I think that there is another situation.

I was playing in the 2nd grade high school nationals on Board 2 in Round 8. I was playing black against a really beautiful girl who had the highest rating in the tournament and we were in an endgame where we both had two rooks and a Bishop and I was slightly better, but I had only 2 minutes left (timecontrol was 15min+10 sec) and she had 9! I decided that a draw against the highest rated person would be ok and that from my tournament status a draw would still keep my chances for a medal alive so I decided to play for a draw. Despite this fact the funny thing was that I was sort of scared to offer the draw because I was sure she would deny it. After playing two moves that didn't make any progress I thought:

wait a minute I'm playing passively in a better position! That means that sooner or later advantage will be gone and she will have the upper hand. But what can I do? Yes I found it I'm going to offer a draw! If she denies I can't continue playing passively as I know she won't accept the draw and if she agrees, mission accomplished!

So I smiled and asked: Draw? After thinking, she smiled back and said "I'm sorry, no"

This was like waking me up! I played 4-5 accurate moves and I was still kind of =+ When she simled for a second time and said "Draw?"  I looked on the clock and saw that I had 40 seconds left. Then I gave my hand and said "Sure", felt relieved, took the half point and slowly walked out of the hall chating with her about our game.

P.S. You can't imagine what my friends were telling me after the game...They were proud to have a friend that was able to keep his eyes on the board while playing her

I sometimes propose a draw if the material is equal and position is safe for both, especially if the game has already been going on for a long time or if I have lots of games going on. 

Are there any good books or published texts on draw offers? OTB, I don't really feel confident to offer one when I want to in case there are unexpectted/unwanted consequences.

The article is nice, but this point is wrong:

Only an idiot would offer a draw that he doesn't want you to take.

It's a well-known trick: offering a draw in an equal position when your opponent is definitely aimed at playing for a win (e.g. he's rated higher). Then he may become frustrated and try to go for a dubious continuation, lose balance and, eventually, the game.

Your example immediately skews things in favour of your conclusion - "John's opponent has a great chance to win the position because he is higher rated and is likely to know the position better and the fact that John is now playing scared chess."

What if the players are equally rated/skilled? Wouldn't that be the natural assumption for an illustrative example?

Psychological ploys work differently for different people. It's all subjective, you can't just say "psychological reasons x,y and z, therefore you shouldn't offer draws".

There is no such thing as gamesmanship. It is a useless proposition.

The position on the board is the only reality of chess.

There is no need to buy off on anything else.

There is exactly 1 reason to offer a draw. To save time.

thank you !

I have written a column on exactly this subject.  Check it out:

The Open File - Draw Offers

Regards, Zug

I aggee about gamesmanship. A big part of chess, as in most things, is mental outlook, how you view events, and outcomes. To me a draw is a draw.

I disagree too, I have used the draw offer as a psychological weapon fairly often, most notably in my first tournament game after 5-year break. The intention was simple, make him "throw himself on the sword" by playing hard for a win where there was none to be had.

I offered the first once I've repulsed his early attack, just to taunt him with it. The 2nd gave in a rook ending that objectively was drawn (improved version of theoretical draw).

I had, however, no fear that he would accept as he not only had all the winning chances, but also was rated 800 points above me. Pressed by his decision to try for a win, he soon blundered into a loss by running the king too far in a desperate winning attempt. He did, however, notice his mistake and offered a draw in turn. The look on his face when I turned it down without second thought was priceless. He was sure that I only played for a draw when I in truth had tried to win the whole game. It has worked since too, but never quite so perfectly. I also have it as a moral guideline not to offer a draw in a position I believe I cannot hold.

Once I talked with HariKrishna(India #2) on this, he has the opposite view "When your opponent offers a draw in a drawish position and he rejects it, he will most likely loose it" He is under the pressure to prove something 

Once again, my examples and thoughts were not very well articulated.  It was more of a retort to a recent experience my friend had in an OTB tournament.  While I never said you can't win if you offer a draw, I said that it's not very good to offer a draw.  This type of thinking was flawed on my behalf, although I do believe playing the position out will lead to knowledge and the better understanding of the game of chess.  Thanks for reading and my blog will be much better next time!

Here is a game i played recently were I offered the draw and ended up winning.

My point is actually that it is best to play until it is dead drawn because you will learn more and improve that way.  I found an inadequate example of explaining this.

"Nothing in chess has more psychological power than a draw offer."

I strogly disagree with that!

Read Winning Chess Psychology, by Pal Benko and then we'll talk.

I am always ready to play a game all the way out, even if I offer a draw. If I am offered a draw in an equal position, I will usually reject it, if I think there are reasonable chances.

A lot of people feel that a draw is "fair" if the position is equal.  Equal is just not necessarily drawish.

Of course there are situations where I might offer a draw if that outcome will suit me. If half a point is all that's needed to win or place in the event, it's reasonable to offer, but I don't expect the opponent to accept it.

I expect to play on.

"If you decline his offer and play a few more moves, your opponent will likely make an inaccuracy playing for a draw and you could sneak an extra half point out of the game."

Maybe an weak-minded player. A strong-minded player would be able to make a draw offer and keep their brain working.

@akischess: exactly.

A person who has just refused a draw offer feels compelled to push for a win. Rationally, they shouldn't play any different compared to before the offer (nothing has changed), but in reality they start taking risks, starting unprepared attacks, etc.

They also have the other false mindset, "if he is offering a draw he will only be playing for a draw if I refuse. He isn't playing for a win."

I wouldn't offer a draw if I couldn't live with him accepting, but offering it doesn't mean I want a draw.

I sometimes think that If I offer a draw and it gets declined, I try even harder to turn it into a win. It's more annoying losing if you have been offered a draw I think.

I understand your ideas.  That's called a Trojan Horse draw offer.  But if he is going to offer a draw, he better be prepared if it is accepted if he doesn't want you to take it.  The guy who declines doesn't have to try to force the issue.  But for the average club player, this method of play is the most advisable. This is just my opinion.