There is so much more to chess than memorizing openings or every move has a counter move. That is just an unfounded lazy take that isnt factual.
Understanding the opening portion of the game is important but memorizing wont help. You need to understand the whys in order to have any kind of success because there are just too many variations. This is more true the better the competition.
Chess is brutal because unless you are a top 5 player in the world you lose a lot. I get into it in spurts because losing bothers me too much.
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