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10 Tips to Become a Chess Champ

chess player looking at board

If you want to be a chess champ, it’ll take lots of learning and lots of practicing. Here are 10 tips to get you started:

LEARN THE CHESS MOVES

Each chess piece can move only a certain way. For instance, a pawn moves straight ahead but can only attack on an angle, one square at a time. A knight’s move is L-shaped. The bishop moves at an angle but can move more than one square at a time. The rook (castle) can move only in a straight line but can go forward, back or to the side. The queen, the most powerful piece, can move in any direction for any number of squares, but not two directions in one move. And the king moves at a stately pace — as a king should — one square at a time in any direction on the chess board.

OPEN WITH A PAWN

Move the pawn in front of either the king or queen two squares forward. (Only on its opening move can a pawn move two squares.) This opens pathways for your bishops and queen to enter the game. They move on an angle and can’t get out onto the field of battle if pawns are in the way.

GET THE KNIGHTS AND BISHOPS OUT

Before you move your queen, rooks or king, move your knights and bishops toward the center of the chess board. You want to get these pieces out from behind the pawns so they can attack.

WATCH YOUR BACK!

And front! When it’s your turn, always think to yourself, “What did my opponent’s last move do? What is he up to?” Is he laying traps to capture your pieces? Then decide on your own plan. Always look at all your possibilities. Look at moves that would capture your opponent’s men or threaten his king first. But always double-check your moves before you play them. Ask yourself, “Does my move leave something unprotected?”

DON’T WASTE TIME

Don’t make too many moves with your pawns or try to pick off your opponent’s pawns.

“CASTLE” EARLY

Castling is a move that allows you to move your king to safety and bring your rook into play. Once all the squares between your rook and the king are unoccupied you can move the king two squares toward the rook while the rook moves to the square on the the king’s other side. If your opponent neglects to castle, you might be able to launch an attack on his king. This is the only chess move in which more than one piece may be moved in a turn.

ATTACK IN THE “MIDDLEGAME”

After you’ve brought all your knights and bishops into the game and castled (these moves are your “opening”), the middlegame begins. In the middlegame, always be on the lookout for ways to capture your opponent’s men. Take any chess piece that your opponent doesn’t protect. But look at what will happen to your piece if you take his — will you get picked off? Always be looking for ways to move lots of your men into position to attack the enemy king.

LOSE PIECES WISELY

You’ll take some of your opponent’s pieces. Some of your pieces will be taken. You must figure out what is and isn’t a good swap in chess. Use these points to figure out whether you’re making a good move if you’re going to lose one of them:

  • Queen: 9 points
  • Rook: 5 points
  • Bishop: 3 points
  • Knight: 3 points
  • Pawn: 1 point

So is it a good idea to lose a bishop to save a pawn? No!

DON’T PLAY TOO FAST

If you see a good move, sit on your hands and look for a better one. Patient thinking is the key to chess success.

WIN THE ENDGAME

After you and your opponent swap pieces and you’re down to just a few men, the endgame begins. Now the pawns become more important. If you can advance a pawn to the farthest row away from you, that pawn becomes a queen. A big success! Let your king attack, too, as long as he stays out of reach of your opponent’s remaining pieces — especially the queen — and does not let himself to be checked.

Your king is said to be in check when your opponent threatens to use one of his pieces to capture the king on his next move. If your king is checked and you have no way to remove the threat — it can’t run away, you can’t capture the opposing piece that has him in check and you can’t block the check by moving one of your own pieces — the game is lost. Checkmate! If you checkmate your opponent before he checkmates you, then you win!

56 Comments on 10 Tips to Become a Chess Champ

  1. Nice tricks

  2. It’s working

  3. Not bad

  4. Nice tricks of chess.I got it easily

  5. Thanks the tricks did really work. I just won a chess competition in my community!!!Thanks

  6. well but couldnot win all the time

  7. well but couldnot win all the time

  8. Thanks

  9. It’s really working

  10. It’s really good

  11. The deadly chess player // June 23, 2020 at 3:57 pm // Reply

    Wonderful insights

  12. Hey Not Bad tips!

  13. sadchessplayer // June 22, 2020 at 5:22 am // Reply

    i will never be good at chess

  14. Excellent tips made me a champion

  15. Good tips I became a chess champion

  16. thanks a lot

  17. this is very good keep it up i have an gunman

  18. ok i’ll Try use them

  19. Magnus Carlsen // June 15, 2020 at 3:54 pm // Reply

    Tips did not work, I still lost πŸ™

  20. These might help me get good and ready for playing chess, thanks for the tips!

  21. :(((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((( // June 8, 2020 at 8:01 pm // Reply

    i swear im gonna get my 5 dollars back from my dad

  22. Nice and clear en so lets try these moves…..thnx

  23. I know all this moves already

  24. Thanks for the tips!!

  25. I really wanted to become a great chess champ thanks for the big chess tips. I have a chess class at my school I like it, but because of coronavirus we can’t go.

  26. Anonymous // May 31, 2020 at 8:52 am // Reply

    Thx

  27. I REALLY WANT TO BE A CHESS CHAMPION.THANKS FOR THE TIPS

  28. Anonymous // May 18, 2020 at 6:44 pm // Reply

    cool tips

  29. Anonymous // May 11, 2020 at 2:27 am // Reply

    Thx

  30. My neighbouring school invites our school for chess competition.But I have never passed in the chess selection.I hope I’ll pass next year as I didn’t pass this year!

  31. Anonymous // May 3, 2020 at 2:19 am // Reply

    thank u

  32. These are very basic tips. Also inaccurate in one very key point: your pawn does not have to become a queen if it reaches the top row. You can choose what the pawn should become. There are many examples of historic games that were won or lost because the incorrect option was chosen for the pawn, for example chosings a queen where a knight would have served better.

  33. Note leaver // April 30, 2020 at 5:08 am // Reply

    This helped a lot in a tournament

  34. Thank you very much

    for the tips

    Will definitely use them

  35. Gti Mogale // April 28, 2020 at 6:13 pm // Reply

    Brilliant tricks indeed❀

  36. It feels good to be a champ

  37. 😎😎😎 // April 27, 2020 at 7:51 am // Reply

    Gr8

  38. thanks it meant a lot

  39. Thanks

  40. Ms Potato Head // April 25, 2020 at 12:48 pm // Reply

    I enter a chess tourney every year, I have never won. Maybe I will be able to dominate this year with these tips!

  41. i will be champ soon.

  42. These are very useful tricks I can keep in mind for my chess tournament. Thanks!

  43. thanks

  44. thanks

  45. Lil Prizzy // April 16, 2020 at 9:24 pm // Reply

    This includes accurate information. This was a very helpful source for a research project I am doing!

  46. thanks for letting me know now i can beat my sister

  47. Thanks very useful

  48. Very useful

  49. These are brilliant tricks!

  50. Thank you

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