Unlocking Chess Mastery: The Power of Intuition

Dear Chess Friends!

Chess is a wonderful paradox: a game of complete data that is much too complicated to be fully calculated by even the most powerful computers, let alone the human brain. Because of this complexity, chess players of all levels rely largely on intuition — an imprecise but extremely valuable judgment of positional factors.

So, what is intuitive evaluation and how can it be developed?

Assume you're in a sharp middlegame position. Your calculations clearly indicate that in order to keep the initiative or even a good position, you must sacrifice material. Do you methodically calculate all possible lines till the very end, or do you trust your instincts and delve into the unknown?

Experienced chess players sometimes rely on intuition in such situations, identifying patterns, recalling similar positions, and understanding the dynamics at play.

An intuitive chess assessment can emerge in a variety of ways:

• Changing the nature of the game by transitioning from a positional to a tactical battle, or vice versa.
• Maintaining the character of the position: determining whether to preserve the tension or simplify.
• Making sacrifices involves intuitively sacrificing a pawn or piece to activate your pieces.
• Choosing the direction of the place of action: assault on the kingside or move on the queenside.
• King safety decisions include intuitively determining the safest square for your king in the face of threats.
• Rook placement: choosing instinctively whether to centralize or support a flank attack.
• Pawn structure decisions include intuitively evaluating long-term positional gains against immediate tactics.
• Exchanges: determining intuitively whether to simplify or maintain tension.

It's important to remember, though, that not all judgments can or should be obvious. Certain circumstances, particularly in endgames such as pawn races or king movements, require accurate calculations. Intuition leads you, but calculation verifies your intuitive ideas.

When a player makes an intuitive decision, the ensuing position frequently has a mix of benefits and drawbacks for both sides. It is critical to appropriately measure the weight of these factors. For instance:

• Is your king's attack sufficient compensation for the material lost?
• Does piece activity properly compensate for pawn weaknesses?

The more you play and study different positions, the better your intuitive evaluation will become. Great players, such as Mikhail Tal, are well-known for their intuitive sacrifices, provide countless examples that are essential for developing this skill.

I recently conducted a chess workshop focused just to Intuitive Evaluation, during which I gave four instructive games demonstrating how intuition influences high-level chess judgments. To expand your understanding and see intuitive evaluation in action, watch the whole workshop recording here:

Those of you who prefer to review the annotated games demonstrated during the event can find them below:

1) Jan Westman - Erkki Havansi

Remember, developing your intuitive chess sense is a journey of continuous practice, study, and reflection. Trust your intuition, verify with calculation, and enjoy the beautiful complexities of our beloved game!

If you would like to participate in our next event in live, you can register here: https://chesslance.com/masterclass/

Your participation is absolutely free.

See you at the workshop,
FM Viktor Neustroev