{"id":458,"date":"2022-06-26T15:58:38","date_gmt":"2022-06-26T15:58:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/thegroceryshop\/?p=458"},"modified":"2022-06-26T15:58:38","modified_gmt":"2022-06-26T15:58:38","slug":"best-chessable-courses-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/localhost\/thegroceryshop\/best-chessable-courses-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"Best Chessable Courses 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
In 2019, I wrote my first yearly wrap-up of the best chess books I have read<\/a>, with the hope that it will become an annual tradition. I was, fortunately, able to write the 2nd iteration in the series this year, as well<\/a>, and am planning to continue doing so in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, in 2020 I also started working at Chessable \u2013 a company that sells interactive digital online courses. I immediately realized making a similar \u201eBest of\u201c list would be helpful for Chessable in terms of spreading the word about Chessable\u2019s products, but also from the perspective of SEO and backlink building. But I also believed it might be helpful for users to have a lot of information in one place and to get an insight about certain courses from someone who has actually already studied them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thus, since I am not only a Chessable employee, but also a very enthusiastic user of the platform, 1<\/sup><\/a> I have decided to start another tradition of writing annual wrap-up posts related to Chessable courses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, before we get to an actual list, there is a disclaimer I would like to point out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though the title of this post is \u201eBest Chessable Courses 2020\u201c, it is highly subjective as it refers to the Chessable courses that appealed to me. It does not apply that the 10 courses below are BETTER than other Chessable courses \u2013 merely that there are subjective or less subjective reasons (the topic, choice of variations, style of analysis, author\u2019s way of presenting things) why I spent more time studying them than some others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, I won\u2019t deny the quality of the content varies on Chessable and that \u201equality\u201c wasn\u2019t a factor when assembling this list at all. But the list of high-quality courses available on the platform is far greater than 10 and it will only increase in the future, so I had to put a stop somewhere and judge them using more subjective criteria. 2<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Also, this post does not necessarily refer to the courses published in 2020. I have included some courses published way back in the day. The aim of this post is to single out 10 of my favorite courses that are available on the platform at the end of 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With that being said, let me present you with a list of the best Chessable courses in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hope you will enjoy it and find it useful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What is the course about?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Chessable\u2019s Lifetime Repertoires are opening courses that tend to provide the user with an overall, long-lasting repertoire based on a certain move (1. e4 or 1.d4 for White) or against a certain move (1. e4 or 1. d4 as Black). Lifetime Repertoires: Caro-Kann is, thus, an overall repertoire against 1. e4 revolving around the move 1\u2026c6.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The course covers every possible reply at White\u2019s disposal after 1.e4 c6. And when I say every, I really mean every. Apart from all the main lines such as the Advance variation and Classical variation, L\u2019Ami also covers things like Fantasy variation, Exchange variation, Panov Botvinnik and even goes as far to cover all the sidelines on move 2 such as 2.d3!?, 2. b3!?, 2. f4!? and many others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why have I included it on this list?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though I have been primarily playing the Modern Defence against 1.e4, for a long time I have been pretty aware I do need a more reliable weapon. I have been kinda aware that Sicilian might be a good choice, but have been lazy to pick it up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As an \u201ein-between\u201c solution, I have ventured some Caro-Kann without knowing too much theory in the past and have had relatively decent results. 3<\/sup><\/a> I decided I might use some theoretical knowledge, so when Erwin\u2019s course came out, I started studying it slowly and have also used it to prepare for one or two league games of mine this year (which ultimately ended in a draw).<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are several reasons why this course is simply outstanding. First of all, it is very deeply and thoroughly analyzed. Erwin is the former second of Veselin Topalov and the current second of GM Anish Giri and it definitely tells throughout the course.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, it is not only about the analysis itself \u2013 the course is also deeply annotated and full of subvariations that explain finer points of the position to great detail. Erwin is not only a strong analyst but also a \u201eman of chess culture\u201c and he also provides detailed historical background and a nice overview of the developments in the Caro-Kann throughout recent years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last but not least, Erwin is a very enthusiastic and engaged user of Chessable who really had a deep understanding of Chessable as a platform and it really tells throughout the course. Wherever possible, he went an extra mile to make the learning experience enjoyable \u2013 he even included multiple weapons to battle White\u2019s most common moves (3\u2026c5 and 3\u2026Bf5 against the Advance variation and 4\u2026Bf5 and 4\u2026Nf6) against the Classical variation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He is also very active in the course forums and very fast to reply and clarify any questions a user might potentially have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So long story short, it is very clear that this course is a labor of love and that Erwin spent almost 3 months working on it and I would whole-heartedly recommend it to any chess player considering playing the Caro Kann as Black.