Thanks for answering Dennis

I just found out I'm playing the same guy on sunday, I'll be sure to consider my clock a 'fighting piece'.

Thanks for sharing, Dennis. I've got a couple questions:

In the endgame starting with 1. Kxe1, immediately after Ka7-b6 Ka4-b4, my knee-jerk reaction is to play c4-c3 to gain the opposition with Black's king on c5. I analyzed this endgame (with Crafty blunder-checking for me) and I think the Kc6-d6 idea only draws...

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In any event, it's a good endgame exercise to sharpen one's endgame skills.
Is there some endgame rule of thumb (in a similar position) that might imply that c4-c3 is not a candidate move (e.g. rules for inside/outside passed pawns, rules for pawn races, etc.)?

In future lectures, could you increase the volume by about 5-10 dB? My poor speakers are humming along during the lecture!

I look forward to seeing your game analysis videos!

First, thanks for all the work you put into this, and for answering the questions.

Second, a quick (but not exonerating) explanation for my poor play and accepting the draw in the second game. That game was from a few months after I started playing (and since I couldn't find any more recent endgames (because I began to avoid them unless I had a solid material advantage) I thought it was a good example), and I had never studied anything in regards to the endgame (but I just recently got Silman's Complete Endgame Course which I'm reading now). And I guess I was a bit intimidated by my opponent's rating (600 points higher than mine) so I accepted the draw when I couldn't find any win.
I guess a lot of my problems stem from pushing pawns when I should maneuver with my king instead (like pushing b4 in the first game and g4 in the second game), but there is no way I would have found that Kd3 idea in that first game.

Thank you sir, the explanations as usual were very instructive. On my first question: You answered it right on I believe. Even though the answer seemed obvious. Some of us don't know this.

On the other question. About memorizing the games. To be fair to the master that wrote this: I should have mentioned he said someone of expert strength, wanting to break into master should consider doing this, and that he challenged anyone to prove him wrong.

I think still that your explanation covered that well even not knowing that part, again my fault for forgetting. I thank you for being apart of this site.

Jesse

Many thanks Dennis- all very interesting as usual. Friedel's knight ending was fascinating, though white can queen with check in the position at 12.00 so all the stuff beginning with Nf4+ was strictly unnecessary...