How Good Will You Fare in this Chess Aptitude Quiz?

Beyond Chess Moves: The Test

This chess aptitude test, created by GM Jonathan Levitt, is a great method of examining how well you can do with chess. The book entitled "Genius in Chess," written by Jonathan Levitt, also explains the test.

Chess Board Setup

Comprehending the chessboard diagram in algebraic notation is the first step to achieve before taking the quiz. If you are well-versed with chess notation, you can leave out this paragraph and go to the part where I describe the exam. Based on algebraic chess notation, every row of the chess board is designated with a number from one thru eight, beginning on white's side. Starting from left to right of white's side, each column is described with letters "a" to "h." A square, which is where a row and column would intersect, is described by both a letter and a number. If you are on the white's side of the chessboard, the top rightmost square, is h8. As you will see from the illustration on the webpage mentioned above, the uppermost square, farthest to the right is a1.

Kindly visit my chess game strategies site. You can see a common square checkered chessboard that has the algebraic notation. The illustration is found in the resources link at the bottom of the webpage.

Now let me describe the exam:

The test involves a timer, a board, 1 white knight, and 1 black queen.

The knight is placed on b1. The black queen is placed on d4. White's knight has to move around the board, visiting the following squares in this order: c1, e1, f1, h1, a2, c2, e2, g2, h2, until you reach g8. The knight won't be able to visit h8 because it is controlled by the black queen. At any time while completing the quiz, the queen be moved nor can the knight be placed in danger of being caught by the black queen.

It's all right to move the black knight without using the order given above but only if it is really necessary, for example, moving from c1 to e1. Nonetheless, the black knight still has to return to the initial sequence. This test is time-critical and has to be taken only once. Jonathan Levitt considers anyone who can complete the test in less than ten minutes has "real chess talent."

Unwavering attention and the determination to learn is what is needed to pass the quiz. You have to think well on how the knight should move. Up to now, not all who had taken the test was able to even get to c1.

I have provided the answer to the exam to help you assess yourself. You can find the answer in my chess tips site. You would need to click on the resources link to view it. Some of the finest names in chess have taken the test and I've placed them in the site.

Now that you know what the quiz is, why not attempt to answer it? As the saying goes, there's no harm in trying.

You shouldn't worry if it takes you more than ten minutes to finish the test. Mastering the test takes intense analysis and not memorizing the moves.

Some people, especially novices, are tempted to memorize the moves. These guys would surely have some difficulty finishing the quiz. Real chess aptitude is determined only if you plan your move. Playing chess is about planning and how good you adjust. As in every game or sports, you have to learn from experience and practice, practice, practice.

Bio: Chad Kimball has been playing chess even as a small child. Besides playing chess, he has written, edited, and published chess books. His books are published online. He also offers chess courses online. Because of him, we have "The Grandmaster Strategy Video Training Library." This is a very helpful resource found on the Internet.

This amazing training set contains twenty-nine training videos, fourteen training e-books, and some bonus items. You can get all these just for the price of one chess book that you can find at your local bookstore. Defeating your challengers on the chessboard is just a few clicks away. Learn more about this amazing training library at the chess game resource site.