Best Chess Quotes | Short & Famous Sayings Page 13

“Without error, there is no brilliancy.”

Errors Chess

Author:Emanuel Lasker

“A passed pawn increase in strength as the number of pieces on the board diminishes.”

Numbers Pieces Increase Chess Boards Diminish Pawns Endgame World Champions Chess Pieces Chess Pawns

Book:Chess Fundamentals

Source: Chess Fundamentals

“A good player is always lucky.”

Success Player Lucky Chess

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“You may learn much more from a game you lose than from a game you win. You will have to lose hundreds of games before becoming a good player.”

May Motivation Games Winning Loses Player Becoming Losing Chess Chess Game Chess Players

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“In order to improve your game you must study the endgame before everything else; for, whereas the endings can be studied and mastered by themselves, the middlegame and the opening must be studied in relation to the endgame.”

Ends Order Games Study Middle Relation Chess Opening Chess Game Endgame

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“Endings of one rook and pawns are about the most common sort of endings arising on the chess board. Yet though they do occur so often, few have mastered them thoroughly. They are often of a very difficult nature, and sometimes while apparently very simple they are in reality extremely intricate.”

Sometimes Reality Difficult Simple Common Chess Boards Intricate Pawns

Book:Chess Fundamentals

Source: Chess Fundamentals

“The best way to learn endings, as well as openings, is from the games of the masters.”

Way Wells Games Masters Chess Best Way Opening

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“The winning of a pawn among good players of even strength often means the winning of the game.”

Mean Games Winning Player Chess Pawns

Book:Chess Fundamentals

Source: Chess Fundamentals

“The king, which during the opening and middlegame stage is often a burden because it has to be defended, becomes in the endgame a very important and aggressive piece, and the beginner should realize this, and utilize his king as much as possible.”

Should Important Realizing Pieces Stage Kings Burden Chess Opening Aggressive Beginners Endgame

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“An exception was made with respect to me, because of my victory over Marshall. Some of the masters objected to my entry ... one of them was Dr. Bernstein. I had the good fortune to play him in the first round., and beat him in such fashion as to obtain the Rothschild prize for the most brilliant game ... a profound feeling of respect for my ability remained throughout the rest of the contest.”

Firsts Made Play Feelings Games Ability Fashion Masters Victory Beats Fortune Profound Rounds Brilliant Chess Exception Prize Drs Contests Good Fortune Entry Rothschild

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“Morphy gained most of his wins by playing directly and simply, and it is simple and logical method that constitutes the true brilliance of his play, if it is considered from the viewpoint of the great masters.”

Ifs Play Winning Simple Masters Method Chess Logical Brilliance Viewpoints Playing Chess

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“None of the great players has been so incomprehensible to the majority of amateurs and even masters, as Emanuel Lasker.”

Has Beens Player Masters Majority Chess

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“When you sit down to play a game you should think only about the position, but not about the opponent. Whether chess is regarded as a science, or an art, or a sport, all the same psychology bears no relation to it and only stands in the way of real chess.”

Thinking Way Should Art Real Play Games Sports Psychology Position Bears Relation Chess Opponents

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“To improve at chess you should in the first instance study the endgame.”

Should Firsts Study Chess Instance Endgame

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“Alekhine evidently possesses the most remarkable chess memory that has ever existed. It is said that he remembers by heart all the games played by the leading masters during the last 15-20 years.”

Years Heart Said Lasts Remember Games Memories Masters Chess Remarkable Alekhine

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“Most players ... do not like losing, and consider defeat as something shameful. This is a wrong attitude. Those who wish to perfect themselves must regard their losses as lessons and learn from them what sorts of things to avoid in the future.”

Wish Loss Perfect Attitude Player Lessons Losing Regard Defeat Chess Shameful Chess Players Wrong Attitude

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“The weaker the player the more terrible the Knight is to him, but as a player increases in strength the value of the Bishop becomes more evident to him, and of course there is, or should be, a corresponding decease in his estimation of the value of the Knight as compared to the bishop.”

Should Values Courses Player Terrible Increase Chess Evident Knights Bishops Corresponding Estimation

Book:Chess Fundamentals

Source: Chess Fundamentals

“Chess can never reach its height by following in the path of science ... Let us, therefore, make a new effort and with the help of our imagination turn the struggle of technique into a battle of ideas.”

