The tutor offers a few comments from his chess experience.

Castling, I have read, doubles the king’s security. Therefore, one idea is that a player should castle as early as possible. Since it develops the rook used to castle, it has the added advantage of being a developing move.

Playing against the computer, however, I find castling early offers a target. The computer seems less decisive when my king is still in the center, but could castle. While the computer remains non-committal, I get more time to develop my pieces. (I always play black, so an extra move is valuable.)

Some of my best wins have come from castling middle-game, or not castling at all. While that fact counters common chess thinking, I find that, often, I need to break with conventional wisdom to win. During a game, I’m often confused because I believe the move I “should” make will not lead to best advantage.

I’ll be sharing more of my chess reflections in coming posts:)

Source:

Horowitz, I.A., and Fred Reinfeld. How to Improve Your Chess. New York:
   Collier Books, 1972.

Jack of Oracle Tutoring by Jack and Diane, Campbell River, BC.