Today's Lesson

Forks - attacking two pieces at the same time. Any piece can deliver a fork but Knights are best. Pawns are also very good. Look for that pattern. At the end of the game as the pieces get captured, the queen be can deliver some nasty forks. Worksheets had good results.

Next Tournament : Saturday Oct 14 Sections for Grades 3-5, and 6-8 at the Diamonhead Educational Center in Burnsville. Register on-line at www.schoolchess.org. Cost is about $26. Lunch can be purchased on site. Begins at 8:30 done at about 2:00 or maybe longer if you're getting an award.

Opening of the Week: Caro-Kann

The Karo-Kann defense is an opening for black. In response to 1. e4, Black chooses an alternative move instead of e5. Actually there are many different good moves Black could make that control the center and also open paths for Black pieces while also restricting White's choices. One such move Black can play is c6 which attacks d5 which is one of the four middle squares. It opens a path for Black's queen while closing the b5 square for White's bishop.

White will often play 2. d4. White now has two strong pawns occupying and attacking the center. Black now makes the second move of the Caro-Kann - 2. ... d5. Black's plan is to play Bf5 when he can and then e6 with plenty of mobility for his dark bishop. The board now looks like this:

It's White's move and he has lot's of good choices:

Nc3 attacks and defends the center pawn, but blocks his c-pawn. Nd2 protects his pawn but now the c-pawn is still free to advance. exd5 opens up the board a bit after the exchange of the center pawns. e5 locks up Black's pawns and limits his g-knight.

Ratings

Merit	Name	4-Oct
22.5	Cavan	711
16.3	Simon	555
12.3	Thomas	546
3	Q	520
	Alex	229
	Jack	192
	Audrey	154
	Santi	137
	Eldrych	127
	Harrison	124
	William	121
	Soren	121
	Hunter	105