Practice blindfold chess? Research says no! (Openings)

by Mahout, Tuesday, September 04, 2007, 05:11 (6678 days ago) @ mindcramp

?They say that blindfold chess ability
? comes almost automatically once the player has acquired enough "chunks" and
? "templates" (=pattern recognition and deeper understanding); unless the
? player has reached that point, it is not efficient to practice it.

If this is the case then an ability to play blindfold could be a barometer of your ability or to phrase it in a more painful way - if you can't play blindfold you're not very good
?