About Me:

I'm just a junior in high school who has a great passion for the game of chess. But to me, chess is not just a game, and I find Anatoly Karpov's (former world champion) quote truthful: "Chess is everything: art, science, and sport." I have been playing chess competitively since I was 6 years old and hope to continue to improve and to, one day, become a grandmaster.

My Goal:

I made this blog first and foremost to share my ideas of certain chess topics such as openings and general strategy in order to help newer to intermediate players improve.

The Ruy Lopez

Although a very simple opening in chess, it has been played by grandmasters for hundreds of years. Most notably: Bobby Fischer. The opening starts with 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 and black has many choices for a defense.

Examples:

• Morphy Defence: 3...a6
• Bird's Defence: 3...Nd4
• Steinitz Defence: 3...d6
• Schliemann Defence: 3...f5
• Classical Defence: 3...Bc5
• Berlin Defence: 3...Nf6

The main focus for white is to play for a strong center by usually playing c3 and d4 and quick development by castling, with the light-squared bishop ("Ruy bishop") dreaming of his home on c2, supporting the center.