The Process of Decision Making in Chess: Volume 2

218 Pages·2015·9.02 MB·English

by  Philip Ochman

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from
the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.
Copyright © 2014 by Philip Ochman.
First Edition, 2014
ISBN: 9781483538822
In the memory of my grandfather Shulem Keilis (1924-2001), forever a
soldier and a true fighter for what is right, my first ever “chess student”,
for teaching me that a teacher has a lot to learn from every one of his
students.
Contents
Foreword
Acknowledgements and contact info
Process application chart
Introducing the practical application – a motivational example
From the full process to shorter ones
Observation
Tactical observation
The nature of a position
The “Critical Squares” method
Classification of tactical opportunities
Threats analysis
Our tactical resources
The initiative
Positional observation
Survey of the positional criteria
Survey of the pawn structure
Types of structure
Pawn structure weaknesses
Endgame planning
Square weaknesses
Main illustration examples – observation stage:
Beginner: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Intermediate: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Advanced: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Expert: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Identification of goals
Defensive goals
Offensive goals
Main illustration examples – goals stage:
Beginner: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Intermediate: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Advanced: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Expert: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Plans
Meeting the goals
Setting the priorities
The concrete solution
The final design
Move order
“Plan B”
Safety check
Main illustration examples – plans stage:
Beginner: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Intermediate: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Advanced: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Expert: Opening | Middlegame | Endgame
Congratulations!
Appendix 1 – Learning work-pages
Appendix 2 – Application work-pages
Appendix 3 – Meet the players
Appendix 4 – FEN’s of the main diagrams
My dearest student,
This book was written especially for you, the improving chess player, to learn how to successfully
apply the theory of decision making in chess.
Together, we will study new ideas of how to approach a position, how to understand what we are
playing for, and how to identify and achieve all of the goals arising from our observation.
We will reinforce concepts learned from the first volume of the series, concentrating on their
practical application. The practical thinking process described in this book will have the following
structure:
Having already built your theoretical understanding of the chess concepts, we will now take them one
step further and learn how this new knowledge, combined with additional ideas, can help us find the
best plans, not only the best moves, in every position.
For students who are new to the process of decision making in chess, this book will offer new
insights and a full scale revolution to the whole thinking process in chess, making it much more
effective and efficient.
Having read this book, your ability to make decisions -- even in the toughest of chess positions -- will
rise to new heights, and finding your way in a maze of strategies and tactics will become your second
intuitive nature.
Philip Ochman, Sep 2014
Acknowledgement
I would like to use this opportunity to thank my dear friend and student Mr. Michael Shpizner for his
great help and contribution in making this book readable. This book wouldn’t exist without your help.
A huge thank you goes to the readers of Volume 1 – your emails and feedback made my day each time,
and I’m very happy to stay in touch with you! You make me feel like a useful person.
To my students- thank you for helping me shape this teaching method by your comments and feedback
in our lessons. You are the reason I originally decided to put what worked in the lessons into writing,
and you deserve all the credit for making it possible!
Contact information
You are always welcome to contact me by email: [email protected] or
[email protected] , by message on my website (StrongerChess.com), or via Skype (find me:
philip.ochman).