How to play 25 MOVES of a chess opening!

Many chess players are intimidated by long opening variations. They resign themselves to playing the Colle System their whole life, or constantly end up in middlegames where they "don't know what to do" (because they've never learned their opening's ideas deep into the middlegame!)

Do you think it's impossible to routinely play 25 moves from memory? Give me a chance to prove you wrong, and watch the training below. (hint: Memorization isn't even the most important part!)

This isn't a video you can sit back and watch passively - there will be 3 exercises throughout, and I expect you to do them. Don't waste your time watching it if you intend to be lazy! But for those who do the work...you'll find that opening memorization isn't as scary or unattainable as you thought it was.

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As I discuss in the video, Memorization isn't even the most important aspect of developing an opening repertoire - it's actually the 3rd most important "pillar." If you're serious about developing a Master-level Opening Repertoire and want to know more, just let me know - I can send you a private training for free if you're serious about putting in the work and improving!

Let me know how the exercises go!

Very kind of you to put content like this out for players who are looking to improve their chess.

Sure, 6...g6 is another line, with its own advantages and disadvantages.

The point of this training was getting comfortable with memorizing long lines in the opening and the analysis behind them - not so much about the lines themselves.

It doesn't appear that the point is to show what line is best, but that it's entirely possible for most chess players to learn opening theory that runs 20+ moves deep. The first text on the post is literally "Many chess players are intimidated by long opening variations."

It's not that he's saying that you should memorize long lines. He's saying that you probably shouldn't be purposefully avoiding openings with a lot of theory, because you're probably capable of studying the theory.

This is a completely different line, not sure what your point is.

It sounds like you might need to focus on "short lines first." Maybe my content's not appropriate for where you are right now in chess. Feel free to check out my intro video to the Caro-Kann. The questions you're asking have been covered in books, databases, anywhere you can look - numerous times.

>"Usually, in the Caro Kann as white my opponents play Bf5 not Bg4. Not sure why you added it. Sorry, I don't understand the intent of your lessons. Should black play Bg4? Maybe you can make a video about that first?"

Not in the Panov line. You're mixing up a bunch of different lines that have nothing to do with each other.

That's not what this training's about. It's not about them "playing along." I've made another video called "The Branches of the Tree" you can look into.

Thanks! If you haven't already, please feel free to let me know if you'd like the exclusive training video on constructing a Master-level Opening Repertoire.

It’s surely possible to memorize a couple of lines. The problem is there are lots of lines with lots of varations  in every respectable repertoire. While I admit that some memorization is necessary, I think that chess should not be a memory contest.

For me at least I feel that learning and memorising openings can only get you so far, it is the individual being able to understand the reason behind the moves which he/she plays that determines the position which arises in the middlegame and thus allows for them to understand their position better.

Agreed

It's not a memory contest. I'm amazed how often I see that misconception - once players learn about complex opening theory, they think chess is a "memory contest"

That is actually very true, the endgame is what you must master first.

Learning the ideas is important, yes. But most players take this advice way too far and never analyze their openings deep into the middlegame at all, and end up planless as a result.

The OP is misleading the average Joe.  The worst thing you can do is memorize an opening.  You need to FULLY UNDERSTAND the opening, not just memorize moves.

I can play 18 book moves of French McCutcheon and 18 book moves of Grunfeld.  The difference?  White can deviate anywhere in the first 18 moves of the McCutcheon and I fully understand it and will make you pay for your mistake.  You deviate anywhere in the first 18 moves of the Grunfeld and I am lost because I do not understand the Grunfeld.  The fact that I can regurgitate 18 moves means nothing if you do not understand all 18 moves!

In case you can't tell, I am a long time advocate of the French and avoid the Grunfeld like the plague!

You are wrong!

Let's say you have Black against me.  Let's say you memorized the following:

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c5 5.a3 Bxc3 6.bxc3 Ne7 7.Qg4 Qc7 8.Qxg7 Rg8 9.Qxh7 cxd4 10.Ne2 Nc6 11.f4 Bd7 12.Qd3 dxc3 13.Nxc3.

Ok, what happens now when I play something else, whether good (13.Qxc3, 13.Rb1 - which I would play, 10.Kd1, 7.h4, 3.e5, etc), mediocre (4.Nge2, 5.Qg4, etc) or bad bit does not hang anything, like 3.Qf3.

Would you have any clue what to do if all you did was memorize the 13.Nxc3 variation of the poisoned pawn?  Absolutely not!

Which is why you learn all those other lines too...

Ive always been interested in Openings and have a large collection of openings books that Ive accumulated over the years (starting in 1982 when I was 18 years old). 

My "philosophy":  if you are studying/playing chess as a hobby/enjoyment,  you can spend your time doing whatever it is that you enjoy most- if you happen to like openings and wish to develop a repertoire, thats fine.  But, if your goal is improve your strength/understanding, a good analogy would be comparing it to joining a gym and doing workouts. 

Studying only openings and neglecting middle & endgames and so forth, is like going to the gym and just doing one exercise and nothing else- so if all you do is just run on treadmill, it might improve your running skills or legs, but do nothing at all for your arms, shoulders and overall upper body.  Being strong in the opening at chess is good, but will become very frustrating when you lose games due to not knowing what to do in the midgame or having no technique in the endgame to convert an advantage into a win. 

As for memorization:  using the gym analogy again:  the key to improving is to do consistent workouts, if you do so on a regular, steady basis, you will be in good form and keep making progress.  Same with chess: if you can devote the time to study/practice on a regular basis, everything you are learning/absorbing will remain in your mind- you wont have to memorize much at all. 

As proof: I suggest trying Blakey-B's memory exercise :  if you do it almost every day, even for just a little bit, I am fairly sure it wont feel like you need to memorize much.  But if you do the exercise for only a day or two and then dont do it again for say a month, well... just like the gym, your body (chess mind) will probably feel flabby and its like you have to go back to the beginning and start again.