Thoroughly enjoying this despite being roundly beaten on most of my games. Couple of surprising results though which I'm putting down to playing more and improving as a result.
Still making some fundamental glaring errors though.
Made a great discovery today - the button in the browser version that turns the board upside down so you see it from the opponents view (this seems to be absent in the iPad app). This shouldn't make any difference and isn't a problem I have with a real board but has really helped me see how I'm about to lose spectacularly.
@RamseyNeil I was fixated on protecting my isolated pawn with something other than queen, whilst trying to get my extra piece active. Hence the slow, disastrous shuffle! Your pawn structure was highly frustrating for my bishop - looked like an evil master plan 😃
Made a great discovery today – the button in the browser version that turns the board upside down so you see it from the opponents view
I'm happy playing most games on sight just on the app (and turning the phone upside down if needed!) but for the more in depth ones, especially against better opponents, I have an actual board and pieces set up which I can work through. It works well if your opponent is a particularly slow player - early on in the first tournament I lost a couple of games just through losing concentration and having to pick up again and work out where I was when a move was finally played 24hrs later. Setting a board up and using the downtime while waiting for an opponent to play by going through combinations of moves really helped.
That sounds like a lot of hard work to me! I do use the analysis board though.
I'm so use to it on my mobile i don't think I could play OTB 🙁
I thought about setting a real board up, but that gets a bit challenging when you’re playing 6 games at once!
Yeah, I only do it for the more difficult games. Helps remind me of where I'm up to!
Apologies to everyone who I have been utterly useless against. I am down with the ol' Covid and it has affected my ability to think straight. Not that I would have been much better otherwise but wanted to make a better fist of it than I have been doing of late...
Get well soon! I'm sure there'll be a STW Chess Club T4.
Two very close games with @stevomcd just finished, both draws. First one we both ended up with a king and about 3 deadlocked pawns, second one got to a point of perpetual check (although I'm not sure that either of us had any sort of workable advantage!). This is in Tournament 2, Round 2.
How's everyone else getting along?
Generally got hammered aside from a couple of nice results.
I still keep making proper schoolboy errors though. Had one in my latest game that I where I was blindly focussing on a next move checkmate and totally missed losing my queen.
Good fun though and I have definitely improved over the course of these tournys.
You definitely had me in the second game @crazy-legs , little bit lucky to dig a draw out of that one.
I definitely struggle with the daily format sometimes. Harder to keep focus than a fixed-duration game. I don't tend to forget my own strategy too much, but often make schoolboy errors because I've forgotten about a threat that I'd identified and planned-for several moves ago. Put myself in a bad position that way in my current game against irc1979 but I think I've dug it back out. Maybe. I'm going to use the excuse I was riding Les Arcs all weekend and making moves on the way up the funi!
The longer format is definitely good for making you consider the whole board and try to identify the single best move, even if the difference is only slight. You need to have a broader strategy. I more often play short time-frame games where it's more about spotting quick tactics or mating attacks 3 or 4 moves out.
. Put myself in a bad position that way in my current game against irc1979
No worries Stevo. I blew it. On the other hand in one of my other tournaments my opponent made an error and I got a win against a 1690 player!1
But hey! The original STW Tournament has just gone to round 2. I've avoided my nemisis of Stevo and JLyon. Back up to 21 current daily games and my rating is back to 1418 after almost slipping under 1400.
Good luck everyone in STW 1 round 2!
Round 2 has started for the first tournament! that was long. good luck everyone
How many go through from each group ?
I think it's the top 2 in a round that goes through
But hey! The original STW Tournament has just gone to round 2. I’ve avoided my nemisis of Stevo and JLyon.
Yeah, I never entered Tournament 1!
Apologies to those whose games against me timed out. I know you get the win but it's much better to finish them.
Unfortunately this covid thing knocked me out more than I thought and I've been struggling to juggle everything. We'll no doubt meet again in future tournaments 🙂
I was wondering what was going on with you Danny, hope your getting over the covid mate
@kennyp - just a heads up about the second round of (I think) the first tournament. It started a few days ago and you need to make your moves
@aide , he has been online, he played 2 games against me but very intermittently and he gave up one quite quickly.
Hi. Yes still here. I did see the second round had started but was holding off making moves as I still have games from the other tournaments on the go. Nine gams in total from the three tournaments and I tend to lose track a bit so focussed more on the ones underway.
As those games finish (ie I lose them which seems to be the case at the moment) I'll get more into the second round matches. Apologies if I've kept anyone waiting.
The one I gave up quite quickly I made a couple of mistakes easy on. Against a rubbish player I may have persisted in the hope they'd make mistakes too, but equally I know it's bad chess etiquette to drag games out when you've no real hope of getting anything out of them. So it was a compliment really. (-:
Opening moves now made.
Does anyone know idkay ? His times running out and much as it would be nice to be in round 3 it would feel a bit cheaty if it was by default
Does anyone know idkay ? His times running out and much as it would be nice to be in round 3 it would feel a bit cheaty if it was by default
Just logged-in to post the same!
