Opponent preparation
Opponent preparation is the work of studying a known opponent's past games and habits before a round so you can choose openings and plans that steer the game toward positions where they are less comfortable.
Also called: preparing for an opponent
When you know who you will face, a little research can pay off. Look through the opponent's recent games in a database or on a public site. Note which openings they play with each color, how they handle certain structures, and whether they tend to collapse under time pressure or play too quickly.
The aim is not to memorize everything but to make one or two practical decisions. Perhaps they always play the same line against the first move you favor, so you can prepare a sideline. Perhaps they avoid endgames, so you steer toward simplification. Prepare a position where you understand the plans, not a deep trap you barely remember.
A common mistake is over-preparing. Players spend hours on an unfamiliar opening, then forget the line at move eight and play a worse game than usual. Keep your preparation inside your own repertoire whenever possible.
Another mistake is assuming the opponent will repeat old choices. Players change, so have a fallback. Spend most of your preparation time on your own strengths, and treat the opponent research as a small adjustment on top of a sound routine.
Compare it with Repertoire building. Repertoire building is the process of choosing a small set of openings that suit your style and then learning their ideas, typical plans and key lines well enough to play them confidently.
Compare it with Opening preparation. Opening preparation is the work done before a game to know your chosen lines well, including studying your own repertoire and checking the likely choices of a specific opponent.
It sits close to Pre-game routine. A pre-game routine is a short, repeatable set of habits before a round, covering food, rest, light warm-up and a calm mindset, that helps you start the game alert and ready to think clearly.
Habits like "Opponent preparation" stick when someone checks them against your games. A first lesson with George Li ends in a written plan and homework for the weeks after.
Related terms
Opening preparation is the work done before a game to know your chosen lines well, including studying your own repertoire and checking the likely choices of a specific opponent.
An opening repertoire is the personal menu of opening lines a player has decided to rely on, so that with either color they know where they are heading and have answers ready for the opponent's most likely choices.
Repertoire building is the process of choosing a small set of openings that suit your style and then learning their ideas, typical plans and key lines well enough to play them confidently.
A pre-game routine is a short, repeatable set of habits before a round, covering food, rest, light warm-up and a calm mindset, that helps you start the game alert and ready to think clearly.
A novelty is a move that has not been played before in a known position of an opening, introduced to take the opponent out of their preparation and into unexplored territory.
A sideline is a less common or less critical branch of an opening that is considered playable but is not the move most often chosen at the highest level of theory.
Guides that go further
What to decide first, the questions to ask, what a first lesson should show and the red flags to avoid.
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Published rates for private, group and subscription chess coaching, with the source and the date of each.
A game review, a read on your level and a written study plan from George Li.
Want to spot this in your own games?
A first lesson starts with your games: George reviews them and builds a study plan around what he finds.