Coach Chesswick
Hi Guillermo! 👋
Great job maintaining an active playing schedule and reaching a personal peak of 2300 (2019-09-29). After reviewing your most-recent games (especially the win versus hammertime2016 and the loss versus kesandr), here is some focused feedback.
What you’re doing well ✅
- Dynamic openings – As Black you employ the Alekhine and Sicilian to unbalance positions early. This often gives you practical chances and forces opponents out of mainstream theory.
- Tactical alertness – Combinations such as …Rg3-g1# in your win vs. Hammertime show sharp calculation skills.
- Piece activity over material – Several games feature timely exchange sacrifices that give lasting initiative.
Key areas to focus on ⚙️
- Time management
Three of the recent losses were on the clock. Try:- Using the opening phase to save time by playing pre-agreed lines you know well.
- Setting mini-milestones: aim to have ≥60 % of your initial time after 10 moves, ≥30 % after 20 moves, etc.
- End-game conversion
In the loss to Kesandr you reached a roughly equal rook-and-pawn ending but drifted. Study the basics of the rook behind passed pawn principle and the concept of Opposition. Practical drill: play “R+4 vs R+4” against an engine on easy mode until you can hold it consistently. - Pawn-structure awareness
Several Sicilian white games feature early d4-d5 breaks that leave backward c-pawns. Before pushing a pawn ask yourself, “Will this square become weak once the pawn moves?” Annotate one of your own games and mark every irreversible pawn move in red. - Refine your Alekhine repertoire
You often reach the critical main line: 1.e4 Nf6 2.e5 Nd5 3.d4 d6. Opponents who know 4.Nf3 or 4.c4 achieve comfortable space. Two suggestions:- Study the Modern Variation 4…g6; it keeps the position flexible.
- Have an alternate defence (e.g. the French) ready for days when the Alekhine feels stale.
Action plan for the next two weeks 📅
| Day | Task | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Mon / Thu | 30 tactical puzzles (rating 1400-1800) | 20 min |
| Tue / Fri | Watch one annotated end-game video & replay examples on board | 25 min |
| Wed | Update your Alekhine notebook – add 3 new sub-lines | 30 min |
| Weekend | Play two 15 | 10 games; annotate the first 20 moves immediately after | 1 hr |
Progress trackers
• Hour-by-hour performance:
• Day-of-week trends:
Motivation boost 🚀
Your tactical eye already wins you brilliant games; polishing the technical and time-management sides will convert many of those close losses into points. Keep the momentum, and your next peak rating is just around the corner!
Good luck, and enjoy your games!