Best Blitz player ever - Page 2 - Chess and Board Game Strategy

^^QFT about the ratings.

At time there's been someone who beat out Nakamura for a top ICC rating by just blatantly abusing the system.

The thread is talking about blitz in general, or blitz as a whole (internet And live blitz play).

Who/how or is this not in regards to 5-min? Manually matched games are obviously very exploitable.

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08-06-2009 , 02:08 AM

#28

Viikatemies

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Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 377

From what you can read about Capablanca he must have been easily the most dominant blitz player of his time. Since there's no way to compare across different eras, the question whether he was the best of all time is impossible to answer.

One thing I remember was a quote of a strong player of the 1930s - I believe it was Reuben Fine, who said that he could play blitz against Alekhine and hold his own while getting absolutely smashed by Capablanca whenever he played blitz against him...

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08-06-2009 , 05:15 AM

#29

lastcardcharlie

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Quote:

Originally Posted by bigpooch

Of course, Petrrosian was on the decline when the famous Herceg Novi tournament was played in April 1970.

So too Tal, whereas Fischer was just about at the peak of his career. Do these results suggest that Tal at his peak might have been a match for Fischer? Also, how come Spassky wasn't there? Was he a good blitz player?

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08-06-2009 , 05:49 AM

#30

All-inMcLovin

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Quote:

Originally Posted by lastcardcharlie

Yes, I think thats a good argument for Tal in his prime to fight with Fischer in his.

Spassky was v. good at blitz, but he was best at having an awesome fresh Fro-Hawk.

example:

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08-06-2009 , 07:16 AM

#31

ZELIC

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Jere Karalahti ainec..

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08-06-2009 , 05:23 PM

#32

Ajezz

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Viikatemies

My very first chess book contained this position:

Capablanca - Lasker, blitz game 1914

I remember it well because I couldn't figure out the winning combination then. It's a bit easier now that I am stronger (and have time to think) but Capablanca had to find it very quickly (5 second blitz i.e. you have to move every 5 seconds). That really impressed me.

By the way, Kasparov argues (in Volume 1 of "My Predecessors") that this position did not actually appear in the game or that it was entirely a composition. Nonetheless, I like it very much.

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08-06-2009 , 06:53 PM

#33

Viikatemies

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Yeah, this is incredibly sick. I know for sure I'd never be able to spot the win within five seconds... it's almost study like.

And while we're at it, Lasker was reportedly a blitz hero too, but he had to yield to Capablanca... only to him, however...

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08-06-2009 , 08:55 PM

#34

bugstud

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the puzzle is easy presuming you know it's a puzzle?

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08-06-2009 , 09:09 PM

#35

bigpooch

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Quote:

Originally Posted by bugstud

the puzzle is easy presuming you know it's a puzzle?

Yes, very easy; a bit different if one were playing blitz. I'm not sure how this could have happened OTB: e.g., one could ask how did the position get reached? [ Sure, if it's a blitz game, almost anything can happen! ]

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08-07-2009 , 04:27 AM

#36

smilingbill

2011 2+2 Chess Champion

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http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/extra/keene.html

Quote:

Capablanca-Lasker, Berlin, 1914. The position did not occur in a game won by Capablanca, but was composed jointly by Capablanca and Lasker (see page 168 of The Unknown Capablanca and any number of other reliable books).

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08-07-2009 , 04:29 AM

#37

smilingbill

2011 2+2 Chess Champion

Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 1,458

Quote:

Originally Posted by bugstud

the puzzle is easy presuming you know it's a puzzle?

assuming you know that a pawn ending with a pawn on b5 and king on b6 always wins vs a lone king, yes

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08-07-2009 , 10:49 AM

#38

rumnchess

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I'm pretty sure Hikaru is a good answer and that it would almost have to be a modern player. Our minds are simply wired to think more quickly and we have become so adapt with technology that we can move almost instantly on the computer. If we're talking about 15 minute games, today's players would almost certainly not have an edge over guys like Fischer, but 5 minutes and under is a whole different animal, one that benefits our generation.

