Coach Chesswick
Hi Benjamin (“Bentery”) – Performance Review & Road-Map
What you already do very well
- Dynamic piece play. The Taimanov crush against obaltin and the 14.Nxf7!! shot versus XTFChess show elite tactical eyesight.
- Harmonious development from your 1.Nf3 / 1.b3 repertoire. You consistently reach middlegames you understand and often seize the initiative before move 15.
- Practical feel in wild positions. Even when the engine calls it “=”, you pose problems that make opponents resign or flag.
Recurring issues in the latest sample
- Time-management – the main leak.
4 of your last 6 losses were on time in playable positions.
Fixes:- Adopt a 30-20-10 rule: first 10 moves ≤30 s total, next 10 moves ≤20 s each, then slow down.
- Think during the opponent’s clock; have two candidate moves ready.
- One-week drill: 100 bullet games → review only moves made <0.5 s to weed out auto-blunders.
- French Defense problems (Black).
Positions after 8…Qb4+!? (vs Rus159SP) or 13…Qb5 (vs AndreiKostin) left the queen stranded and your king on e8/c8.
Action plan:- Replace
…Qb4+pawn grabs with the solid Fort Knox idea (…Be7–Bd7–Bc6). - Memorise the schematic: …dxe4, …c5 break, minor pieces out before queen adventures.
- Do 20 annotated games of Caro-Kann; decide whether it suits you better as a second weapon.
- Replace
- Conversion when ahead.
Against Instinct5514 you were two pawns up on move 30 yet needed the flag. In the Hamzeh_Masoud game you were winning but let counterplay.
Training:- Endgame drill: play the “rook-up” bot 20 times, target mate ≤40 moves.
- Rule of two trades: when up ≥2 pawns, exchange queens and one rook within 5 moves.
Opening menu going forward
| Side | Keep | Add / Refine |
|---|---|---|
| White | Réti/English with b3 | Main-line d4 vs French/Slav players |
| Black vs 1.e4 | French (Burn & Exchange) | Test Caro or 1…e5; keep Fort Knox as safe French fallback |
| Black vs 1.d4 | QGA (…b5 line) | Solid …e6 …Be7 setup to avoid early queen races |
Tactical motif of the week
Lesson: Ignoring development for pawn-grabs lets White unleash forcing sequences. Contrast with your wins, where you developed first and then sacrificed on f7.Your peak ratings
- Blitz: 2651 (2025-06-17)
- Rapid:
1-Week micro-plan
- Play 50 blitz games; record average time spent on first 15 moves → aim for ≤12 s.
- Annotate every French game, marking any queen move before move 12 in red.
- 200 puzzles 2200-2600 (“Advanced” + “Defensive”).
- End of week: check to confirm lower flag losses.
With sharper clock handling and a tidier French, 2500+ blitz is within reach. Keep the creativity, streamline the technique, and see you in the next review!