{"id":3402,"date":"2022-05-02T19:02:43","date_gmt":"2022-05-02T19:02:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chessquestions.com\/?p=3402"},"modified":"2022-05-02T19:10:57","modified_gmt":"2022-05-02T19:10:57","slug":"closed-positions-in-chess","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chessquestions.com\/closed-positions-in-chess\/","title":{"rendered":"The Advantages and Disadvantages of Playing Closed Positions in Chess:"},"content":{"rendered":"

⭐⭐⭐ Take 6 minutes to read and improve your chess game ➡️ : This article was first published on, and is Copyright of Chessquestions.com<\/p>\n

In chess, every position on the board can be classified as either open or closed. It is important to understand what is closed position in chess<\/strong> in order to become a complete player, it will allow you to become more flexible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Open positions are more common and typically arise early in the game, while a closed center is less common and tends to occur later on. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this blog post, I will discuss what constitutes closed positions in chess, and look at the benefits and disadvantages of playing them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What is closed position in chess<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A closed position in chess is a particular structure<\/a> where the pawns are placed in a way that there is a blockade, <\/strong>this blockade prevents the mobility of pieces and hampers progress for both players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is where you and your opponent’s pawns are blocked by each other<\/strong> in a way that prevents advancement, a breakthrough needs to be executed in order to progress further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Look at the Pawns<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

An easy way to identify a position that is closed is to look at the structure of the pawns<\/strong>, if the pawns are placed in a way where they are blocking each other’s advance then we have a locked pawn center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are positions where only a partial part of the pawn structure is closed,<\/strong> even in this instance as it is also generally considered as a closed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Open Position<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The opposite of closed is open position, basically, a position where the pawns do not block many tiles<\/strong> and the pieces can move on their own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If both sides keep on pushing the pawns without capturing then the position would naturally be a closed one,<\/strong> if both sides take many pawns, the position will be open.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are the benefits of playing closed positions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The benefit of going closed is it would likely end in a draw<\/strong>, or your opponent needs to perform a breakthrough or pawn break in order to look for a win.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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If you are playing against a highly rated opponent, going for a closed position is a good option,<\/strong> this is because you limit the number of available moves that the opponent has in each turn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A highly-rated opponent is likely to come out on top if you play normally,<\/strong> playing for a win with a closed position is one of the best strategies that you can take.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Handy for Draws too<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It is not only when you are playing a highly rated opponent either, there are also instances like a position in a tournament where you just want to draw a particular game and limit your opponent’s opportunity of pawn breaks.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the position is closed it is significantly harder to look for a win<\/strong>, this is because there is only a limited amount of moves that both players can take.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the position is open there will be a lot of opportunities to create an attack and effectively play the position freely, when the position is closed, on the other hand, there is less place, there are locked pawns, and probably few open files<\/a> and the best squares occupied.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here, an attack is very unlikely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Link to how chess pieces<\/a> move, tile and link<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are the disadvantages of playing closed positions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The main disadvantage of playing a closed position is you are limiting your own opportunities to win yourself,<\/strong> I mean you can push for a breakthrough but this would also come with a risk of loss from an impatient move.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hikaru Nakamura<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There is a famous game between Hikaru Nakamura and Rybka (strong supercomputer) where Hikaru wins after having the board completely locked, and the trick that he uses is to wait for the computer to be impatient in a closed position.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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