EP.213 - IM Greg Shahade returns again

In an annual tradition, IM Greg Shahade returns to the show. Greg is the founder of the Pro Chess League as well as the US Chess School, and is a former scholastic champion turned adult-improving, dangerous speed chess specialist. His Chess.com blitz rating hovers in the 2600-2700 range, and he has beaten the likes of GM Alexey Shirov and GM Praggnanandhaa in recent Chess.com TItled Tuesday tournaments. Greg breaks down the secrets to his success- it turns out it has involved a lot of hard work on his openings! He also impart lessons from his success in order to help improving players lower on the rating ladder. Additional topics include:  the growth and evolution of chess, why Greg isn’t as vocal about his chess promotion ideas anymore, plus he answers a few fun Patreon mailbag questions. Whether you agree with Greg’s views of chess or not, its always fun to hear his perspective. Please read on for lots more details and timestamps.    Prior Interviews with IM Greg Shahade  Episode 1 Episode 55 Episode 107 Episode 159 0:00-  Greg’s blitz rating has been consistently improving even as he hits his early 40s. What are his study tricks? What approach should he take to study openings?   Mentioned: Chessable.com, GM Alexei Shirov, GM Kiril Alekseenko, GM Jan Gustafsson’s Lifetime Repertoires Course, GM Elshan Moriadibadi, The London System, IM Andras Toth, GM Magnus Carlsen  10:00- A question from the Patreon mailbag. What is the best way for a beginner to study an opening repertoire?  Mentioned: Fight like Magnus: The Sveshnikov Sicilian, Lifetime Repertories: Nimzo-Ragozin Defense, Sam Shankland’s 1. D4 Chessable course  18:00- What is the status of Greg’s blitz game?  Mentioned: GM Kirill Alekseenko, GM Conrad Holt    22:00- What is the status of Greg’s Twitch streaming career?  23:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Get Chessable’s IOS app if you haven’t already, and you can check out their latest offerings here: https://www.chessable.com/courses/all/new/