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What is the course about?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This course was the first course on Chessable created by elite GM.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the title suggests, French Toast: How Harikrishna fries 1\u2026e6 is a \u201eAnti French Defence course\u201c. GM Pentala Harikrishna provides the student with a repertoire against the French Defence revolving around the main move 3. Nc3 (1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3).<\/p>\n\n\n\n The \u201emeat and potatoes\u201c of the course are two main lines of the French: Winawer with 3\u2026Bb4 and Steinitz with 3\u2026Nf6. Harikrishna doesn\u2019t go for the mainlines and chooses relatively more rare variations (4. exd5 against the Winawer and 4. e5 Nfd7 5. Nce2!? against the Steinitz) and tries to demonstrate that they are more practical than main theoretical lines, yet that they also contain a lot of venom for the Black player.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He also covers all the possible replies by Black on move 3, including the offbeat systems such as 3\u2026Nc6, 3\u2026h6, 3\u2026a6, and many others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why have I included it on this list?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Just like many other club players, I have struggled against the French Defence for ages, so when I saw GM Harikrishna publishing an Anti-French repertoire, I didn\u2019t hesitate twice to buy it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And even though many books in the past have provided white with weapons against 1.e4 e6, (such as Parimarjan Negi\u2019s famous Volume 1 of his 1.e4 series) none of them appealed to me as much as this one. I really liked Harikrishna\u2019s choice of lines as I have found them more practical indeed + I have also realized many Black players don\u2019t encounter them as often as other attempts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That is especially true of all the sidelines on move 3, where Hari provides easy and clear-cut solutions and emphasized understanding over memorization. The main lines of the course are far more demanding, theoretical, and difficult to learn, but in my opinion, they are worth it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n My results against 3\u2026Nf6, in particular, have improved tremendously after picking up Hari\u2019s proposed plan with 4. e5 Nfd7 5. Nce2 as I found the overall concept of reinforcing the center with c3, placing the bishop on d3 and knight on f4 very intuitive (even though it is not that simple, of course).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Unfortunately, I can\u2019t say the same for the lines against 3\u2026Bb4, as they haven\u2019t appealed to me to the same extent. But to be fair, I haven\u2019t devoted a similar amount of attention to them and tried employing them in my own games to have any concrete evidence for my hypothesis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In any case, this is yet another Chessable course where you have an opportunity to experience super-GM level of analysis first hand, yet despite that the course is not overly long.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So if you are searching for a weapon against the French Defence, I can definitely recommend it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n <\/a><\/strong>What is the course about?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This course is a Chessable implementation of the famous New in Chess Book, accompanied by a video presentation by GM David Smerdon personally. You can find more details about the book in my post about best chess books 202<\/a>0<\/a> where I wrote about it in greater detail, but in a nutshell \u2013 the book covers the topic of swindling 4<\/sup><\/a> and tries to create a framework that can help you become better at swindling in your own games.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why have I included it on this list?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n For the same reason I have included it on my best chess book list \u2013 it is a fun, entertaining and engaging read and I found our adaptation very good. It is true that some exercises are very demanding (as it is not your typical chess tactics course), but I think trying to find the \u201eswindling\u201c move works really well in Chessable\u2019s Movetrainer format.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I also found Smerdon\u2019s videos quite brilliant \u2013 his presentation is very energetic, lively and entertaining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What is the course about?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This repertoire from the Lifetime Repertoires series, made by the current world nr. 11 5<\/sup><\/a> is devoted to the most complicated and famous variation of the Sicilian of them all \u2013 the Najdorf Sicilian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In this course, Giri covers every possible reply against 1. e4 c5 White can throw at us \u2013 including the ever so popular Bongcloud with 2. Ke2.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, the main chapters of the course are devoted to the famous position arising after 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6!?. Giri\u2019s choice is to go for the pure Najdorf setup with \u2026e5, and not for the Scheveningen setup with \u2026e6 as often as possible (with the notable exception being the move 6. Bg5!?).