Garry Kasparov Chess MasterClass Review (Upadated in 2024)

Last Updated on September, 2024

You may have played chess with friends or even competed in advanced chess tournaments.

And many online chess courses are readily available to keep your chess game on point. But there is no assurance in terms of teaching quality and content reliability. 

By watching the Garry Kasparov Masterclass, you allow yourself to learn from and play with the chess master himself.

In this Garry Kasparov Masterclass review, I have extensively covered all the necessary information under respective subtopics to deliver the up-to-date and relevant information you seek. 

About Garry Kasparov

Out of 2533 on-record chess games, Kasparov has only an 8.45% loss rate. Kasparov is arguably one of the few best chess players of all time in chess history to have a rightful claim to the title of “best ever.”

And that’s who you will play chess with if you take this Masterclass.

Read on to understand how this Garry Kasparov Masterclass review can help you determine if watching this class will help make a difference in your chess game.

What Does the Garry Kasparov Masterclass Promise You?

In the introductory video, Garry Kasparov says, “This Masterclass is for anyone who likes a game of chess, who wants to improve his or her own chess game.”

So this Masterclass chess course targets an audience of chess enthusiasts from different skill levels. And that includes advanced, intermediate, and beginner chess players.

Now that the target audience is established let’s return to the promise.

There is no clear pledged promise of any sort where you are told that by the end of this class, you’ll have mastered chess moves to play like a pro chess player or anything.

But since it is a Masterclass, Kasparov will discuss different elements of the game of chess and how to apply what you learned.

So Kasparov says, “I will believe that this Masterclass was a success, if I can inspire you, to learn not just about the game of chess, but about the other things.

If you feel enriched, encouraged and inspired- I hope that with this class I will inspire you to love the game of chess as much as I do.”

One thing I would like to highlight about this Masterclass is that it’s not meant to be binge-watched, and I understood that from the 3rd video onwards.

Each Garry Kasparov chess lesson departs you with an immense amount of information you must draw out as knowledge. And how much you can draw out from each of these chess lessons depends on your learning speed. 

Hence, the best way to learn from this Masterclass is to take your time, watch each video and absorb information as you see fit while applying and practicing what you learn. 

You’ll have to keep reading to know if Garry Kasparov lives up to his promise.

What is the Cost of the Garry Kasparov Masterclass?

The Garry Kasparov Masterclass does not come with an individual price tag because the Masterclass platform does not offer individual class purchases. So to learn chess from the world champion, you must sign up for a Masterclass membership. 

The pricing scheme for Masterclass’s annual memberships is as follows;

• Individual- $180 per year at $15 per month
• Duo- $240 per year at $20 per month
• Family- $276 per year at $23 per month

The image below shows what you can expect from each subscription plan;

All memberships are annual plans, so you can choose one of the above plans based on your lifestyle setting.

For those who find the price a bit hefty, don’t forget that these plans are not limited to the chess class. It gives you unlimited access to over 180+ online courses in the Masterclass library.

So you can watch so many more other masterclass courses. Besides, Masterclasses’s top-notch instructor panel and video production quality will never cease to amaze you.

What is Included in Garry Kasparov’s Masterclass?

Video Lessons

The Garry Kasparov masterclass is a collection of 29 video classes, including the introductory video. These videos, in total, add up to a runtime of 7 hours and 20 minutes.

For all these videos, subtitles are available in 4 languages: English, French, German, and Spanish. Also, you can watch these video classes at different speeds and quality.

Although 7 hours and 20 minutes is binge-watchable, it is not recommended for this Masterclass, because each video requires you to grasp and soak-in complex chunks of information that’s best done alongside practice sessions to perfect it.

Like Kasparov says, “Don’t try to play the game that goes against your natural instinct.”

So as a chess player, if you want to maximize your learning experience from this class, I recommend you watch and re-watch one lesson a week while you apply and practice what you learn from this class throughout that week.

This way, you’ll give yourself enough time to let the new strategies and techniques you learn soak in.

In time you’ll be able to apply these moves in your own chess game from a more natural origin rather than going by the book to make an effort to execute certain moves intentionally.

This learning pace is great even for advanced chess players because chess is a game of conscious decisions.

Class Guide

The class guide is a downloadable workbook. It is a fantastic supplement to the video lessons. This 86-page workbook thoroughly elaborates on all the video lessons. It provides additional context to all the chess strategies introduced in each chapter.

This guide is organized by chapters to coincide with what you learn from each video.

This workbook also contains additional information and practice positions to widen the scope of learning beyond the videos. It gives a chess player more opportunities to learn from practice.

Inside the Garry Kasparov Masterclass: A Detailed Layout

Structure of the Lesson

As mentioned above, Garry Kasparov’s Masterclass has 29 video lessons. Each lesson is a chapter of the class, and the chapters are as follows;

Lesson Summary

Garry Kasparov’s Masterclass follows an interesting flow. Typically you’d expect a class to start from the basics and then move on to the advanced content, which in chess is the fundamentals and then the openings.

But when you look at the chapters, you will see the ‘openings’ are covered towards the middle of the class.

The class begins with chess fundamentals, where Kasparov talks about tactics, strategies, personal playing style, timing, solving using a chess board, and many other factors that are required in a general sense for any chess game.

He then covers double attacks, skewers, pins, and other chess tactics until chapter 10.

He then elaborates on endgames and openings for three chapters each. 

In chapter 18, you can see Garry Kasparov in action in a simul against three other advanced players. And the following chapters analyze each one of these games. Beginners and intermediate players can learn alot from this game analysis. 

