Raisa Melissa Barria Baker de Corrales WFM

Hi Raisa Melissa Barria Baker de Corrales!

You are playing dynamic, initiative-oriented chess and are already reaping the rewards: your recent 5-game winning streak shows how quickly you can seize the momentum once the position sharpens. Keep that attacking spirit! Below is a short summary of your current profile:

• Peak blitz rating: 2112 (2025-06-05)
• Favourite time control: 3 + 0 (based on most recent activity)
• Typical weekly playing rhythm: see
• Hourly performance swings:

What You’re Already Doing Well

1. Fast development & central control
   With White you routinely play d4/c4/Nc3/Nf3 and reach positions where your pieces are the first to claim the centre. Against …g6/…Bg7 setups you don’t hesitate to install a knight on e5 or pressure d5 early.
2. Tactical alertness
   Your win against rzgrspeedup features a textbook exploitation of piece activity. The sequence 23.Qf7! e5 24.dxe5 fxe5 25.h5! created threats on multiple files and forced Black’s defences to collapse. Relive the key phase here:
   
   .
3. Good feel for open files
   You consistently put rooks on c- and e-files the moment they open, e.g. Rc1/Rc7 in the same game or the doubled rooks on the e-file versus surfwithalien. This indicates healthy board vision.

Priorities for the Next Rating Jump

1. End-game technique & pawn-structure understanding
   In the loss to ginobi87 (Caro-Kann Exchange) you reached an equal pawn ending but drifted after 33…g5?! 36…g4?! 38…h4? and eventually resigned a drawable position. • Study basic king-and-pawn endings (Philidor/Lucena, opposition, outside passed pawn).
   • Whenever queens come off, ask “Which pawn majority can give me a passer?”.
   • Practise converting small advantages in 10-minute games where there’s time to calculate.
2. King safety when playing …g6 or …h6/…g5 set-ups
   Several defeats (e.g. versus BiteYou and TamamaGumander) arose after premature pawn thrusts around your own monarch. Before pushing a pawn in front of your castled king, run the following checklist:
   • Can my opponent open lines with a pawn break?
   • Do I have pieces left to guard the weakened squares?
   • If the centre opens, will my king become a target?
3. Reduce reliance on “hope chess” tactics
   You often launch attacks with moves like h4-h5 or f4-f5 without a full calculation. When they land, the games are spectacular; when they fail, they fail hard. Train forcing-move calculation drills (checks, captures, threats) so that each attack is backed by concrete lines rather than optimism.
4. Time-management habits
   Several critical mistakes occurred below 20 seconds. Try the “30-second rule”: make moves while the clock shows ≥30 s unless facing a deep tactic. You’ll avoid frantic blunders and still keep the pace needed for 3-minute games.

Opening Tune-ups

Suggested Training Plan (4-week cycle)

• Week 1: Daily 15-minute tactics + 2 rapid (15 + 10) games focused on prophylaxis (prophylaxis).
• Week 2: End-game workbook (pawns & rook endings) – aim for 50 finished positions.
• Week 3: Opening review – build a draft repertoire file; annotate 3 of your own games, asking “What was the strategic plan?” after move 10.
• Week 4: Themed sparring vs a friend/bot: play Black side of Exchange Caro-Kann 10 times to learn typical manoeuvres.

“When you see a good move, look for a better one.” – Lasker

Keep up the hard work, Raisa, and your next rating milestone is closer than you think. Good luck in your upcoming games!