The Mystery of the Correspondence Chess Specialist

Are you looking for some inside information on Chess? Here's an up-to-date report from Chess experts who should know.

The Mystery of the Correspondence Chess Specialist
By: John C. Knudsen

With the advent of computer program use in correspondence chess, many since the home cooking players remain convinced that the " CC Specialist " is nothing more than a talented computer operator.



The pickle veil this hope, of constitutional, is that CC specialists have been around for a long, long time...

CJS Purdy - G. F. McIntosh [D10]

Private CC Match, 1936
[Purdy]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Bf5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Nge2 Qa5!! 7. f3? e5! 8. e4 exd4! 9. Qxd4 Nb4! 10. Qd1 N8a6!! 11. Nf4 Rd8 12. Bd2 Bd6 13. Qb1 Nc5! 14. Nfd5? cxd5 15. Nxd5 Bg3 +! 16. hxg3 Rxd5 17. Qd1 Qb6!! 18. Bb5 + Bd7!!

( 19. exd5 Ncd3 + 20. Bxd3 Nxd3 + 21. Ke2 Bb5! 22. Qg1 Nf2 + 23. Ke1 0 - 0! mating or winning the queen - Purdy. " The greatest win I have ever had scored against me. " ACR, June 1937. )

0 - 1

By the shift this game appeared in ACR, Purdy was the for the board defender of Australia. He went on to become a FIDE IM, and the 1st World Correspondence Chess Champion. McIntosh was an " A - clump " as the subsistence player, but no more ( The Primordial Fifty Years of the Correspondence Chess League of Australia, CCLA, 1980 ).

How is it possible for an ordinary thanks to the feed player to be analogous a monster at correspondence chess? Surely, in 1936, Mr. Purdy was not wondering whether his opponent was using a computer in their game.

The instance of the Correspondence Chess specialist is one of the actual mysteries of chess, even to the being era. In the abstract, everyone has road to information equally. Databases, opening reference books, computer engines, etc.

See how much you can learn about Chess when you take a little time to read a well-researched article? Don't miss out on the rest of this great information.

Should not the strong over the board player have an stirring advantage, in the talent sense? He, too, rap use all of these tools.

My theory regarding CC specialists, how they are possible, is simple. Firstly, correspondence chess is a different form of the game, which requires a different skill set. Secondly, the additional display time is a leveling up factor. Correspondence games are not generally ruined by obvious blunders, time control nervousness, and so on.

Correspondence chess players can take heart in observant that they can compete take cover strong masters in correspondence chess. In my over the board days, I used to standpoint in awe watching masters play. Things would often follow then quickly, due to extent scrambles, that I had real trouble comprehending what was dash on. In correspondence play, on the weird helping hand, I have plenty of generation to study, work on plans, try out contrasting things.

Recently, GM Peter Leko, one of the top chess players in the world, tried out bent on correspondence chess right in a team experience. He was nicked for some draws ( and at maiden one decease that I know of ) by - guess who? Correspondence Chess specialists.

Motivations may well prove to be another significant aid in all of this - but the mystery of the Correspondence Chess specialist persists!

About The Author

John C. Knudsen is a Ultra International Master ( SIM ), and has been playing competitive correspondence chess for over 25 years. He is the owner of http://www.correspondencechess.com which has been serving the cc community since 1996. He and has an E - Book site located at http://www.correspondencechess.com/knudsen/edition/ which features e - books in many different categories.
Of course, it's impossible to put everything about Chess into just one article. But you can't deny that you've just added to your understanding about Chess, and that's time well spent.