David Walker FM

Hi David!

You’ve put together an impressive body of rapid games recently. Below is a quick snapshot, followed by detailed, constructive feedback to help you climb beyond your current level.

Quick Overview

• Current peak rapid rating: 2189 (2021-08-21).
• Typical session curve:
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• Weekly consistency:
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What You’re Doing Well

1. Sound opening choices. The French Defence (as Black) and 1.d4 systems (as White) suit your positional style and usually leave you with a healthy structure. In your recent win against ao9iiozerovwk you calmly traded queens on move 7, neutralised counter-play and converted the rook ending smoothly with 48.Ra8#.
2. Piece activity & coordination. You consistently place rooks on open files and double them when possible (e.g. 21…Rad8 and 23…Rfd8 in the same game).
3. End-game confidence. Several victories were sealed in technical endings where you kept your extra pawn and avoided swindles.
4. Fighting spirit. You rarely agree to premature draws and often outplay opponents in mutual time pressure.

Main Improvement Targets

1. King safety in the French Advance. In the loss vs HalloweenParty666 your 6…f6 & 8…g5 plan weakened the dark squares. When White answered with 10.Qh5+ and 11.Bxg5+ you were forced into an exposed king walk. • Instead of 6…f6, consider the main line 6…Qb6 or the solid 6…Nge7.
2. Handling flank pawn storms. Multiple defeats show early …g5 / …h5 pushes that backfire (see 2023-05-21 vs bedsdrout). Try to ask “Who benefits if the file opens?” before committing wing pawns – this is classic prophylaxis.
3. Tactical alertness under time pressure. Missed forks (e.g. 31…Rxe2? allowing 32.Rxe2 in the gmnorfolk game) tend to appear after the 2-minute mark. • Add 10-minute daily sessions on Puzzle Rush Survival to drill calculation when tired.
4. End-game rook technique vs passed pawns. The resignations against bedsdrout and viktorskliarov both stemmed from struggling to stop advanced pawns. Review classic rook-and-pawn endings (Philidor & Lucena) and practise converting with the “bridge-building” method.

Action Plan for the Next Two Weeks

1. Annotate your most recent win and loss (PGNs below) focusing on critical moments – not every move.
   • Ask “What were the alternatives?” and “Which pawn breaks mattered?”
2. Solve 25 rated tactics per day with a 3-minute timer to emulate game tension.
3. Play two 10 + 5 games each day where you spend at least 30 seconds on moves 10-15 to avoid automatic pawn pushes.
4. Rehearse the defensive setup vs the French Advance using the Lichess opening trainer or your preferred repertoire tool.
5. Watch one short lesson on zwischenzug or intermediate moves – this theme pops up often in your French structures.

Reference PGNs

Final Thoughts

Keep leveraging your strategic understanding while tightening the tactical screws. A focused two-week routine can easily add 50–100 points to your rating.

Good luck, and feel free to ping me after your next dozen games for a follow-up!