Must-Know Endgames for 1.d4 Players (9h Video Running Time) 

Must-Know Endgames for 1.d4 Players

This product includes all the videos from the camp as well as the PGN file related to the training sessions. Overall, the material consists of 9 hours of video and a PGN database which includes 123 files! 

You will find the following lectures:

✅ Endgames with a Backward Pawn on c6 - GM Krasimir Rusev

✅ Endgames with Blocked Centre - GM Mihail Marin

✅ IQP & Symmetrical Structure (d4 vs d5) - Typical Endgame Strategies - GM Ioannis Papaioannou

✅ Endgames with Pawn Majorities - GM Nikola Mitkov

✅ Symmetrical Endgames with open "c" and "d" files - GM Grigor Grigorov

✅ Carlsbad Structure - Typical Endgames - GM Petar Arnaudov

Now, we shall take a look at the different lectures.

Endgames with a Backward Pawn on c6 - GM Krasimir Rusev

In this lecture, GM Krasimir Rusev examines the endgames with the backward c6-pawn. As a rule, those endgames are unpleasant to defend for the side with a backward pawn. GM Rusev explains the most important plans and ideas for the stronger side in model games, but he also shows how modern engines defend those positions. Studying those positions carefully will help you increase your endgame skills and your chess understanding in general.

Below, you shall see one of the model games.

Endgames with Blocked Centre - GM Mihail Marin

Positions with blocked centre are tremendously important for every player. By dedicating time to this topic, besides gaining a better understanding of your openings, you will improve your general chess understanding. Very often even the strongest computers fail to evaluate these positions properly. This is one more reason to study them carefully. Such understanding will provide you with an important advantage over your competition. The lecture is divided into the following sections:

1) Pawn Endings

2) Rook Endings

3) Knight Versus Bishop

4) Bishop Endings

5) Queen Endings

6) Knight Endings

After studying all these sections, you will know which piece configuration works best in the concrete position. 

You shall take a look at one of the examples.

IQP & Symmetrical Structure (d4 vs d5) - Typical Endgame Strategies - GM Ioannis Papaioannou

This lecture is dedicated to two of the most fundamental structures - symmetrical structure with pawns on d4 and d5 (with open "c" and "e" files) and isolated queen's pawn.

Structure 1

Structure 2

In practice, these two structures are closely related. In IQP positions, every exchange on the d5(d4)-square might lead to a symmetrical position. In the annotated model games, you will find all the must-know classical and modern ideas in these two structures. Papaioannou examines in great detail the possible exchanges, piece configurations, and structural modifications. When you analyze these positions with a computer, you will never learn all the important subtleties. After studying the lecture, you will know how to put pressure on your opponent in seemingly equal positions.

Below, you can examine one of the most classical examples.

Endgames with Pawn Majorities - GM Nikola Mitkov

The current lecture will examine endgames with a pawn majority on the flank. In almost every opening, you can achieve such an endgame; mastering the nuances and correct ideas will increase your results and understanding.  Sometimes even the main idea of the opening is to achieve a favorable endgame with a pawn majority on one flank.

Usually, when you have a pawn majority on one flank, your opponent has the same on the other side of the board. It is a race who will start advancing his pawns faster. As a rule, the side with a queenside majority has an advantage because it is always challenging to advance the pawns around your king. The rule is that it is easier to move fewer pawns, and it is easier to create a passed pawn. Also, having three against two pawns or two against one pawn rather than four against three is always helpful.

GM Mitkov covers almost every opening after 1.d4 in the model games and includes many of his games.

Below, you can see an example.

Symmetrical Endgames with open "c" and "d" files - GM Grigor Grigorov

This lecture features one of the most important structures that every 1.d4 player should know.

The structure that you see on the diagram can be reached in most of the openings after 1.d4, 1.c4, and 1.Nf3 (even after 1.e4!).  Very often the arising endgames look quite drawish and therefore many players underestimate them. That's the reason why knowing how to handle this important type of position will provide you with a huge competitive advantage. You will see how often it will be possible to squeeze water out of a stone.  The lecture is divided into the following subtopics:

1) Piece Activity

2) The importance of the c6-square

3) Fighting for the c5(c4)-square

4) Catalan Pressure

5) f3-e4 Pawn Barrier

6) Overextended Queenside

7) c-file is More Important

8) Playing on Both Wings

9) The vulnerable e5-pawn in the endgame

10) QGA - Brief Repertoire for White

Each one of these topics comes with extensively annotated model games. I am sure that after studying the material you will improve your general chess understanding.

Here is one of the model games.

Carlsbad Structure - Typical Endgames - GM Petar Arnaudov

In this lecture, GM Arnaudov examines all kinds of endgames in the so-called Carlsbad Structure.

He divides them into several types

1. White plays b4-b5, followed by bxc6. In those cases, White usually tries to exchange some pieces for reducing Black's dynamic possibility. Then in the endgame, he starts putting pressure on the c6-pawn and is trying to create a second weakness on the other side of the board. Model games for this type of endgame are Kotov - Pachman, Maletin - Debashis, Topalov-Piket, Nikolov - Drenchev, Grischuk - Le, Giri - Sarana, Kurajica - Franco,  Sunilduth - Movsesian, Tomashevsky - Grachev

2. White is trying to get b4-b5, but Black is faster with a kingside attack or f5-f4 creating weaknesses on the kingside  Model games: Portisch - Kasparov and Andrews - Hoffmann. We can also include Messen - Ivanov, where Black's activity compensates for the structural damage

3. White creates two weaknesses (usually after cxb5 for Black or after a5-a6 followed by axb7) - d5-pawn + a or b pawns.

4. Black answers b4-b5 with c6-c5  Model Game - Kovalenko - Hort

5. Black is answering b4-b5 with the a6-a5  Model game is Bu-Malakhof 6. White answers b7-b5 with a4-a5 - Model game - Mamedyarov - Rakhmanov 7. Queenless middlegames - Carlsen - Kramnik and Lutz - Yussupov Model games are: Pillsbury - Showalter and Karpov - Ljubojevic

Below, is one of the model games.