Coach Chesswick
Hi Siul! 👋
Great job keeping an active schedule and climbing steadily – your recent peak is already impressive (2058 (2017-05-15)). Below is a concise review of the last batch of games, followed by practical tasks to accelerate your progress.
✅ What you already do very well
- Sharp tactical vision – In your win against sonnenfeld27 you unleashed Bxf7⁺ → Qd5⁺ → Ng5⁺ to force the king into a mating net. Spotting that sequence in just ~30 seconds shows excellent pattern recognition.
- Dynamic pawn storms – You frequently advance the h- and g-pawns (e.g. 6.h4/7.g4 vs the Scandinavian) to seize space and open files against fianchettoed bishops. This keeps opponents under constant pressure.
- Initiative-first mindset – Many positions reach +5 or more material only after you’ve converted an attack. This “pieces matter after mate” attitude is healthy for aggressive players.
🚧 Main themes to address next
- Time management
- All five of your recorded losses were on time – even in clearly equal or better positions. Build a checkpoint habit: at move 15 and again at move 30 glance at the clock and aim to have >50 % of your initial time left.
- When ahead materially, switch to “safe-mode”: trade queens, simplify, and use increment instead of hunting the prettiest line.
- Over-extension on the queenside vs Philidor/…d6-e5 setups
You often push a4–a5 + b4 (see the game vs bata_bg) without completing development. Opponents then strike with …c5/…b5.
Drill: Play 10 blitz games starting from the diagram after 9…b6 (Philidor) against the computer; focus on completing development before pawn storms. - Endgame conversion
Several wins reach R+P vs R endings where you still needed opponent blunders. Pick any basic rook ending (Lucena, Philidor, Vancura) and test yourself five times each day for a week.
📈 Suggested training plan
- Opening focus (4 hrs)
- Add a solid anti-Philidor line: 1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 e5 4.Nf3 exd4 5.Qxd4 or 4…Nbd7 5.g4!? if you still want aggression.
- Prepare a safe French sideline as Black to avoid time-consuming labyrinths in correspondence – e.g. the Rubinstein with …dxe4.
- Tactics (15 min/day) – Continue but add a one-minute cool-down after each streak to mimic OTB breathing time.
- Endgames (2 hrs/week) – Use “Lucena → Philidor → minor-piece” ladder. Mark each as mastered only after you can win or draw vs engine defence three times in a row.
- Self-review – After every session, load the game without an engine and ask: “Where did my plan stop making sense?” Two such questions beat a 20-min engine click-fest.
📊 When do you win most?
🎯 Tactical snack (your most recent miniature)
Show PGN (click)
Next session goal
Play three rapid games focusing on clock awareness. If you finish each game with >1 minute left and no blunders (<-2 eval swings), reward yourself with a fun puzzle rush run!
Good luck, and feel free to reach out after a week with your new games – we’ll refine the plan together.