It’s tempting to think of companies as faceless, evil entities – “more machine than man”, as one Jedi knight famously put it. And while we are proudly evil, we are not machines!!
Alas, companies are made up of real people, and chess companies are made up of real chess players, as it turns out. Chess players who rely on Chessable courses to improve their game just like you.
So this summer we decided to launch a campaign called Staff Picks, where we introduce you to some of the folks behind Chessable, and the courses they hold near and dear to their hearts. They’ve seen a lot of courses, after all – nearly 2,000 at this point – so you know when a course catches their eye, it must be something!
Here are some of Team Chessable’s picks:
The Fundamentals series by GM Artur Yusupov
recommended by Luciana M.
Luciana is our social media manager and founder of the #yusupov_loyalists channel on our company Slack (Don’t ask – it’s a whole movement. You’ll probably see them winning elections soon anyway).
But it’s hard to blame her loyalism to the legendary trainer when so many strong players have learned so much from him. Here’s what Luciana had to say:
“As a long-time Yusupov loyalist, his work has shaped my chess journey for as long as I can remember. Back in my teenage competitive days, I absorbed a lot from his books. Today, as a trainer, I recommend his Fundamentals series to my students for the clarity, rigor and structure it provides.”
Check out The Fundamentals
The Practical Philidor by NM Luke Calhoun
recommended by Erwin K.
As one of our publishing managers, you can expect Erwin to know a thing or two about the course creation process. So for him to say this about NM Luke Calhoun’s Philidor Defense course really counts for something:
“The Practical Philidor is easily among the best opening courses I’ve published during my time as publishing manager, and Luke is simply an amazing author. From annotation, to video, to activity on the forums, to how he approached the publication process, it’s clear that he really loves teaching and sharing his knowledge.”
Check out The Practical Philidor
Pawn Endgames for Beginners by WGM Adriana Nikolova
recommended by Vansh P.
Endgames are that area of chess everyone dreads studying, but when they actually go to do it, they find them surprisingly easy, fun and rating-boosting. Pawn Endgames for Beginners did that for marketing team member Vansh in a big way:
“I chose this course because I am fond of the Russian school of chess and have developed a strong interest in endgames. The clear explanations, fun problems, and daily practice made it enjoyable to review and sharpen my understanding.”
Check out Pawn Endgames for Beginners
The Relentless Reti (for casual players) by Benner
recommended by Nils B.
As a senior member of the Chessable video team, you can be sure Nils not only reads our courses, but is also intimately familiar with the on-screen presentation skills of our authors. And in his case, community author Benner caught his eye with The Relentless Reti:
“It was my first white opening that I truly understood and studied. It got me from around 1400 to 1800. Most just don’t understand how to play against it.”
Check out The Relentless Reti
The Hippopotamus Defence by FM Alessio Desantis, presented by GM Simon Williams
recommended by Craig A.
Another video team pick, and another offbeat opening choice!
Okay, okay, we kid the video team, and their openings. But we’re just mad because Craig is right! The Hippopotamus Defense is an annoyingly tough nut to crack, all the way up to master level. I can attest to that, having lost to Craig myself in the Hippo. As he puts it:
“It is a great opening that is pretty easy to start learning and can be used against the majority of openings White tries to play. It has been played even at the top levels and is an opening that can be played with both black and white pieces.”
Check out The Hippopotamus Defence
Lifetime Repertoires: Plichta’s 1.e4 e5 by FM Kamil Plichta
recommended by Pepe D.
Pepe is a member of our engineering team and an incredibly strong chess player – rated over 2600 on Chess.com Bullet and 2400 in Blitz! He turns to his fellow speed chess specialist to develop his opening repertoire:
“I bought this course for “the obvious reason”: it was another Kamil Plichta course. After all, if anyone could turn “1. e4, e5” into a spicy topic, it’s him. And it didn’t disappoint! “Pattern Breaker” is exactly what this repertoire is. Not only does it avoid the paths where White has all the fun, but it also gives clear, easy-to-remember lines. Very fun to learn and fun to play!”
Check out Lifetime Repertoires: Plichta’s 1.e4 e5
So there you have it – the insider scoop on staff favorite Chessable courses. Use this information responsibly. Ah, who are we kidding? We can’t wait for you to beat as many people as possible with these courses (we did say we were evil, didn’t we?).
We even encourage it, because you can get all of these courses and more on sale for a limited time. Check them out today: Shop all Staff Picks.