Thinkers’ Chess Academy with GM Thomas Luther – Volume 2: From Tactics to Strategy – Winning Knowledge

This is the second book of the Thinkers’ Chess Academy series. In the first book we started at a beginner’s level with checkmates in 1, 2 or 3 moves and the most common tactical motifs. If you have already worked with the first book you will now be much more experienced and ready for some more difficult lessons. We will start with 50 combinations to refresh our memory of the motifs from the first book. The chess friends who have not read the first book can treat it as a kind of self-test. If you cannot solve many of the examples it may be better to go back and work through the first book again. It is not a good idea to leave basic knowledge out. It will certainly hinder your progress if you do so.

In this book we will not only show you more tactical motifs, but we will also give you an introduction to the basics of chess strategy. You will learn the most important elements of strategy which will help you to find better plans and to understand positions better. At the end of the book a chapter with 50 checkmates of 5+ moves will show you techniques of how to attack or hunt the opponent’s king and also how to improve your calculation skills and your imagination at the chessboard. Now enough of the prologue, let us go to work and learn lots about chess tactics and strategy! Have a lot of fun while studying chess and enjoy your improvement! Yours, Thomas Luther Grandmaster and FIDE senior trainer

Table of Contents

CHAPTER 1. 50 MIXED COMBINATIONS FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD AND FROM PLAYERS OF ALL CATEGORIES 9

Solutions for 50 Mixed Combinations 22

CHAPTER 2. DEFLECTION, DIVERSION OR DISTRACTION 35

Deflection — Part 1 41

Solutions for Deflection — Part 1 45

Deflection — Part 2 49

Solutions for Deflection — Part 2 58

CHAPTER 3. TRAPPED PIECES 67

Trapped Pieces — Part 1 72

Solutions for Trapped Pieces — Part 1 76

Trapped Pieces — Part 2 81

Solutions for Trapped Pieces — Part 2 90

CHAPTER 4. THE THIRD RESULT: DRAW 99

Stalemate — Part 1 103

Solutions for Stalemate — Part 1 107

Stalemate — Part 2 108

Solutions for Stalemate — Part 2 113

CHAPTER 5. CHESS STRATEGY 119

Weak squares 121

CHAPTER 6. 40 COMBINATIONS 127

Solutions for Checkmate in four moves 138

CHAPTER 7. INVADING THE OPPONENT’S CAMP OPEN FILES AND THE 7TH RANK 151

Rook(s) on the 7th (2nd) Rank 159

Solutions for Rook(s) on the 7th (2nd) Rank 165

CHAPTER 8. ATTACK ON THE BACK RANK 173

Attack on the back rank! — Part 1 177

Solutions for Attack on the back rank! — Part 1 181

Attack on the back rank! — Part 2 186

Solutions for Attack on the back rank! — Part 2 195

CHAPTER 9. HOW TO ANALYZE YOUR GAMES 205

CHAPTER 10. DRAW — PART II 211

Perpetual check & move repetition — Part 1 215

Solutions for Perpetual check & move repetition — Part 1 219

Perpetual check & move repetition — Part 2 224

Solutions for Perpetual check

& move repetition — Part 2 233

CHAPTER 11. PAWN STRUCTURE 245

CHAPTER 12. X-RAY ATTACK 255

X-ray attack! 257

Solutions for X-ray attack! 261

CHAPTER 13. MISCELLANEOUS 267

How to open fi les and break pawn structures 268

The minority attack 270

Pawn breakthrough 271

50 checkmates in 5+ moves 276

Solutions for 50 checkmates in 5+ moves 289

PLAY BLINDFOLD CHESS! 311

• Casa editrice Thinkers Publishing
• Code 7555
• Anno 2020
• Pagine p. 312
• Isbn 9789492510891