Ideas Helping Turns Imagination Effort Struggle Path Battle Following Technique Chess Height

Book:Hundred Best Games of Chess

Source: Hundred Best Games of Chess

“The game might be divided into three parts, the opening, the middle-game and the end-game. There is one thing you must strive for, to be equally efficient in the three parts.”

Ends Might Success Three Games One Thing Middle Strive Chess Opening Divided Efficient

Book:My Chess Career

Source: My Chess Career

“An hour's history of two minds is well told in a game of chess.”

Mind Wells Two Games Hours Chess Two Minds

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“Chess is something more than a game. It is an intellectual diversion which has certain artistic qualities and many scientific elements.”

Certain Games Quality Elements Intellectual Chess Artistic Diversion

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“During the course of many years I have observed that a great number of doctors, lawyers, and important businessmen make a habit of visiting a chess club during the late afternoon or evening to relax and find relief from the preoccupations of their work.”

Years Important Courses Numbers Habit Late Doctors Clubs Lawyer Chess Evening Relief Relax Afternoon Businessman Visiting Preoccupation Late Afternoon

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“Sultan Khan had become champion of India at Indian chess and he learned the rules of our form of chess at a later date. The fact that even under such conditions he succeeded in becoming champion reveals a genius for chess which is nothing short of extraordinary.”

Facts Form Conditions Genius Becoming India Extraordinary Chess Indian Champion

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“Ninety percent of the book variations have no great value, because either they contain mistakes or they are based on fallacious assumptions; just forget about the openings and spend all that time on the endings.”

Book Values Forget Mistake Percent Chess Opening Assumption Ninety Variation Great Value

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“Although the Knight is generally considered to be on a par with the Bishop in strength, the latter piece is somehat stronger in the majority of cases in which they are opposed to each other.”

Cases Pieces Stronger Majority Chess Latter Knights Bishops

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“The great World Champions Morphy, Steinitz, and Lasker were past masters in the art of Pawn play; they had no superiors in their handling of endgames. The present World Champion has not the strength of the other three as an endgame player, and is therefore inferior to them.”

World Art Play Past Three Player Masters Chess Superiors Champion Inferiors Pawns Endgame World Champions

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“To my way of thinking, Troitzky has no peer among endgame compsers; no one else has composed so many and such varied endings of the first rank.”

Thinking Way Firsts Chess My Way Peers Way Of Thinking Endgame

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“No other great master has been so misunderstood by the vast majority of chess amateurs and even by many masters, as has Emanuel Lasker.”

Has Beens Masters Majority Chess Misunderstood

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“People who want to improve should take their defeats as lessons, and endeavor to learn what to avoid in the future. You must also have the courage of your convictions. If you think your move is good, make it.”

People Ifs Thinking Want Should Moving Learning Lessons Defeat Conviction Chess Endeavor

Author:Jose Raul Capablanca

“Capablanca did not apply himself to opening theory (in which he never therefore achieved much), but delved deeply into the study of end-games and other simple positions which respond to technique rather than to imagination.”

Ends Games Imagination Simple Study Position Theory Technique Chess Opening Capablanca

Author:Max Euwe

“Never before and never since have I seen - and I cannot even imagine, such an amazing rapidity of chess thinking that Capablanca possessed in 1913-14. In blitz games he gave all the St. Petersburg players odds of five minutes to one - and he won.”

Thinking Games Five Imagine Player Minutes Chess Possessed Odds Five Minutes Blitz Capablanca

Author:Alexander Alekhine

“Capablanca was snatched too early from the chess world. With his death we have lost a great chess genius, the like of whom we will never see again.”

World Lost Genius Chess Capablanca

Author:Alexander Alekhine

“I did not believe I was superior to him. Perhaps the chief reason for his defeat was the overestimation of his own powers arising out of his overwhelming victory in New York, 1927, and his underestimation of mine.”

Believe Reason New York Mines Victory Defeat Chess Superiors Chiefs Overwhelming

Author:Alexander Alekhine

“Capablanca used to talk calmly and moderately about everything. However, when our conversation turned to the problems of the battle for the world championship, in front of me was a quite different person: an enraged lion, although with the fervour typical only of a southerner, with his temperamental patter, which made it hard to follow the torrent of his indignant exclamations and words.”

