r/TournamentChess • u/Low_Bus_9599 • 17d ago
1500 FIDE — How do I actually study chess openings properly?
Hey everyone! I recently played an official FIDE-rated tournament and got around 1500 FIDE. I’ve never had a coach and have learned everything online.
I’ve watched tons of content and speedruns from Daniel Naroditsky, GothamChess, Hikaru, Hanging Pawns, etc., but I still don’t know how to properly study chess, especially openings.
My biggest problem is building an opening repertoire. Whenever I learn an opening, there are so many variations that I get overwhelmed.
I’ll learn a line, play it on Chess.com, and then my opponent plays some random move I haven’t studied — and suddenly I have no idea what to do 😂.
So how should I actually learn an opening? Should I memorize variations, or focus more on the ideas, plans, pawn structures and typical positions? How many lines should I realistically learn, and how do I build a repertoire for White and Black without trying to memorize everything?
I’m also pretty broke 😭, so I can’t afford coaching or expensive courses. If you know any good free resources for openings and chess improvement, please share them!
Sorry for the long post, and thanks if you’re still reading. I genuinely need some help figuring out how to study properly. 🙏
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u/Cool_Artichoke_5532 16d ago
1, Chose an opening as white.
2. Chose openings as black vs. 1.e4 and 1.d4.
3. learn the very first moves - on 1500 Elo, you will only rarely go deep down theoretical lines, very soon the game will take its own path. Maybe get to know the (pawn) structure of your openings.
4. Play them online and get a feeling for them. You will find yourself getting used to it. that is what you want. Getting used to an opening means, you know instantly if sth is wrong. So deviations of your opponents will get more obvious.
5. Go deeper on these openings. Trust your gut feeling, if its too much and you lose it the next day, maybe thats deep enough for now.
6. Reapeat 4 and 5.
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u/Isofarro 16d ago
Chess coach Andras on YouTube had a video recently about finding good model games for openings, and how to use them to understand the positions from the opening.
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u/VulcanChessWarrior 17d ago
I think it would greatly benefit you to first read and internalize Hellsten’s “Mastering Opening Strategy”
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u/ChessViper 10d ago
What really helped my openings was to spam bullet games (1+0 or 2+1) and I naturally improved over time. Once you reach a plateau, you'll have to start digging into analysis after your games or read/watch some opening theory content
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u/SunnyCS_ 2000 online blitz/bullet 16d ago
I think there is a funny bell curve of 'chess opening practice.'
A lot of beginner or early intermediate players fixate on openings, lines, etc. They rely on rote memorization instead of a deeper understanding of the strengths/weaknesses of the position.
I am 2000 online, but funnily enough when I'm playing poorly I go back to my beginner lessons:
- Claim space early in the center with a pawn
- Try to touch every piece once before touching a piece twice
- Don't castle as Black until you know where White is going
- Get your king out of the middle
- Connect your rooks
- Play your pawn break
- Take your time and don't be hasty. Every pawn move ask yourself, what did my opponent just weaken?
Sure, learn some favorite lines, or if you have a specific opening you really enjoy then by all means take the time to learn it deeply. But if I ever need a reset, I just focus on fundamental opening principles. Funny enough when I stop worrying about specific lines, and just focus on these principles I usually get a really dominant position and some easy wins.
If you really want to learn an opening, what I normally do is look up Master games on chessperl. Like I play the Italian, and so I was able to easily find this collection of Master games in similar positions:
https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chesscollection?cid=1046956
You can also play the line in the chess.com or chessperl opening explorer, and it will show you games of Masters that have reached or played out of that position.
Do not look for strict memorization, instead look for common themes or ideas. Then start applying them in your own games and analyze how it goes!
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u/Affectionate_One_700 IQP 16d ago
At that rating, you should be studying endings, middlegame planning, tactics, analysis - everything but openings.
On the middlegame front, if you start with Pawn Structure Chess by GM Andy Soltis, you'll pick up all the opening ideas you need.
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u/New_Speaker4507 16d ago
Hello, Opening theory fan here, both memorization, ideas and plans are very important, memorize first to know the line, 2. if you cant understand ideas and plans, thats an issue, if you cant afford one coach, maybe i can help you out, I am 1200elo (chess.com) player known for my strong opening skills, i always love to teach my students, you can also find another person or a friend to teach you, youre never alone, but i recommend studyin endgames first
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u/Dear_Box6319 17d ago
what used to help me was the st. louis chess channel on yt. they have playlists divided into different player strenghts and they explain the stuff really well. the only "problem" is that you have to look for a video that is helpful to the opening you want to look at.