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why have I included it on this list?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n As mentioned above, I have been toying with the idea of starting to learn the Sicilian for ages now, but have been daunted by it forever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once I saw a super-GM is creating a course on it on a platform that makes it very convenient for me to study opening theory, I decided I can\u2019t fool myself into postponing it any further. And even though the course just came out recently and I have studied only one chapter, I can already say that decision was definitely the correct one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are several aspects why I think this is a great course:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The only drawback I have noticed so far is the number of variations that end in a forced-draw\/repetition\/perpetual. But the majority of them are long, forced variations where White plays very computerish sacrificial moves and I am not sure how likely they are to appear in practice \u2013 especially on the club level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In any case, I am definitely planning to learn this course and start playing more Najdorf in the future and I hope this review might entice someone else to start doing the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What is the course about?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This course is a Chessable adaptation of another famous New in Chess book, 100 Endgames You Must Know, written by International Master Jesus de La Villa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is a \u201eshortened Endgame Theory\u201c book that provides the reader with 100 theoretical endgames the author considers every player should know. The Chessable version comes with more than 20 hours of video instruction by everyone\u2019s favorite International Master John Bartholomew.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why have I included it on this list?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Everybody who has ever played against me knows my endgame technique has been my Achilles heel. I have tried working on this aspect of the game in my past and have even read 100 Endgames You Must Know in paper form, long before it was available on Chessable (or before I was aware it was available, there).<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, in contrast to game collections where I enjoy setting the board anew and playing through the games, I found this task in the context of 100 Endgames You Must Know (and other endgame books) quite time-consuming. I also found out I have trouble remembering key positions and reviewing the content from the book that needs reviewing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thus, I decided to give it a try on Chessable and thought it is great I just need to click a button to have a position ready and that I am able to review the material periodically to improve the learning process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In general, I honestly think Chessable\u2019s MoveTrainer works really well for Endgame books and that the possibility to \u201edrill\u201c the positions in a short period of time is very helpful for memorizing key theoretical endgame positions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What is the course about?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of the readers of the blog might recall the name of Polish FM Kamil Plichta<\/a> and how in his interview back in February 2019 he expressed his ultimate dream is to make a living out of chess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ever since, Kamil has managed to fulfill his dream and become a Chessable celebrity and \u201esuperauthor\u201c and currently has 13 courses published under<\/a> his name (with more to come).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Break The Rules: Play the Trompowsky was Kamil\u2019s first course for the platform, in which provides White with an opening repertoire against 1.d4 Nf6, based on move 2. Bg5!?. The repertoire covers all possible Black moves on move 2 and provides the user with some fascinating sacrificial lines after 2\u2026 Ne4 3. h4!? (the Raptor variation) and 2\u2026c5 3.d5 Qb6 4. Nc3 Qxb2 5. Bd2 (the Vaganian Gambit).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why have I included it on this list?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n There are numerous and highly subjective reasons why this course is featured on this list, and I will try to present them one by one:<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are some drawbacks \u2013 there are some lines that have presented me personally with some problems. I am not very fond of facing 2\u2026e6 and I am also not very keen on dealing with 2\u2026d5 3. Bxf6 exf6. Kamil also initially had some small analytical oversights (such as 2\u2026d5 3. Bxf6 gxf6 4. c4 e5!? that basically kills that line), but considering it was his very first Chessable repertoire, those things are perfectly understandable. 6<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n But it has to be pointed out that Kamil is one of the most agile and hard-working authors to deal with the drawbacks in his courses. He is very quick to reply to the questions, he is constantly monitoring and updating his repertoires and his Trompowsky course has gone through at least one major overhaul since its first launch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So for everyone who seeks a practical and less theoretical weapon after 1. d4 Nf6 that is not the dreaded London System, I can highly recommend the Tromp \u2018a la Kamil\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What is the course about?