Han Schut
@hanschut
Chess coach, Chessable author, CM/NM YouTube: www.youtube.com/@HanSchut Chessable:
New In Chess 2026, issue 2, is out with reports on the FIDE candidates and the Prague Masters, interviews with Sindarov and his coach, remembering Jan Timman, Sadler on Bobby Fischer, and more. Now also available on Forward Chess!
New In Chess 2026#1 is out with Timman's last column, tournament reports on Tata Steel, WC Rapid, Blitz and Freestyle, interviews with Abdusattorov & Bluebaum, Gelfand analyzes recent games, Speelman on Hastings, Ntirlis shares opening novelties and Castellanos' Killer Chess Training Now 140 pages!
28.Bxa6! What a move by Wei Yi, especially as he had less than 5 minutes left and had to see the only move 31.Qa4 in advance. The game continued: 28. Bxa6 e5 29. Rd8 Rxd8 30. Rxd8 Ka7 31. Qa4 bxa6 32. Rd7+ Bxd7 33. Qxd7+ Kb6 1/2-1/2
Thanks! I need to delve deeper into Monte Carlo to fully understand your point. So far, I have not found it helpful in developing my chess skills. Matthias Wüllenweber, CEO of ChessBase, was kind and open enough to reply to my video.
White to play and win. From the game Aronian - Aronyak Ghosh after 23... Nf6 at the FIDE World Cup 2025. Solution in my reply.
Caruana just played 32... Nxb5. Gukesh played an elegant move to finish the game. Can you find it? (The answer is in my reply.)
Carlsen played 34... Nf4 and Gukesh resigned in this equal position! What did both Carlsen and Gukesh overlook? What should Carlsen have played instead of 34... Nf4?
New In Chess 2025#7 is out with a tournament report of the FIDE Grand Swiss, interviews with Giri and MVL, Timman on Caruana, and an article on @yoshaiglesias.bsky.social winning the French women's championship.
Black has a cute tactic based on a tactical motif that I was not aware of until I created my Chessable course 'Dragon Fire: Tactics for Black in the Sicilian Dragon'. White just played 13.Bxf6. Black to move and win.
From Step 4 Plus - Mini Plans. White to move activates their knight with Ng3, planning Ne4. How do you evaluate the position, and how would you play the position with Black? I was surprised by the engine's choice: 1.Ng3 e4!? 2.Nxe4 Re5!? 3.Nxf6 gxf6 =. Active defense based on concrete calculation.
Nakamura just resigned against Carlsen in a winning position. Just shows that even the best players prove to be mortal. White to move after 32... Bg4
New In Chess 2025#3 is out with tournament reports on the Prague Masters, the American Cup, the European Championship, an interview with Aravindh, remembering Boris Spasski, the English Chess in Schools program, Nate Solon on using K-MAP to evaluate a position and much more.
Carissa Yip's games are such a pleasure to follow! Position after 23.Bxc5 in the game Thalia Cervantes Landeiro - Carissa Yip. Carissa continued 23... Rb3! 24.Bxf8 Rxf3! and after 25.gxf3 Nf4, Black won quickly. #womeninchess
Last Saturday I got my beloved Dubov Explosive Italian on the board. In the position below, my opponent played the creative 14... Rxg7 with the idea 15.Qxg7 Qe4+. How does White win? #chesspunks
Pragg - Gukesh, Tata Steel Masters Tiebreaks The heartbreak when you lose first place in the Wimbledon of Chess by losing this position with Black 💔
Gukesh - Erigaisi, Tata Steel Masters Would you consider 14.Bf3 here? After 14... Bxf1 15.Qxf1 White is better. It reminds me of the Dragon variation where after 13.Bc5 Black continues 13... Be6.
Gukesh - Erigaisi, Tata Steel Masters 11.b4 is a novelty in human games but still in the Hiarcs openings book as it has been played in engine games before. The engine games continued 11.b4 d5 12.b5 with fire on the board!
Pragg - Sarana, Tata Steel Masters 21... Nb5? allowed for a nice finish starting with 22.Nxa6!
Van Foreest - Gukesh, Tata Steel Masters 🔥🔥🔥 Wow, first 34. Rxc4!! and then 39... Rxe5!!
Abdusattorov - Gukesh, Tata Steel Masters Would you play 18... Ne7 or 18... Nf4 ?