What are mistakes that most beginners make?

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jacchagen

Thanks for starting this thread. Very useful information

s-seoh
McSeun wrote:
1. Control the center.
10. Avoid pushing the f pawn until you’ve gained some experience.
Please, I'd like more experienced players to say more about these two statements.

that is true

LuckyPenguin7

This is one of the most common mistakes. I call what white played “The Nelson Tactic”

chessterd5
McSeun wrote:
1. Control the center.
10. Avoid pushing the f pawn until you’ve gained some experience.
Please, I'd like more experienced players to say more about these two statements.

a) 1. Control the center:

a better term might be who "holds" the center. because that "hold" can be liquidated. that is the basis of hypermodern play. sometimes the center is "held" by both players at the same time. The Checz Benoni would be an example.

every opening is an example of both sides staking a claim in the center. these squares being contested is a term that we call "tension". this tension can theoretically last indefinitely. but generally one player initiates the release of that tension at a time, and in a way, in the game which is good for them.

b) 10. pushing the f pawn:

the purpose of pushing the f pawn is to

a) initiate a pawn break

b) support a central pawn push

or c) to further a king side attack.

one precaution that you can look for before an f pawn push is this. we will use f2 on the white side for the example.

after the white king is castled, if white plays f2 to f3 or f4, it opens up the a7 to g1 diagonal. this is a dark square diagonal. if your opponents DQB is no longer on the board, his Queen is the only piece that can check you along that diagonal. if your opponents Queen has no safe square(s) on that diagonal, it is generally safer to make the f pawn push.