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the things we first learn when we start learning chess is the basic chess principles like develop your pieces, occupy the center, bring your king to safety. However, through his work as a chess coach, IM Andras Toth made an observation that many club level players disregard the principles once they continue their chess journey and start climbing the rating ladder. That is why he decided to create a three-part Chessable series aimed at reminding us of their importance starting with Chess Principles Reloaded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n CPR: Center is the first course in the series devoted to the topic of central control. The course consists of a number of annotated games where one side utilizes the central control to achieve a swift, and often very attractive, victory. The games are presented by the man of the hour, IM Andras Toth himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why have I included it on this list?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n I have a confession to make. Even though my guilty pleasure is watching \u201enon-instructive\u201c chess videos of people playing chess, I was never the person who enjoys watching a lot of \u201einstructive\u201c chess content and have always preferred to learn things from books\/courses\/on my own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Andras\u2019 videos are a rare exception. I find his presentation delightful and utterly hilarious. The way he explains ideas clearly and concisely, his constant bashing of the London system and his emphasis on the importance of \u201ecentaaaah\u201c have greatly appealed to me. I have enjoyed watching the entire video series from minute one until the very end. I am not sure if there is a secret ingredient in the Australian air that makes people like Andras and Smerdon so energetic and entertaining, but I can definitely recommend watching their content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, that is not to say that course is all mindless entertainment. The choice of games is very interesting, the selection of puzzles also very well done and the course did lamp that \u2018A-H-A\u2019 bulb inside my head when it came to thinking about Chess Principles. It is also one of the rare courses on Chessable that has an almost perfect user rating (4.9\/5.0 based on 106 user ratings) and I believe it is fantastic for people below 1800 (or even 2000) rating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last but not least, I have also developed a friendly (Twitter) relationship with Andras and I am very happy to see his course(s) doing really well and am happy to recommend them!<\/p>\n\n\n\n What is the course about?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though we have a huge catalog of courses on Chessable, there are still some gaps remaining and one of the bigger ones is the content on the Open Sicilian for White.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Complete Open Sicilian for White by National Master mn79 7<\/sup><\/a> is a course aimed at filling this gap. In this two-part series, NM mn79 aims to provide White with an overall anti-Sicilian repertoire based on the Open Sicilian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Volume 1 covers all the 2nd move sidelines, the e6 Sicilian, Accelerated Dragon, Nc6 sidelines, Kalashnikov and Sveshnikov.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why have I included it on this list?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the beauties of Chessable is that one can easily find \u201ehidden gems\u201c \u2013 courses that don\u2019t get that much publicity, but which provide really good content. The Complete Open Sicilian for White is one such course. It is a very practical and not overly complicated repertoire against all Sicilian mainlines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I really liked it because the author managed to strike a nice balance between length and usefulness. The repertoire is not overall, grandiose and \u201ecutting-edge\u201c as some other repertoires such as Lifetime Repertoires, but it is nevertheless very decently researched and offers very decent and playable lines, aimed at getting some advantage. I primarily used it to study the Maroczy lines against the Accelerated Dragon and I really liked the author\u2019s work and recommendations in that chapter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It may not withstand the scrutiny of Master level and above, but I think it is a perfect starting point for club players who want to get some ideas on how to handle the Sicilian and then potentially build upon that knowledge as they progress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Therefore, if you are looking for something not overly lengthy and practical, I can definitely recommend this one (and Vol 2 of the series<\/a>). If not, well, let me just say we have a lot of surprises in store for 2021 :).<\/p>\n\n\n\n What is the course about?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Chessforlife is an experienced and rather well known Chessable Community (untitled) author who has already made several very ambitious repertoires aimed at refuting lesser-known\/slightly dubious defences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In this course, he provides the student with a sharp repertoire against the Pirc and my beloved Modern revolving around the Austrian Attack (early f4) and around Philidor Mainline (1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 e5 4. Nf3 Nbd7 7. Bc4).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why have I included it on this list?