Queens Gambit Tactics: Chess Opening Combinations and Checkmates

This Queens Gambit Tactics book gives you 500 positions from actual games that use combinations and checkmates. All games in this popular opening follow after the moves 1.d4 d5 2.c4. Queen’s Gambit includes such variations as the Baltic (2…Bf5) and the Marshall (2…Nf6), the Chigorin Defence (2…Nc6), the Albin Counter-Gambit (2…e5), Slav Defence (2…c6), Queen’s Gambit Accepted (2…dxc4), the Queen’s Gambit Declined (2…e6) with several options, or Semi-Slav (…e6 and …c6). The Queens Gambit teaches you to fight for a win in a classical pawn structure. When you run toward tactics, you run toward success. Tactics help you to attack and defend accurately. This book shows winning positions played by masters for hundreds of years. In fact, 70 games included were played in the year 2020. If you’re good at tactics, you’re good at chess. Opening theory may help you start well. Endgame knowledge may help you finish well. Tactical skill helps you win games and avoid losses. Tactics include pins, forks, removing the defender, attacking two pieces at the same time, and threatening to mate your opponent. The easiest path to tactical success is to recognize patterns that occur frequently in your favorite chess openings. Grandmasters know tactics and can easily slide from one opening to another. Everyone knows a few positions. Here’s 500 in Queen’s Gambit. Tactical knowledge helps you to improve your winning chances. Take your opponent’s pieces. Pick off the pawns. Mate the king! Don’t rely on dumb luck. How can “dumb luck” allow you to win? You can win a few games when your opponent makes dumb moves. That’s when your opponent gives up a piece for nothing. You’re lucky when your opponent fails to defend a mate in one. To advance, you need more than dumb luck. You need tactics. Author Tim Sawyer has played the Queen’s Gambit for 50 years. He intentionally omitted the apostrophe in the word “Queens” in the title of this book for stylistic preference. The purpose of this book is to illustrate and teach the Queen’s Gambit Tactics. It is assumed you can read algebraic chess notation. The White pieces are positioned at the bottom of each diagram. Above each diagram note who can move and win. It’s either White to play a tactical move or Black to play a tactical move. Some moves are simple and easy. Others are subtle and tricky. That’s chess – lots of obvious moves and lots of sneaky moves. Look at each diagram. It’s a key position ready for a tactical win. The final moves are in bold with a brief analysis or comment. Chess engines were used to ensure the accuracy of analysis. Follow the moves in your mind. The skill to visualize each new position without moving pieces improves your tactical strength. Queen’s Gambit allows you to develop and attack the center with your entire army. The combination of pawns and pieces makes for increased winning tactical possibilities. This book helps you discover strong moves after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 with a brief comment. White has many reliable strategies to play for an advantage, but Black always has reasonable options to fight back. Note that it is not a risky gambit since White can regain the pawn after 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 with a simple 3.Qa4+ followed by 4.Qxc4. This third move check is rarely played because other variations are better.Black maintains flexibility with the plan to counter attack at the earliest possible moment. Either player may sacrifice a pawn, a piece, or the Exchange to speed up the attack. Any action in the center can turn quickly toward the kingside for early checkmates. Games are arranged by ECO (Encyclopedia of Chess Openings) coding (D06 to D69) from less popular to more popular moves. Ideas in this book come from the Queen’s Gambit, but take note: These same tactical patterns work in other chess openings too. World champions have played Queen’s Gambit from both sides. Improve your chess. Go for the win!