Correspondence vs. OTB

 What do you think is the difference between correspondence chess and over-the-board chess? I'd just like to get some general impressions and feedback. Thanks!

Correspondence allows me more time to think things through, try out different lines on the board to see how they work out, and gives me a better understanding of what's happening.  OTB I tend to get caught up in the excitement of the moment, look for cheapos too often, and yet I like this form of chess too!  You get more games in this way, among other things.  Just a few thoughts off the top of my head...

A few points I could think of.

- Time Management :  The Over-the-board/OTB  game is chess within a time crisis. This comes with its own unique set of skills (efficient thinking, even more reliance on pattern recognition / recall from one's "mental" chess database) and requires good instincts. 

- Opening Preparation : Unlike correspondence, which by definition is "open book" when it comes to theory, OTB players above a certain level need to know their theory.  The shorter the time control, the more necessary this becomes for practical fighting chances. For example, in my city's weekend tournaments, the norm is G/30 where being able to blitz through 5-15 moves of opening theory is absolutely needed to survive at higher-levels of play.

- Focus / Consistency of quality: Unless one plays Correspondence chess in a fairly ritualistic/regimented fashion allocating 30-60 minutes to make his few moves across different games,  I would imagine that the mental makeup of an OTB player requires far more focus and attention where even a distracting thought could result in a tactical snafu.  Overall move quality needs to be more consistent ...   In other words, if I don't feel like my chess brain is awake, I can choose to "not" make my move in CC, take a break, watch TV and get back to the board when I'm razor sharp again. ...  there is no such luxury in OTB => You have to "move" whether you're at your "peak performance" or not.

- Psychology:  Playing for cheapos, traps and  offbeat openings are more likely to work under limited time controls. I would bet more people would gladly resign in a losing position against a CC player but would keep fighting on OTB.

- Exploring lines deeply: I would bet that CC provides a medium for really sound and solid  chess, if one were to (and was capable of :))  grinding into lines that deeply. You could very well make your Kotov-like analysis trees and document them in your notes if you wanted to.   OTB is all about the win and making the best moves possible within a time budget. Finesse and 100% accuracy takes a backseat ...  I'd guess being more consistent at good move selection and being less error-prone usually determines who wins.

In correspondence chess sometimes I forget my plans or why something will not work.  I had a situation recently where I kept seeing a mate threat but all times but once I remembered that the knight was protecting the mating square.  It was the once that killed me.

Of course, the sarcastic side of me simply wants to say "it is easier to cheat in correspondance chess".

OTB chess is the real deal.... pounding heart, sweaty hands, nervous idiosyncrasies, a rush when finished. CC lacks the emotion and is less exciting.

OTB:  you only have the openings you know. no analysis board. no move explorer.

you have to notate your move yourself.  

like Shivsky said you don't have the luxury to postpone your move.

and you can get real nervous at the board. feel your heart beat.

at the board you need to have pokerface - do not reveal if you find out that you made a bad move. maybe the opponent will not see a potential tactic that you opened up for. but if you shake your head your opponent will start to search deeper.

Sometimes you can get a clue at the opponents plans just by looking at the opponents focus at the board.

I think psychology is a very important factor in OTB.

OTB you cannot control what happens around you. A rock band may rehearse in the basement below you. (it happend in a TEAM match against another club at their club)

I like OTB because you are all you got in chess. No help at all (like it should be)

All i know is I'm much better at correspondence chess. I went to a chess club a few weeks ago and played OTB with a timer (7 minutes each side) for the first time in years I was getting it handed to me. It made me realize that I need to start playing OTB more often. I think it shows you what kind of chess player you really are.

Unless you are playing Blitz (which is not recommended for players rated below 1700), you require about 3 hours in a row for an OTB  game - assuming you can find an opponent. OTOH correspondence chess (read online chess here) allows you to play only for a few mintes at a time if you wish. You can take as long as you want (within reason) for a move (today I took a half hour for one move of online chess here, but played other moves with only minutes of analysis).

Yesterday I left my Queen en prise and the day before I made a disastrous combination that assumed that a piece was still where it had been two move before, but still, I am making fewer blunders than before, my board vision is improving and I am winning most of my games against higher rated players.The "improvement" aspect is due to having recently returned to chess after many years of inactivity.

In sum, online or correspondence chess allows one to play serious chess without having to play for hours at a time.

I see players with 2500 in "online chess" with real elo of 1700. I see titled players with online rating close to their real rating. I see people with no title with ratings such as 2700.  

Explain.

"Online chess" means a lot of different things. There are dozens of ratings for different sites and types of play. Some of those are much easier to rack up high ratings in than others.

The difference is that OTB is played over the board, and not with that much time for each move.

Explanation :  engines !!  Simple ! 

I agree 100% with this and then there is also the social element in otb chess that is absent in online play. I have many friends that I have met through otb play and its fun to go out to meals with them and talk about chess during the meals.... some close friends I have made through chess become life long friends and we start doing things together besides just chess, like watching movies and sporting events together too. 

correspondence chess saves time and traveling but no match for OTB at all.  In OTB, we hardly know who we will play next and we have to bring all our knowledge and experience together and deliver on the spot in those few minutes of play. Correspondence chess gives us the luxury of knowing the opponent beforehand and time for preparation.

i like over the board better because your in the game you can sometimes read your opponents face to kind of see what they are thinking and in correspondense you dont i also play a lot of otb tournaments for uscf

You could also analyze/evaluate  their last played move. Works better than faces :)

I prefer OTB games for correspondence ones, because when playing OTB games one has to stay focused for that one game only, from the very start to the end. That's something I miss sometimes when playing correspondence ones. Maybe it's just laziness of my part (not writing notes), but I sometimes miss the ideas I was considering earlier in the game when I'm not making my move for couple of days. I also tend to put too much emphasis on databases, which may lead me to play positions, which might not be of my style and they also prevent me to think on my own and constructing my own plans in the position. Of course reading books and examining databases is essential in correspondence world, but if I can choose between those two, I'll pick OTB game anytime. Long online games are also I should do more (let's say 30 min + 30 sec incr or slower) and feel they should be beneficial to anyone's playing.