World Persons Made Different Hard Problem Used Fronts Battle Conversation Chess Made It Lions Championship Typical Southerner Exclamation Indignant Capablanca

Author:Alexander Koblencs

“I can remember a case where Capablanca worked out an impressive combination, but then chose to make a simple move in answer to which his opponent resigned at once!”

I Can Remember Moving Simple Answers Cases Chess Combination Opponents Impressive Resigned Capablanca

Author:Alexander Kotov

“The ideal in chess can only be a collective image, but in my opinion it is Capablanca who most closely approaches this.”

Opinion Approach Ideals Chess Collectives Capablanca

Author:Anatoly Karpov

“When I used to go to the Manhattan Chess Club back in the fifties, I met a lot of old-timers there who knew Capablanca, because he used to come around to the Manhattan club in the forties - before he died in the early forties. They spoke about Capablanca with awe. I have never seen people speak about any chess player like that, before or since.”

People Used Speak Player Mets Died Clubs Chess Awe Forty Spokes Manhattan Chess Players Timer Capablanca Old Timers

Author:Bobby Fischer

“But the thing that was great about Capablanca was that he really spoke his mind, he said what he believed was true, he said what he felt. He [Capablanca] wanted to change the rules [of chess] already, back in the twenties, because he said chess was getting played out. He was right. Now chess is completely dead. It is all just memorisation and prearrangement. It's a terrible game now. Very uncreative.”

Mind Said Wanted Games Felt Terrible Right Now Twenties Chess Spokes Capablanca

Author:Bobby Fischer

“I have known many chess players, but among them there has been only one genius - Capablanca!”

Has Beens Known Player Genius Chess Chess Players Capablanca

Author:Emanuel Lasker

“One interesting indication of Capablanca's greatness is that to non-chess players his name was better known than the names of all other chess masters together! This was due partly to his engaging personality and distinguished appearance: he was one of those exceptional people who at once stand out in a crowd.”

Source: The Immortal Games of Capablanca

“Capablanca possessed an amazing ability to quickly see into a position and intuitively grasp its main features. His style, one of the purest, most crystal-clear in the entire history of chess, astonishes one with his logic.”

Ability Clear Style Position Logic Chess Features Possessed Crystals Capablanca

Author:Garry Kasparov

“Poor Capablanca! Thou wert a brilliant technician, but no philosopher. Thou wert not capable of believing that in chess, another style could be victorious than the absolutely correct one.”

Believe Poor Style Capable Philosopher Brilliant Chess Technicians Capablanca

Author:Max Euwe

“The essence of Capablanca's greatness is his rare talent for avoiding all that can complicate or confuse the conflict.”

Talent Greatness Conflict Essence Chess Avoiding Capablanca

Author:Max Euwe

“He can be regarded as the great master of simplification. The art of resolving the tension at the critical moment and in the most effacious way so as to clarify the position as desired is Capablanca's own.”

Way Art Moments Position Masters Critical Chess Tension Simplification Critical Moments Capablanca

Author:Max Euwe

“The 'chess machine', by which admiring title he had been known, revealed the great drawback of a machine: it had not sufficient flexibility to adapt itself to altered circumstances.”

Known Circumstances Machines Chess Titles Sufficient Flexibility Altered Admiring Drawbacks

Author:Max Euwe

“Capablanca plays very superficially sometimes, in a way that can only be ascribed to lack of concentration. This is an integral weakness of his make-up and can only be partially compensated by his employing his time allowance to the full.”

Way Sometimes Play Weakness Chess Concentration Allowance Employing Capablanca

Author:Max Euwe

“Capablanca's play produced and still produces an irresistable artistic effect. In his games a tendency towards simplicity predominated, and in this simplicity there was a unique beauty of genuine depth.”

Stills Play Games Effects Produce Unique Depth Simplicity Chess Genuine Tendencies Artistic Capablanca Unique Beauty

Author:Mikhail Botvinnik

“Without technique it is impossible to reach the top in chess, and therefore we all try to borrow from Capablanca his wonderful, subtle technique.”

Trying Wonderful Impossible Technique Chess Subtle Capablanca

Author:Mikhail Tal

“Chess was Capablanca's mother tongue.”

Mother Tongue Chess Mother Tongue Capablanca

Author:Richard Reti

“When I was a child I liked the games of Capablanca, and later I was captivated by Alekhine's play.”

Children Play Games Chess Captivated Capablanca Alekhine

Author:Vladimir Kramnik

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