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08-08-2009 , 03:33 AM

#39

Viikatemies

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Quote:

Originally Posted by rumnchess

it would almost have to be a modern player. Our minds are simply wired to think more quickly and we have become so adapt with technology that we can move almost instantly on the computer

The question is if we're talking about the best online or the best in general. Because if we're talking about online, I'd buy your argument, otherwise I'd rather not.

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08-10-2009 , 10:33 AM

#40

KevinIzi

enthusiast

Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 63

If Nakamura is the best blitz player in the world, explain me why for 3 years he does not play the World Blitz Championship ? Obviously Anand and Aronian are above for the moment.
Ivantchuk is also really strong saw him winning the world championship i was in the room and he was really impressive.

but plz guys stop with Nakamura, just watch his games in the Mainz rapid. The guy is not playing chess but moving wood

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08-10-2009 , 01:28 PM

#41

All-inMcLovin

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Quote:

Originally Posted by KevinIzi

Hater itt.

It was probably a schedule conflict and that's why Nakamura didn't play in the World Blitz Championship in the last 3 years.

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08-10-2009 , 04:26 PM

#42

Paymenoworlater

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Quote:

Originally Posted by All-inMcLovin

The thread is talking about blitz in general, or blitz as a whole (internet And live blitz play).

hrrm
Chess played on a real board compared is a different game than internet chess, with time stamp, premove, autoflag, autoqueen, mouse quickness, size of chessboard (Obviously, the smaller the board, the less you have to make mouse movements and thereby save oceans of time.) etc etc
Cant compare these two since its not even remotely close.

Last edited by Paymenoworlater; 08-10-2009 at 04:33 PM.

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08-10-2009 , 04:53 PM

#43

swingdoc

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Paymenoworlater

Lolol.

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08-11-2009 , 04:32 AM

#44

Viikatemies

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Paymenoworlater

Quote:

Originally Posted by swingdoc

Lolol.

Maybe saying it is not remotely close is a little extreme, but the statement as such has definitely its merits. The mechanical skills needed for OTB blitz are completely different compared to those needed for online blitz.

There are some things like exploiting premoves that are simply absent in OTB blitz.

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08-11-2009 , 04:53 AM

#45

swingdoc

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Viikatemies

How did you just double quote that??!? That would be so useful. Anyway, I thought it was ridiculous/hilarious because half the stuff he listed is automatic. You don't have to learn how to auto-queen/flag, you just check it and forget it. The rest can be optimized or mastered in about 1 day if you have someone decent help you. Sure there are a few skills you'll need to learn to perform equivalently online, but actual chess skill is still going to comprise 95% of performance.

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08-11-2009 , 08:08 AM

#46

Dire

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Viikatemies

It's also apparently legal to premove in otb blitz.

I like the fact that online blitz takes out the unbalancing factors like if there's a time struggle and your pieces are close to the clock then you already have a huge edge in otb blitz. Stuff like that just seems kind of silly.

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08-11-2009 , 08:41 AM

#47

Noir_Desir

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Would be interested to see it, but at the moment i highly doubt Nakamura is the best Blitz player in the world. He is an awesome chess player and i understand you Americans are crazy about him, but i assume Topalov, Anand or Kramnik are still far enough ahead of him in general chess understanding that they would crush him in Blitz too.

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08-11-2009 , 09:45 AM

#48

YouKnowWho

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Noir_Desir

[x] Nakamura is an awesome chess player
[x] Americans are crazy about him
[x] Topalov, Anand and Kramnik are far ahead of Nakamura in general chess understanding.
[ ] Topalov, Anand and Kramnik would crush Nakamura in blitz
[ ] Nakamura is the best blitz player in the world.
[x] you will get megaflamed for that post.
[?]...profit?