Just a heads up for anyone that doesn't check messages on Chess.com. STW T3 round 1 has finished. Round 2 now started. Games live.
https://www.chess.com/tournament/stw-chess-club-t3
PS Although the time limit is 24hrs per move there is a vacation setting where you can suspend your games if absolutely required. I am going to Knoydart Wed - Fri this week. So I'll play my moves on all boards around lunchtime Wed while pasing through Fort William. My network is Giffgaff so don't know if I will get a signal again until Fri in Mallaig. I'll reacativate my games then.
Oh I've just had the most epic screw up against @irc
Was reasonably up and then one massive blunder. Resigned - no point in continuing after that loss of material.
😭
Oh FFS, I'm having an absolute disaster today!
crazy-legs
Full MemberOh FFS, I’m having an absolute disaster today!
Checks my game hopefully ......... Nope.
Oh I see it was WAsnevergreat benefitting from your largesse this time!
Never mind. In another tourament I'm having to resign two games where the play is even. I stupidly signed up for a 24hr move no vacation tournament. I'm going to be without a phone signal for more than 24hrs Wed-Fri. So either I resign or timeout. Better ettiquette I think to resign with a comment in the chat rather than timeout,
Gutted that you resigned that last game @irc , that was a really close tactical battle! I'd have stuck in there - always the possibility that I'd have buggered up the order of moves somewhere! Actually I think I got fairly lucky - looking at the analysis I made more minor mistakes than you but I think your queen move might have tipped things my way a bit.
Great game though, thanks for that!
Just checked the analysis just now. Yes my queen move around move 24 was the big blunder. I was worried about the your pawn exposing a cgechmk from your bishop. Overlooked blocking the pawn with my bishop.
Ah we. Makes up for your queen move last time.
Swings and roundabouts.
Mrs Kenny bought me a nice chess set for my birthday recently. Nothing fancy (Staunton) but decent quality with wooden pieces of a nice weight, and a lovely looking board.
I'd forgotten just what a great feeling it is moving real pieces around as opposed to clicking on a screen. I know in theory it shouldn't make any difference, but it does.
Haven't used it to play a human so far; I replicate the moves on an app on my phone and move the pieces on the app's behalf. But it's just great seeing it sitting there on the table. And I find I can sit and concentrate more over a real board than a computer screen.
That said I'm still losing in most of the STW games I have on the go, but you can't have everything.
Finished all my games in T3 and... I'm currently 4th. Out of 6. Hmm.
Lost both my games to MWyer.
Since 4 of the 6 of us are still playing, there's the potential for me to drop to 5th quite quickly as well.
The original STW tournament will be going into a new round shortly. One game left in play and the writing is on the wall.
https://www.chess.com/game/daily/353507265
Have just resigned from that game, didn't realise it was the last one in the round and holding everyone up, sorry folks - Good luck in the next round
Not quite sure how I ended up in the next round but thanks anyway. Good luck to everyone!
Yay, new round! Nice to see some familiar names again! 🙂
I'm in another (non STW) tournament at the moment and out of the group, we've all finished our games against each other apart from one guy who's stalling on all of us. 24hrs per move and he'll wait 22hrs then put himself on Vacation. Tosser.
This is exciting. Good luck everyone! I’m on my second move in a couple of games and befuddled already 😂
I’m in another (non STW) tournament at the moment and out of the group, we’ve all finished our games against each other apart from one guy who’s stalling on all of us. 24hrs per move and he’ll wait 22hrs then put himself on Vacation. Tosser.
I had one where an opponent went on vacation for 2 months before losing on time. I enter mainly no vacation tournaments now.
One win each in my games with @gauss1777 .
Well played - I made a right mess of that first game!
Doh! Another queen blundered away (non STW game). Need to start concentrating.
As for STW tournaments. STW Initial Tournament crawls on. Current round has 4 groups with 2 progressing. Meaning two more rounds before it finishes. Looks like well into next year.
STW 4 is well on. After the current round the final group is 3 players whch shouldn't take long to play out.
Perhaps see about STW Tournament 5 at that point. The 2 days a move and big groupS seemed to work OK.
I finished my last game a few days ago, so if anyone fancies some friendly matches (maybe 2 days per move) while we wait for T5 then just drop me a note. I'm kprook on chess.com.
Really enjoyed all the tournaments so far, even the defeats (of which there have been plenty).
I hadn't realised that it was the top 3 that went through. Not like that will help me much! 😀
I think we discussed a separate tournament that ran alongside T4 for those that did not qualify for round 2, is this still of interest to anyone? T4.2?
@irc If people are up for this do you want to host it? I'm happy to host it if you want?
On a separate note, how did you all get into playing chess? I use to play at a junior level but stopped playing when I got to secondary school age. My claim to fame (if you call it that) was that I had a couple of lessons from another junior player, a few years older than me, that went on to be an IM and has represented Scotland at the Olympiads! I have vague memories of learning how to defend against scholars mate.