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though Chessforlife is not a titled player, his repertoires are very ambitious and sharp and very well received within the Chessable community. For each and every one of them, he spends a lot of time analyzing various possibilities with top engines and offering very concrete, \u201eI play for a big advantage\u201c variations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Out of his all courses, this one appealed to me the most because:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, when relying heavily on chess engines, there is always a danger that the human factor is completely disregarded and lines are too abstract to learn. To be fair, there have been some complaints in that regard related to Chessforlife repertoires and I also think some longer lines could be more deeply annotated and explained. I can understand why some lower-rated players, in particular, could have a hard time grasping the material provided in these courses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But in general, I think this approach is suitable perfectly for repertoires aimed against offbeat\/slightly dubious defenses and that chess is a concrete game where it is worth to go for this maximalist approach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So if anyone is looking for very sharp and critical attempts to refute these setups, I can highly recommend Chessforlife\u2019s courses \u2013 especially this one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What is the course about?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n <\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This course created by your trully is a repertoire for Black revolving around the move 1\u2026g6. Despite its title, the main focus of this repertoire are White setups arising after 1. e4 and it also includes the Averbakh variation with 1.d4.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are some plans to turn it into an overall repertoire and include 1. c4, 1. b4, 1. b3, but it is still not 100% clear when and how that will happen, so stay tuned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why have I included it on this list?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though I am aware it is very shameless and douchey to include your own repertoire into the \u201eBest of\u201c list, considering it is a highly subjective one, I couldn\u2019t do without doing it because this repertoire had a huge impact on my life \u2013 its release led to me quitting my day-time job and working for Chessable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Aside from that non-chess factor, I honestly think it is a decent repertoire. I put many hours of analysis and writing into it and I was (and still am) proud of the final result.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, that doesn\u2019t mean it is anywhere near perfect. Since it was my very first repertoire and since I had no clue what I was doing, there are so many things I would have done differently today. I already talked about it in my promo post for this blog<\/a>, but some of the things I would have changed are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n I do plan to address these issues in the near future and fix the repertoire even more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But all that aside, I still think it contains a lot of useful information for a potential Modern Defence player AND it literally changed my life for the better, so I have absolutely no problem mentioning it again :).<\/p>\n\n\n\n Besides, if you really thought I am NOT the type of person who would include his own work into any BEST OF list, I am not sure what you are doing on this blog in the first place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What is the course about?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n My colleague and fellow Chessable\u2019s Publishing Manager WFM Maaike Keetman<\/a> provides the student with a dynamic and combative repertoire for the Black pieces based on the Nimzo-Indian 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In contrast to many other Nimzo-repertoires, she refrains from going for \u201eequalizing\u201c quickly with an early d5, but rather prefers to play to win by playing b6-Bb7 and\/or c5 as often as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why have I included it on this list?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Even though I haven\u2019t studied her repertoire yet and have no interest in the Nimzo-Indian for Black, I did take a look inside the course 8<\/sup><\/a> and was highly impressed with its content. It is enough to say that the repertoire currently has 180k words, which is the record word-count on the site when it comes to Chessable\u2019s original content. 9<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\nBEST CHESSABLE COURSES 2020<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
Lifetime Repertoires: Caro-Kann by GM Erwin L\u2019Ami<\/a><\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
French Toast: How Harikrishna fries 1.. e6 by GM Pentala Harikrishna<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/a>
The Complete Chess Swindler by New In Chess and GM David Smerdon<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n
Lifetime Repertoires: Najdorf Sicilian by GM Anish Giri<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n
100 Endgames You Must Know by New In Chess\/Jesus de La Villa, presented by IM John Bartholomew<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n
Break The Rules: Play the Trompowsky by FM Kamil Plichta<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/a>
Chess Principles Reloaded: Center by IM Andras Toth<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/a>
The Complete Open Sicilian Vol 1 for White by NM mn79<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/a>
Crush the Pirc, Modern & Philidor by Chessforlife<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n
The Modern Defence Against Everything by CM Vjekoslav Nemec<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n
Honorable Mention: The Fierce Nimzo-Indian by WFM Maaike Keetman<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n
<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n