Interesting Chess Quotes

Originally posted by ChessPraxis
"You Colle playing, rabbit breeding, skirt wearing FREAK!!" ChessPraxis

Originally posted by ketchuplover
What does his having a coach have to do with his being a coach?

Originally posted by Paul Leggett
Maybe this isn't a great fit for the thread, but it has stayed with me forever...

I didn't start playing rated chess until I was in college. In one of my very first tournaments I was sitting in the round at the board, and it was extremely quiet, even for a chess tournament.

All of a sudden one of my new chess friends named Floyd Manzo (he was in ...[text shortened]... I will be in the middle of a round, and I will suddenly sit up, think of Floyd, and smile!

Originally posted by Paul Leggett
Maybe this isn't a great fit for the thread, but it has stayed with me forever...

I didn't start playing rated chess until I was in college. In one of my very first tournaments I was sitting in the round at the board, and it was extremely quiet, even for a chess tournament.

All of a sudden one of my new chess friends named Floyd Manzo (he was in ...[text shortened]... I will be in the middle of a round, and I will suddenly sit up, think of Floyd, and smile!

"My Center is giving way, my Queenside is in retreat; situation excellent. I shall attack."

Larsen borrowing a quote from a famous General.

The post that was quoted here has been removed

Originally posted by greenpawn34
"My Center is giving way, my Queenside is in retreat; situation excellent. I shall attack."

Larsen borrowing a quote from a famous General.

"Show me three variations in the leading handbook on the openings, and I will show you two of those three that are defective."- Emanuel Lasker
(When I read it, I expected it to be by GP)

If any of the three lines is not an opening trap then all three are defective. 🙂

I recall setting my Estrin Trap in a tournament game against a 2000+ player.

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 6. Nd5


If 7...Nxe4 8.Bb5+ and Qe2 gives White a super-duper attack and often a quick White win.

His mate sitting next to him nodded and indicated he wanted to talk to me.
I left the board and he said:

"It's OK playing exciting chess.....but setting cheap opening traps against a good player?"

I replied:

"If he is any good then how come he had ended up playing a bum like me?"

(The game was drawn.)

"Don't play the opponent, Play the position!"

- No clue who it originally comes from. My coach used to say it all the time.

The process of rating players can be compared to the measurement of the position of a cork bobbing up and down on the surface of agitated water with a yard stick tied to a rope and which is swaying in the wind.

Arpad Elo

Hi Yash.

Sound advice but it can be a bit flexible.

In certain circumstances, sometimes the correct move is not always the best move.
It often depends on who you are playing.

Wild attacking players hate defending. Iron logic postional players dislike
messy positions where they cannot grip on a plan.

There are quite a few examples of where a player explains he chose a move
not to suit the position but to cross their opponent.

The classic and most often cited example is Tarrasch V Lasker 1908
from the master of such strategy.


Lasker played 16...Rc5

Kasparov wrote something like Lasker played this to get Tarrasch out
of his comfort zone.

Lasker wrote:
"The Rook must be dangerously exposed so as to draw the brunt of the attack."

Any other Black move in the above position subjects Black to a miserable
defence and would fall in with Tarrasch's boa constrictor style which he was very
very good at. The 'correct' moves are either 16...Nf6 and 16...Nc5 but are they the best moves?

very well said. even on our lower level these thoughts are coming, maybe only with a glance at the rating difference, but still...

sometimes it is important to remember, that the position counts only (don't get intimidated by high ratings). sometimes is good to look up the opponents plaing history and get a feel for, what he likes or not...

Originally posted by yashin
"Don't play the opponent, Play the position!"

- No clue who it originally comes from. My coach used to say it all the time.