Chess Coaching Advice for Gil

Coach Chesswick

Hi Gil! Here’s some constructive feedback based on your latest games.

Tactical eye: You routinely find mating nets in under 30 moves. The finish 25…Rxb1+ 26.Qc1 Rxc1# against pishu12345 is a good example of clean calculation under time pressure.
Pressure with the initiative: In several wins you traded material for activity (e.g. 18.exf5 21.Rxe5 vs vautrinfosca). This willingness to play dynamically is a great asset at bullet speeds.
Piece activity out of the opening: You rarely keep pieces buried on their back rank. Fast development pays dividends in 60-second games.

King safety in the first ten moves
Losses to lievel0t and others reveal an exposed king and an unprotected f2/f7 square.
Illustrative miniature (9 moves):

Take-away: Follow the basic opening order: develop minor pieces, castle, only then bring the queen out.
Opening repertoire depth You play many different first moves (1.e4, 1.d4, 1.c4) but know only the first 3-4 moves of each line. That’s fine for blitz creativity, yet it costs time and accuracy at bullet. • Choose one main opening with White and one defence with Black and drill the first 8-10 moves. • Spend 15 min/day on the interactive explorer or a short video—no need for theoretical marathons.
Time management Two recent games were lost on time while you were materially ahead. • Use the “pre-move + safe-move” technique whenever the reply is forcing (recaptures, checks, etc.). • Set a mental checkpoint: if you drop below 15 s, switch to “move-per-second” mode—no long calculations.
Conversion technique in won positions Even winning mating attacks stalled when a simple endgame trade would finish the job. • After reaching a winning position, ask “What is the simplest path?” Very often it is exchanging queens or pushing passed pawns. • Practise basic endgames (K+P vs K, rook endings) 5 minutes per session—this pays off quickly.

Day	Task (≈15 min)
Mon / Thu	10 puzzles focused on checks, captures, threats. Tag any miss as a blunder.
Tue / Fri	Review one of your own wins and one loss. Ask “Where could I have castled earlier?”
Wed	Rehearse your chosen opening lines vs the computer until move 10.
Weekend	Play a 5-minute rapid game (slower than bullet) to practise thought process without clock panic.

Breathe before the first move—starting relaxed saves seconds later.
Accept that a clean simple win is worth more than a brilliant but risky one.
Celebrate small improvements: spotting a one-move threat before it happens is progress.

Keep up the fighting spirit, Gil, and good luck in your next session!