The game gives us a satisfaction that Life denies us. And for the Chess player, the success which crowns his work, the great dispeller of sorrows, is named 'combination'.

Chess is, above all, a fight.

The combination player thinks forward; he starts from the given position, and tries the forceful moves in his mind

In Chess, as it is played by masters, chance is practically eliminated.

Loss generally occurs when a player overrates his advantage or for other reasons seeks to derive from a minute advantage a great return such as a forced win.

He who has a slight disadvantage plays more attentively, inventively and more boldly than his antagonist who either takes it easy or aspires after too much. Thus a slight disadvantage is very frequently seen to convert into a good, solid advantage.

The laws of chess do not permit a free choice: you have to move whether you like it or not.