Bahne Fuhrmann FM

Hi Bahne!

Congratulations on consistently playing at a strong 2300+ level (2374 (2025-05-07)), and thank you for sharing your games. I have analysed the most recent batch and highlighted the patterns that matter most for the next rating jump.

1. What you already do very well

• Flexible English repertoire. With White you steer the game into symmetrical English and Anglo-Indian set-ups that suit your understanding of pawn-structure play.
• Sharp tactical awareness. Your wins against wufito and filip1983 show you spot resourceful tactics (e.g. 20…Nf3+ followed by 21…Re1+!).
• Conversion technique once ahead. In several wins you calmly simplified to winning rook or pawn endings instead of hunting for highlights.

2. Recurring issues that cost points

1. Over-ambitious early queen activity in the English.
   In your loss to Ladislav Langner the manoeuvre Qa4–Qc2–Qd2–Qc3 burned tempi and left the back rank undefended. A more restrained plan (Qa4–b3–Bb2 or simple d4) keeps harmony.
2. Central tension mis-timed in QGD structures.
   Against 22MrC you played 17…c5 and 18…c4 without finishing development. The resulting weak d6/e6 squares became fatal when White’s knight jumped to d7 and f6.
   Guideline: in the Exchange QGD delay …c5 until the queen knight is on d7 and the light-squared bishop has left f8.
3. Time-management swings.
   Many of your wins/losses reach <10 seconds each. Blunders at moves 20-30 often correlate with under 25 s on your clock; tightening your move-rate in the opening will leave you extra “thinking units” for critical middlegames.

3. Opening upgrades (quick wins)

4. Practical exercise from your own game

Study the critical moment from the loss vs. 22MrC:

Set this up against an engine and try to hold Black’s position without allowing the Ra8–a1 pin. Repeat until the defensive resources become second-nature.

5. Endgame fine-tuning

• Rook + knight vs rook endings. Two recent games reached N+R vs R structures. Refresh the Philidor/Lucena ideas so you convert (or save) them flawlessly.
• Opposite-colour bishop endings after pawn breaks. In the win vs Vladyslav2008 you showed good technique; replicate that in tighter situations by rehearsing “good bishop vs bad bishop” endgames.

6. Training plan (next 4-6 weeks)

1. Prophylaxis drill: once per day pause a master game on move 15 and predict the next three moves for the side to move, focusing on what the opponent wants.
2. Clock discipline: play 10 rapid games where you spend maximum 60 s on the first 10 moves. Track success with
   .
3. QGD repertoire patch: work through 10 illustrative games by Kramnik (Black) vs the Exchange line; build a flash-card with the typical piece placement.

7. Motivation snapshot

Your attacking wins are already master-level; shoring up opening discipline and time-management should add 50-80 Elo quickly, pushing you toward NM strength.

Good luck, and feel free to send your next set of games for review. Happy hunting!