First find the right plan, then the good moves will follow!

Paperback, 400 pages

Every club player knows the problem: the opening has ended, and now what? With this book, International Master Herman Grooten presents to amateur players a complete and structured course on:

* how to recognize key characteristics in all types of positions

* how to make use of those characteristics to choose the right plan.

His teachings are based on the famous "Elements" of Wilhelm Steinitz, but Grooten has significantly expanded and updated the work of the first World Champion. He supplies many modern examples, tested in his own practice as a coach of talented youngsters.

In Chess Strategy for Club Players you will learn the basic elements of positional understanding:

* pawn structure

* piece placement

* lead in development

* open files

* weaknesses

space advantage

king safety.

You will master the art of converting a temporary plus into other, more permanent advantages. The author also explains what to do when, in a given position, the basic principles seem to point in different directions. Each chapter of this fundamental primer ends with a set of highly instructive exercises.

Herman Grooten is an International Master and a chess coach with over 25 years of experience. Quite a few of his pupils have gone on to become grandmasters, among them Loek van Wely and Jan Werle.