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I'm Coach Nic (FM Nicholas Van Der Nat), FIDE Master and FIDE Trainer. Start with a $130 Strategy Assessment: chessexcellence.com/coaching

I coach adult improvers one on one over Zoom to break rating plateaus with logical, structured chess. Chess Excellence has been established to provide chess players of all playing strengths with quality training and opportunities and so enable them to improve their skill levels. Chess Excellence further strives to provide it's members, as well as players at large with opportunities to experience the benefits and enjoyment of Chess. In addition to the above, Chess Excellence will strive to introduce and improve Chess in as many schools as possible. This initiative will not be limited to High and Primary Schools but will also include Nursery Schools and Crèches. Chess Excellence is not affiliated or aligned to any union or association and is open to players of all strengths, from beginner to expert, irrespective of age or gender. Benefits of Chess...

For centuries chess has enhanced critical thinking skills, improved the application of science and mathematics, as well as language, arts, reading and English. Chess is an effective learning tool that also helps its students to:

Solve complex problems & mature intellectually; Concentrate & plan ahead, Improve social skills; Make personal & team commitments; Measure achievement & accomplishments. For many youth and adults, these valuable skills create a solid foundation for a bright future. The benefits of Chess are well documented. One only has to Google "Benefits of Chess" with any of the popular search engines to find pages and pages of references. Chess is an all inclusive sport. It does not discriminate as to age, gender, race, able and disabled. Visually impaired or physically disabled people can compete in tournaments against sighted and able players on an equal footing.

10/30/2026

If it were your opponent's move, what would they play?

That single question is one of the best tools in chess. Grunfeld asked it here and the answer was obvious. Black had just played Bd6 so that c5 would come next and free the whole position.

So White played c5 himself. Now the pawn on c6 is fixed as a permanent weakness that something always has to guard, and the bishop sitting behind it has nothing left to do.

Want the whole series? The free Logical Chess course walks through all 33 games. The link is in the first comment.

10/30/2026

You are slightly better, your opponent turtles up, and the game fizzles into a draw. Sound familiar?

Janowsky tried exactly that against Capablanca: block everything and wait. Capablanca had only a small edge, and he turned it into a win by stopping counterplay first, bringing his king in, and only then opening lines.

From Game 10 of my Capablanca's Best Chess Endings series, Capablanca vs Janowsky.

Want the whole series? The free Capablanca endgame series takes you through his best endings one lesson at a time. The link is in the first comment.

10/30/2026

Why has your opponent not castled yet?

Grunfeld stopped and asked exactly that. Black had kept the king in the middle on purpose and was heading for the queenside. So White played Ne5, a square where the knight does real work, and castling long now runs into Nxf7 forking both rooks.

That is prophylaxis. Not pure prevention, but a move that helps your position while it takes opportunities away from your opponent.

Want the whole series? The free Logical Chess course walks through all 33 games. The link is in the first comment.

10/30/2026

Your opponent offers a rook trade. Should you take it?

Not if your rook is the better one. Capablanca's rook is active and White's is passive, so he declines, gives a check and walks his king to d4. Every white move now loses material. Try to win the trades, and do not rush to take material.

From Game 9 of my Capablanca's Best Chess Endings series, Carranza vs Capablanca, 1911.

Want the whole series? The free Capablanca endgame series takes you through his best endings one lesson at a time. The link is in the first comment.

10/29/2026

White to play and win.

The black king is bare on f8 and the white queen already stands on h7. Look at the bishop on b7. It cannot touch a single light square near its own king, so around that king Black is effectively a piece down.

Pause, find the move, then watch me show the answer.

Post your move below. Want the whole series? The free Logical Chess course walks through all 33 games. The link is in the first comment.

10/29/2026

A pawn break opens a file. The question is when.

Capablanca waits until both his rooks sit on the a file and White's are not ready to contest it. Only then does he break with ...a4, checks first with the c pawn, and takes the file for good. You have the space, so you decide when the file opens.

From Game 9 of my Capablanca's Best Chess Endings series, Carranza vs Capablanca, 1911.

Want the whole series? The free Capablanca endgame series takes you through his best endings one lesson at a time. The link is in the first comment.

10/29/2026

One weakness ties them down. The second one wins the game.

White never won the pawn on c6. He fixed it, attacked it, and let Black's pieces shrink around it. Only then did he switch wings. With the bishop buried on b7 and the rook glued to the c file, the light squares next to the black king were simply holes, and Qc2 pointed the queen and bishop straight at them.

That is the principle of two weaknesses, and it is the idea that separates master play from club play. Tie your opponent to one problem, then open a second front where their defenders cannot reach.

Want the whole series? The free Logical Chess course walks through all 33 games. The link is in the first comment.

10/29/2026

Playing a stronger opponent? Trading off every piece will not get you the draw.

Carranza blitzed the opening and traded queens and minor pieces, hoping a bare rook ending would be easy to hold. Capablanca still had more space and a queenside majority, and he used both to win. Fewer pieces does not mean fewer problems.

From Game 9 of my Capablanca's Best Chess Endings series, Carranza vs Capablanca, 1911.

Want the whole series? The free Capablanca endgame series takes you through his best endings one lesson at a time. The link is in the first comment.

10/28/2026

You do not always have to win the weak pawn.

b4 nails the c6 pawn down for good. Black can never play c5, so the pawn stays where it is and stays weak. Noteboom never won it, and he never needed to. Black's rook and that unhappy light squared bishop spent the rest of the game babysitting it, which left White free to improve everywhere else.

Take this into your own games. When your opponent has a weak pawn, your first thought is not to win it. Your first thought is to make sure it can never move.

Want the whole series? The free Logical Chess course walks through all 33 games. The link is in the first comment.

10/28/2026

The win is there, but every direct try fails. So Capablanca does nothing. On purpose.

Ask what your opponent would do if they had the move. If the white king moves, the black king walks in. If the bishop moves, same result. So Capablanca plays the waiting move ...Bc7 and forces White to move. That is zugzwang.

From Game 8 of my Capablanca's Best Chess Endings series, Leonhardt vs Capablanca, San Sebastian 1911.

Want the whole series? The free Capablanca endgame series takes you through his best endings one lesson at a time. The link is in the first comment.

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