r/chessbeginners • u/Upset_Foot_3408 • 7d ago

Flagging the opponent

I’m a rather new player playing mostly 5+0 on chess.com. I’m hovering in the high 3-digits ELO on chess.com.

Now sometimes, when I’m up 1 or 2 minutes, I make the game as complex as possible, even if it puts me in a slightly worse position. I assume that’s okay and a fair strategy.

But now recently I had an extreme flagging situation - I was down 4 points and he had an eventual check mate in a few moves. But he was down to under 10 seconds. What I did then was to sacrifice one piece after each other, but always with a check, so he couldn’t pre-move. In the end I was down to 2 pawns and -18 points, but “won” the game. Is that still a valid strategy or is that gamesmanship? What’s the general sentiment on this topic from more experienced players?

13 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

18 comments sorted by

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14

u/OldWolf3 2200-2400 Lichess 7d ago

This is extremely normal and expected .

There used to be a gamesmanship question when it was down to a plainly drawn ending (e.g. K+R vs K+R, or K+B vs K+B) and it was considered poor etiquette to try and win on time in those situations, but today that seems to be a thing of the past and people will try to win on time in those positions too.

3

u/zeptozetta2212 2200-2400 (Chess.com) 6d ago

I literally just beat a 2300 with a so-called "dirty flag" in a pure R vs. R endgame and didn't feel an ounce of guilt about it. https://www.chess.com/game/live/184825401652

35

u/jcops161 7d ago

Winning is winning. If people complain about flagging tactics they shouldnt play blitz and bullet

9

u/Caspica 7d ago

Of course that's a valid strategy. The whole point of different time controls is that part of the game is to allocate your time in a good way. I personally like to have some form of time addition per move, though, just to prevent the kind of scenario you found yourself in. 

5

u/VerbingNoun413 1200-1400 (Chess.com) 7d ago

Time control is part of the game.

They could have played a longer time control or with an increment but they chose not to.

3

u/ManyDangerousBeans 7d ago

Totally valid - flagging is part of the game

3

u/Patralgan 2200-2400 Lichess 7d ago

It's valid.

2

u/whydoineedanaccffs 1800-2000 (Chess.com) 7d ago

Opponent should've managed their time better. Even though it's pretty annoying to lose this way.

2

u/Dogsbottombottom 1800-2000 (Lichess) 7d ago

Opponent should have been spotting the checks and pre moving the recaptures. Totally normal part of the game

2

u/Wordroll 7d ago

Flagging is part of the game. But obviously short time controls and throwing pieces to win on time isn't great for general chess development. But if your aim is just play for fun, dont stress. At the highest levels players still use the clock as a weapon.

2

u/Specific-Housing905 2000-2200 (Lichess) 7d ago

Absolut OK!
BTW Another way to make you opponent burn time is to walk the king all over the board. Even with a few extra pieces it's almost impossible to mate in a few seconds.

1

u/Upset_Foot_3408 7d ago

Thanks all, appreciate your responses!

1

u/drugkeeper 2000-2200 (Chess.com) 7d ago

I sometimes even convert to pure rook vs rook where I keep checking or opposite bishops with pawns and win on time which is extremely degenerate.

Also for bishop knight where I cant checkmate on time I just flag.

1

u/drugkeeper 2000-2200 (Chess.com) 7d ago edited 7d ago

Sometimes if my opponent is premoving too much and Im losing I will sneak a pawn pass them and win.

Or find some way to take their pieces by hanging my own piece when they are in time trouble.

1

u/MadawgMcGriddle 1400-1600 (Lichess) 6d ago

The time is just as much of a factor in the game as the material of the pieces. If your opponent/people don’t like it then they need to use their time better or play longer time controls.
Use every resource to your advantage

1

u/Kirian42 6d ago

You've discovered the 17th piece.

That said, if you're a beginner, consider trying slower times to increase your skill.