like eBay.