Analyze & Annotate Games
Tips for adult improvers, and not only.
In a monumental work “Timman’s Titans” Dutch chess legend brings firsthand experiences with World Champions. In the chapter about Mikhail Botvinnik, he talks about how influential Botvinnik had been on his chess studies. Preparing for the first grandmaster tournament,
Get Zura Javakhadze’s stories in your inbox
Join Medium for free to get updates from this writer.
“I had taken Botvinnik’s advice to heart in those days, I had started deep and extensive game analyses. This serious work has had a very favorable effect on my play, and it may also have been a determining factor for the jump to the world top that I made later on.”
This is applicable to all player levels. Especially for adult improvers who often wonder what is the most efficient way of spending dedicated time to chess. Analyze and annotate your games. Other player's games that inspire you. Back then people had to figure out everything by themselves, now we have the mechanical force that can help us navigate. In that regard, I think it would be interesting to see the ratio of people analyzing with or without the help of the computer. Thinking for 1 minute and then turning on the engine doesn't count. Spend at least some time analyzing and then use the engine, that’s probably a modern way to do it.