In the end part of the Masterclass, Kasparov talks about mental toughness, computers, and chess. He concludes with a bonus class called Secret Novelty, where he discloses a secret move he discovered by revisiting a game he failed to win in 1990.

What Did I Learn From the Garry Kasparov Masterclass?

I am fairly new to chess, but I know my basics. After watching this Masterclass, I understand how much more I can learn. I also understand that by watching this class just once, I will not learn it all in one go.

As a beginner, I believe revisiting each chapter and practicing the tactics I learn in an AI game will help improve my game. 

It is also important to highlight that this class carries much valuable information that will methodically help you grow and analyze your own game to produce better moves in the future. 

My Key Takeaways

Here are some points that stood out for me;

• Chess is a game with endless possibilities. It requires mental toughness to make calculated and conscious decisions attentively.
• Revisit and analyze your games to discover new possibilities. 
• It is important to learn endgame techniques to specifically apply in the final stages of a game because many people spend time in the openings and the middle game.
• Although AI has millions of chess games in the database, you have to try to learn beyond that.
• You can learn from many patterns, stories, and classes, but at the end of the day, you have to find your own way rather than follow a set pattern. 

What Did I Like About the Garry Kasparov Masterclass?

First, in terms of the video production value, what I loved about the class was that a chess board on the right side of the playback screen mirrored the moves played by Kasparov.

The position illustrations were helpful for me to follow the moves and exercise them on the board. 

The PDF workbook was similarly helpful, with plenty of reading material and position illustrations Kasparov teaches in the video. But overall, it wasn’t a complete repetition of the video classes.

Moving on to the chess content, I feel Kasparov’s explanations were pretty easy to understand. I liked how he explained the concepts in simple terms while showing concrete examples for each. 

Also, while teaching, on a few occasions, Kasparov tells the learner to pause the video and take time to solve the displayed puzzle. Putting it into practice while learning and getting to know new techniques is an excellent way of learning for me.

An interesting thing about the lesson structure that caught my attention is where Kasparov covers the opening towards the mid-part of the class. 

After reviewing tactical patterns in the middlegame, key motifs, positions in the endgame, and general strategy, Kasparov introduces the opening chapter.

And he specifically mentions that he’s got no secret to reveal when it comes to openings, meaning we have to choose wisely the best opening strategy that works for us rather than following a said pattern. This choice will naturally come to you with practice.

On the other hand, the case studies provided much insight as Kasparov explained every game move. This helped me analyze and anticipate my opponent’s possible chess moves. 

Other MasterClass reviews:

• Ron Finley Teaches Gardening
• Neil Degrasse Tyson Teaches Thinking and Communication

Quotes From the Garry Kasparov Masterclass That Made an Impact on Me

What I Didn’t Like About the Garry Kasparov Masterclass?

I felt like Kasparov had to deliver the content in a constrained time frame. 

This is not something that I particularly disliked. Still, it is more of something that I noticed and thought was worth mentioning because I am someone who learns from repetition. 

Although Kasparov’s comments are clear and instructive, they lacked repetition when teaching the positions of the chess pieces.

But this is understandable as this is not a one-to-one class. It is designed to be watched and re-watched as a guide while you naturally infuse what you learn into your own games. 

Also, the simul, chapter 18, is quite long, and some may find it unnecessary. But this is definitely a good addition for those who like watching Garry Kasparov in action.

Those who don’t can simply skip this chapter and analyze this game in the following chapters. So no complaints there either.

Other than that, I am satisfied with what I gained from watching this class, and I have much more to re-watch and learn.

Does the Garry Kasparov Masterclass Live Up to its Promises?

Yes. It absolutely does. Even an advanced chess player will agree with me on this. I say yes because if I watch this Masterclass again, I will learn something new that I didn’t when I watched it the previous time. 

The fact that I discover something new every time I re-watch it keeps me inspired to go back and learn more, not only from this particular class but also from other sources.

And this is exactly what Kasparov initially mentioned in his introductory video. If he inspires you to love chess through this Masterclass, it is supposed to be a success.

So no doubt, the Garry Kasparov Masterclass undoubtedly lives up to its promise for me.

Garry Kasparov’s Masterclass: Customer Testimonials

Below are a few reviews of students who enjoyed the Garry Kasparov Masterclass. Reading these reviews will give you an unbiased opinion on how good the class is. 

Is the Garry Kasparov Masterclass Worth Your Time and Money?

Garry Kasparov’s Masterclass is a great course for aspiring chess players of all levels looking to up their game.

This class leaves you with a wealth of knowledge and deeper insight into the various techniques and strategies to execute openings, middle games, and endgames. 

You will be able to understand different complex concepts and learn pattern recognition through the practical knowledge instilled in you by watching this Masterclass. Therefore the Garry Kasparov Masterclass is a worthwhile investment.

If you want to learn more about the MasterClass platform, click here.

Frequently Asked Questions

Final Thoughts

The whole purpose of this Garry Kasparov Masterclass review was for me to tell you if I actually did learn chess or improved my game by watching this class.

And so we come to an end, and I tell you this without any doubts: Yes, I learned much more about chess through this class. I intend to watch it a few more times to naturally infuse the many tactics I learned from Garry Kasparov. 

In the meantime, I will test my competency by taking up online games to ensure I use the possible tactics where applicable.

I hope this Garry Kasparov Masterclass review gave you what you wanted. And I hope I inspired you to take up this class.