Learn to play Chess with Warren Elliott

(This is the third part in a weekly series on chess strategies and tips, leading up to the Jamaica Observer Open Chess Tournament to be held April 20 and 21 at Immaculate High School.)

IT is fun to play chess! "Say what! Are you talking about that long and boring game played by the super nerds of the day, the one that will put the most excitable character to sleep in a minute, yes, the same one that requires 10 years to learn the rules?" Although chess is the most popular board game in the world, still many people shy away from the game because of these myths.

New learner, Adrian Bennett of Hope Valley Experimental School, about to make a move.

To be fair to persons expressing such concerns, I can remember being unimpressed when I had my initial encounter with chess. It was later, with the prompting of my physics teacher, Mr Lawson, that I recognised that people's initial response to chess is similar to our initial response to people and things in general.
Our first impressions are usually formed on the basis of inadequate information. So many best friends will tell you that they did not like each
other at first. Take half-an-hour to learn chess and with a little practice I promise you that playing the game will be a most stimulating and enjoyable experience.

Chess games do not have to last a long time. The fact is that the most popular form of the game is Blitz Chess.

Equitable Brown, last year's national Junior Chess Champion in mild concentration.

In Blitz Chess each player has only five minutes to make all the moves for a game. This, of course, means very quick thinking and execution of a plan. Here is where the excitement and challenge come. Modern digital chess clocks time the games accurately. In nearly every major city around the world you will see persons of all ages playing Blitz Chess in the public parks, sometimes all day and night.

In Blitz Chess the race is against time, the tactical possibilities, the subtleties, the manoeuvrings and outmanoeuvring, the sacrifice, the CHECKMATE!! Adrenaline levels will be high, your heart will race, and the winner will have a mental and emotional crescendo. This is the fun and excitement of chess!!

Geoffrey Byfield (centre) oversees a game in progress.

Intellectual Development

Many researches have demonstrated that when persons, particularly children play chess they become significantly smarter. Noticeable results have been obtained with as little as 20 hours of exposure. In one study children exposed for one year performed 20 per cent better in mathematics than a control group. As a result, over 30 countries around the world include chess in their school's curriculum. This includes Trinidad, Barbados, United States and Russia.

Bankers Trusts, New York claims that chess masters learn to trade money much faster than MBA graduates do. It seems to me that the thought processes required to play chess makes chess a mental gym. What happens is that the capacity of one's mind is enhanced in a similar way to the effect of exercises on one's physical body.

Chess will stretch your mind in a way that very few activities will be able to match.

Generally, strong chess players must develop an intellectual capacity that is better than most computer programmes in solving problems that require a combination of long-term planning, short -term planning, creativity, originality and logic. It is difficult to quantify the intellectual ability of the World Chess Champion, Gary Kasparov. He is, in reality, a most efficient intellectual machine, and it is unlikely that anyone will be a better chess player in the near future. In simple terms, the top chess players are geniuses with IQ's in excess of 160 with no difficulty in understanding or learning whatever they want. However, it is important to emphasise that although brilliant people will play better chess, playing chess will significantly improve your intellect regardless of its present state.

Professional play

The top players in the world (Grandmasters) earn a living from playing the game. This is done in three ways: playing in tournaments, writing chess books and teaching the game.

Professional chess is serious business. The world chess champion won more than a million pounds in the world championships and he was offered about US$1million dollars to beat a computer developed by IBM.

It is very difficult to be a chess Grandmaster. It is said that the amount of studying required is comparable to that required for two doctorate degrees. There is only one black grandmaster in the entire world and he is Maurice Ashley, a Jamaican! He now resides in New York. There are about 600 Grandmasters in the entire world. Being a Grandmaster requires several years of study, physical fitness and good emotional stability. The youngest Grandmaster is 14 years old. (I have no idea what this child is made of.)

Many countries' chess programme is more developed than their football programme! Chess is the national sport in Russia and people go to stadium to watch chess. The Russian Chess federation has more than five million registered players. Living in Jamaica does not make it easy to appreciate professional chess without the above information. That I hope will change soon.

Professional players are usually International Masters or Grandmasters. Let me explain.

When you just learn the game, a mathematical system based on probability theory gives you a rating of 1000. You are a beginner. After moving up several stages, you advance to a rating of 2000, and you become an expert. At a rating of 2200 you achieve the title of a national master. Nineteen people in Jamaican history have received The National Master title. Advancement is then on the international stage. When The World Chess Federation (Fide) recognises you as a master then you are given the title (Fide Master). Only two resident Jamaicans have achieved this title. You continue your quest for further international recognition. At an international rating of about 2400 you are given the title of International Master. This is usually the beginning of professional chess playing. Tremendous dedication for two to three years from this point could result in your grandmaster title at a rating of over 2500. Super Grandmasters (top five in the world have achieve rating of over 2800. Advancement in rating is achieved by defeating other players or drawing with higher rated players.

Whether you want to play chess for fun, intellectual development or professionally you will find it to be a most interesting and stimulating game.

Geoffrey Byfield is the President of The Liguanea Chess Club. He is a National Chess Master and is two-times winner of The Jamaica Open Chess Championships. He has represented Jamaica in several overseas chess tournaments. He may be contacted at www.chesswave.com, liguaneachess@hotmail.com or 9773821/9704429

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